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Software · head to head

Budibase vs Databricks

Budibase logo

Budibase

Software

Build business apps in minutes

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Databricks logo

Databricks

Software

Unified analytics platform for data engineering and data science

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Budibase cloud plans are metered on automation actions, from 5,000 a month on Pro to 250,000 on Business; Databricks cloud compute is billed separately by the cloud provider on top of Databricks DBU charges
  • They diverge on capability: Budibase covers Drag-and-drop builder, Databricks covers Delta Lake.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Budibase and Databricks actually diverge.

Attributes where Budibase and Databricks differ
AttributeBudibaseDatabricks
Pricing modelopen-sourceusage-based
PlatformsWeb, Self-hostedWeb, Aws, Azure, Gcp
Founded20192013

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Budibase

  • Drag-and-drop builder
  • Database design
  • REST API
  • User management
  • Custom code
  • Workflows
  • Responsive design
  • 100+ integrations

Only in Databricks

  • Delta Lake
  • Apache Spark
  • MLflow
  • Unity Catalog
  • Photon Engine
  • Collaborative Notebooks
  • Auto-scaling
  • AWS

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Budibase

  • Building internal tools over existing databasesnot Databricks
  • Self-hosting an open source low-code platformnot Databricks
  • Admin panels and CRUD apps for operations teamsnot Databricks
  • Automations triggered by data changesnot Databricks

Databricks

  • Running Spark data engineering pipelines on managed clustersnot Budibase
  • Building a lakehouse over data in cloud object storagenot Budibase
  • Training and serving machine learning models alongside the datanot Budibase

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Budibase

  • Cloud plans are metered on automation actions, from 5,000 a month on Pro to 250,000 on Business
  • Creator seats are limited and cost $50 each beyond the included count
  • End users are $5 per user per month on top of the plan
  • Custom branding needs Premium, SSO enforcement and environment variables need Business, and audit logs are Enterprise only
  • Log retention is tiered from 1 day on Pro to 365 days on Enterprise
  • Monthly billing costs 20 percent more than annual

Databricks

  • Cloud compute is billed separately by the cloud provider on top of Databricks DBU charges
  • The free trial lasts 14 days
  • Discounts require a Committed Use Contract, with larger commitments needed for larger discounts
  • Azure Databricks pricing is set by Microsoft rather than by Databricks
  • Security and compliance capabilities are sold as separate platform add ons rather than included in the base rate

Pricing, plan by plan

Budibase

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Self-hosted
    • Community support
  • FreeFree
    • Cloud hosted
    • Limited features
  • Premium$50/month
    • Advanced features
    • Email support

Databricks

Free
  • Community EditionFree
    • Limited cluster
    • Notebook environment
    • Community support
  • Standard$0.07/DBU
    • Jobs compute
    • SQL compute
    • Standard support

Which should you pick?

Choose Budibase if

  • You need drag-and-drop builder.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted.
  • You also want database design.
Budibase review

Choose Databricks if

  • You need delta lake.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Aws, Azure, Gcp.
  • You also want apache spark.
Databricks review

Questions people ask

Is Budibase or Databricks better?
Neither clearly leads. Budibase starts at Free and Databricks at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Budibase or Databricks?
Budibase starts at Free and Databricks at Free.
Does Budibase or Databricks run on more platforms?
Budibase runs on Web, Self-hosted. Databricks runs on Web, Aws, Azure, Gcp.
Can I use Budibase for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Budibase best used for?
Budibase is most often used for building internal tools over existing databases, self-hosting an open source low-code platform, admin panels and crud apps for operations teams, automations triggered by data changes. Of those, building internal tools over existing databases and self-hosting an open source low-code platform are not what Databricks is typically brought in for.
What can Budibase do that Databricks cannot?
Budibase covers Drag-and-drop builder, Database design, REST API, User management. Databricks covers Delta Lake, Apache Spark, MLflow, Unity Catalog. Both handle Web support.
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