No-Code · head to head
Corteza vs Rowy
Corteza
No-Code
Apache-licensed open source low-code platform, formerly Crust, positioned against Salesforce
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Rowy
Spreadsheets
Spreadsheet interface for Google Cloud Firestore with cloud functions written in the browser
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Corteza planet Crust is a small company of roughly a dozen or so people, so the entire commercial support capability behind Corteza is thin and a large deployment can outgrow the vendors ability to respond.; Rowy every Firestore limit is inherited, including the one megabyte per document ceiling and roughly one sustained write per second per document, which surprises users who expect spreadsheet behaviour.
- They diverge on capability: Corteza covers Corteza Low Code, Rowy covers Firestore backed grid.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Corteza and Rowy actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (Open source, no licence fee), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).
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 Corteza
- Corteza Low Code
- Automation and workflow
- Bundled CRM
- Case management
- Federation
- Role-based access control
- Corteza Messaging and integrations
- Self-hosted deployment
Only in Rowy
- Firestore backed grid
- Browser authored cloud functions
- Typed columns
- Runs in your Google Cloud project
- Role based access
- Form view
- Open source
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Corteza
- A European public body that needs a case management system on servers inside its own jurisdiction with an auditable licence and no per-seat vendor feenot Rowy
- An NGO replacing a Salesforce donation that has run out, needing to keep the data model but remove the recurring costnot Rowy
- An integrator building a regulated vertical application it intends to resell, requiring a permissive licence it can ship commerciallynot Rowy
- A mid-size European company that wants one platform for internal applications and a sales pipeline without paying per seat as headcount growsnot Rowy
Rowy
- A Firebase application that needs an internal admin interface without building onenot Corteza
- Operations staff correcting production records in Firestore without developer involvementnot Corteza
- Attaching a small transformation or notification function to a field change without a full deployment pipelinenot Corteza
- A content team populating documents that a mobile application reads directly from Firestorenot Corteza
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Corteza
- Planet Crust is a small company of roughly a dozen or so people, so the entire commercial support capability behind Corteza is thin and a large deployment can outgrow the vendors ability to respond.
- No pricing is published for Planet Crusts support, hosting or implementation services, so the true running cost of a supported deployment cannot be estimated without a sales conversation.
- The connector ecosystem is small compared with commercial low-code platforms, so integrations with common SaaS tools usually mean writing against the REST API rather than installing something.
- Hiring is hard: almost nobody has Corteza on a CV, so you are training internal developers on a niche platform and you cannot easily replace them.
- The bundled CRM is a starting point rather than a mature product, and teams that expect Salesforce-equivalent sales functionality out of the box will spend months building the gap themselves.
Rowy
- Every Firestore limit is inherited, including the one megabyte per document ceiling and roughly one sustained write per second per document, which surprises users who expect spreadsheet behaviour.
- Firestore has no joins, so linking tables in the grid is a convenience layer rather than a relational feature and reports across collections still need a separate query.
- It is useful only to teams already on Firebase, so choosing it effectively locks the operational tooling to one cloud vendor.
- Query costs are billed by document read, and an unfiltered grid on a large collection can generate a bill that a spreadsheet user has no intuition for.
- Development activity has slowed relative to the broader category, so evaluate current maintenance before making it load bearing for internal operations.
Pricing, plan by plan
Corteza
Free- Corteza communityFree
- Apache 2.0 licensed with no feature gating
- Low-code builder, workflow engine, CRM and case management included
- Self-hosted on your own infrastructure
- Planet Crust support and services$undefined/year
- Commercial support, hosting and implementation from Planet Crust
- Custom application development
- Training
Rowy
Free- Open source self hostedFree
- No licence fee
- Deploys into your own Google Cloud project
- You pay Google Cloud for Firestore reads, writes and storage
Which should you pick?
Choose Corteza if
- You need corteza low code.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Linux, Self-hosted, Docker.
- You also want automation and workflow.
Choose Rowy if
- You need firestore backed grid.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want browser authored cloud functions.
Questions people ask
- Is Corteza or Rowy better?
- Neither clearly leads. Corteza starts at Free and Rowy at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Corteza or Rowy?
- Corteza starts at Free and Rowy at Free.
- Does Corteza or Rowy run on more platforms?
- Corteza runs on Web, Linux, Self-hosted, Docker. Rowy runs on Web.
- Can I use Corteza for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Corteza best used for?
- Corteza is most often used for a european public body that needs a case management system on servers inside its own jurisdiction with an auditable licence and no per-seat vendor fee, an ngo replacing a salesforce donation that has run out, needing to keep the data model but remove the recurring cost, an integrator building a regulated vertical application it intends to resell, requiring a permissive licence it can ship commercially, a mid-size european company that wants one platform for internal applications and a sales pipeline without paying per seat as headcount grows. Of those, a european public body that needs a case management system on servers inside its own jurisdiction with an auditable licence and no per-seat vendor fee and an ngo replacing a salesforce donation that has run out, needing to keep the data model but remove the recurring cost are not what Rowy is typically brought in for.
- What can Corteza do that Rowy cannot?
- Corteza covers Corteza Low Code, Automation and workflow, Bundled CRM, Case management. Rowy covers Firestore backed grid, Browser authored cloud functions, Typed columns, Runs in your Google Cloud project.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Corteza: Is Corteza the same thing as Crust?
Yes. The project was branded Crust and renamed Corteza in 2019 when Crust Technology donated it to the Commons Conservancy.
Rowy: Where is my data stored?
In your own Firestore instance inside your own Google Cloud project. Rowy does not hold a copy.
Corteza: Who owns the code?
The Commons Conservancy, a Dutch foundation. Planet Crust in Cork is the primary developer and sells commercial services around it.
Rowy: What does it cost to run?
No licence fee. You pay Google Cloud for Firestore reads, writes, storage and function invocations, and an open grid on a big collection reads a lot.
Corteza: Is there a paid enterprise edition?
No. Corteza is Apache 2.0 with no feature gating. Planet Crust sells support, hosting and development instead of a restricted edition.
Rowy: Can it do joins across collections?
Not really. Firestore does not support joins, and no interface layer can add them.
Corteza: Can it genuinely replace Salesforce?
For case management and a straightforward sales pipeline on a self-hosted footprint, yes. For a large sales organisation relying on AppExchange products and a mature ecosystem, no.
Rowy: Is there a row limit?
Not from Rowy. The limits that bite are Firestore document size and per document write throughput.
Rowy: Is it suitable if I am not on Firebase?
No. It is specifically a Firestore interface.
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