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Databases · head to head

Grist vs Immuta

Grist logo

Grist

Databases

The evolution of spreadsheets

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Immuta logo

Immuta

Databases

Attribute-based access control and masking applied inside Snowflake, Databricks and BigQuery

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Grist has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Grist business plan has minimum 5-user requirement; Immuta contracts commonly start around one hundred to two hundred thousand US dollars a year for mid-market deployments and exceed five hundred thousand at enterprise scale, which excludes most data teams without a regulatory mandate.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Grist and Immuta actually diverge.

Attributes where Grist and Immuta differ
AttributeGristImmuta
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, API, Cloud

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Databases).

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 Grist

Nothing recorded that Immuta does not also cover.

Only in Immuta

  • Attribute-based policy
  • Native enforcement
  • Dynamic masking
  • Row-level filtering
  • Purpose-based access
  • Sensitive data tagging
  • Audit logging
  • Multi-platform

What people use each for

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

Grist

  • Collaborative data and spreadsheet managementnot Immuta
  • Database creation and automationnot Immuta
  • Team data analysis and reportingnot Immuta

Immuta

  • A bank whose Snowflake estate has grown to tens of thousands of roles that no one can review before an auditnot Grist
  • A healthcare analytics team that must let researchers query patient data with identifiers masked unless a specific purpose is recordednot Grist
  • A multinational applying different residency and access rules per jurisdiction to the same tables without duplicating datasetsnot Grist
  • An organisation running both Snowflake and Databricks that wants one policy set rather than two divergent implementationsnot Grist

Where each one falls short

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

Grist

  • Business plan has minimum 5-user requirement
  • Enterprise self-hosted pricing not disclosed publicly
  • Annual billing discount only 20%, lower than some competitors

Immuta

  • Contracts commonly start around one hundred to two hundred thousand US dollars a year for mid-market deployments and exceed five hundred thousand at enterprise scale, which excludes most data teams without a regulatory mandate.
  • Policy is only as good as the data classification underneath it, so an organisation with poorly tagged columns will spend months on classification before Immuta enforces anything useful.
  • Native enforcement means capability varies by platform, and a feature available on Snowflake may be absent or behave differently on BigQuery, which undermines the promise of one policy set everywhere.
  • Adding an access governance layer creates a new dependency in the path to data: a misconfigured policy silently returns fewer rows rather than erroring, and analysts can act on incomplete results without noticing.
  • It governs cloud data platforms, so personal data in operational databases, files and SaaS applications sits outside its scope and needs separate controls, meaning Immuta is rarely the whole answer.

Pricing, plan by plan

Grist

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited documents
    • Up to 5,000 records per document
    • 30-day snapshot history
  • Pro$10/month
    • Up to 100,000 records per document
    • 3-year snapshot history
    • 100+ AI credits monthly
  • Business$30/month
    • 150,000 records per document
    • 5-year snapshot history
    • 2,000 AI credits monthly

Immuta

On request
  • Immuta Platform$undefined/year
    • Attribute-based policy authoring
    • Native enforcement in supported data platforms
    • Dynamic masking and row-level security

Which should you pick?

Choose Grist if

  • You want to start without paying.
Grist review

Choose Immuta if

  • You need attribute-based policy.
  • You work on Web, API, Cloud.
  • You also want native enforcement.
Immuta review

Questions people ask

Is Grist or Immuta better?
Neither clearly leads. Grist starts at Free and Immuta at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Grist or Immuta?
Grist has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Grist and On request for Immuta.
Does Grist or Immuta run on more platforms?
Grist runs on Web. Immuta runs on Web, API, Cloud.
Can I use Grist for free?
Yes. Grist has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Immuta starts at On request.
What is Grist best used for?
Grist is most often used for collaborative data and spreadsheet management, database creation and automation, team data analysis and reporting. Of those, collaborative data and spreadsheet management and database creation and automation are not what Immuta is typically brought in for.
What can Grist do that Immuta cannot?
Immuta covers Attribute-based policy, Native enforcement, Dynamic masking, Row-level filtering.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Grist: Does Grist have a free version?

Yes. Grist Free includes unlimited documents with up to 5,000 records each, 30-day snapshot history, and 100 AI Assistant credits. No credit card required.

Source
Immuta: Does Immuta sit in the query path?

No. It compiles policies into the data platform's own native controls, so queries run at normal speed through your existing tools.

Grist: How much does Grist Pro cost?

Grist Pro is $10/user/month (billed monthly) or $8/user/month with annual billing. It includes up to 100,000 records per document and 3-year snapshot history.

Source
Immuta: What does it cost?

Not published. Market data suggests roughly 100,000 to 200,000 US dollars a year for mid-market deployments and considerably more at enterprise scale.

Grist: What does Grist's Business plan include?

Grist Business is $30/user/month ($24 annually) with a minimum of 5 users. It includes 150,000 records per document, 5-year snapshot history, 2,000 AI credits monthly, and automations with priority support.

Source
Immuta: Is Immuta still independent?

Yes. It remains independently owned, unlike several competitors in data access governance that have been acquired.

Grist: Do nonprofits get discounts on Grist?

Yes. Nonprofits receive a 50% discount on the Pro plan with Letter of Determination verification.

Source
Immuta: Does it work across more than one warehouse?

Yes, one policy set can target Snowflake, Databricks, BigQuery and Starburst, though enforcement capability varies by platform.

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