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Databases · head to head

Grist vs Turso

Grist logo

Grist

Databases

The evolution of spreadsheets

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Turso logo

Turso

Databases

SQLite-lineage database platform for running very large numbers of small per-tenant databases, with an MIT-licensed engine.

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Grist business plan has minimum 5-user requirement; Turso sQLite allows one writer per database, so a single tenant's write throughput cannot be scaled horizontally and a busy tenant serialises against itself with no sharding option.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Grist and Turso actually diverge.

Attributes where Grist and Turso differ
AttributeGristTurso

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web), 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 Turso does not also cover.

Only in Turso

  • Per-tenant databases
  • MIT licence
  • Embedded replicas
  • SQLite compatibility
  • HTTP access
  • Branching
  • Point-in-time restore
  • In-process engine

What people use each for

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

Grist

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

Turso

  • Multi-tenant SaaS where each customer gets their own database for real isolation, per-tenant restore and clean deletionnot Grist
  • Agent or session infrastructure that creates a throwaway database per task and destroys it afterwardsnot Grist
  • Local-first and offline-capable applications where an embedded replica serves reads at file speed and syncs when connectivity returnsnot Grist
  • Embedding a SQLite-compatible engine in a product where the public domain original's closed contribution model is a problemnot 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

Turso

  • SQLite allows one writer per database, so a single tenant's write throughput cannot be scaled horizontally and a busy tenant serialises against itself with no sharding option.
  • Per-tenant databases mean per-tenant migrations, so every schema change becomes a fan-out job that must be idempotent and resumable, and multi-database schemas, the feature meant to solve this, is deprecated.
  • There are no cross-database queries; ATTACH is deprecated on the cloud, so any report or analytic spanning tenants must be assembled in your application or in a separate warehouse you also operate.
  • Data Edge, the multi-region edge replication that was Turso's original positioning, is deprecated, so a large share of the tutorials and articles describing Turso as an edge database describe behaviour you can no longer rely on.
  • Three engine lineages share the name, SQLite, the libSQL fork and the Rust rewrite, and the Rust engine is still maturing, so SQLite compatibility needs verifying against your specific pragmas, extensions and query patterns; the cloud already restricts journal_mode and busy_timeout and makes user_version read-only.

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

Turso

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 100 databases
    • 5 GB storage
    • 500M monthly rows read
  • Developer$4.99/month
    • Unlimited databases
    • 9 GB storage
    • 2.5B monthly rows read
  • Scaler$24.92/month
    • Unlimited databases
    • 24 GB storage
    • 100B monthly rows read
  • Pro$416.58/month
    • Unlimited databases
    • 50 GB storage
    • 250B monthly rows read

Which should you pick?

Choose Grist if

  • You want to start without paying.
Grist review

Choose Turso if

  • You need per-tenant databases.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want mit licence.
Turso review

Questions people ask

Is Grist or Turso better?
Neither clearly leads. Grist starts at Free and Turso at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Grist or Turso?
Grist starts at Free and Turso at Free.
Does Grist or Turso run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Grist for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
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 Turso is typically brought in for.
What can Grist do that Turso cannot?
Turso covers Per-tenant databases, MIT licence, Embedded replicas, SQLite compatibility.

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
Turso: Is Turso just hosted SQLite?

Not exactly. It hosts databases built on the SQLite lineage: libSQL, an MIT fork of SQLite, and Turso Database, a newer Rust rewrite. The platform adds branching, backups, an HTTP API and programmatic database creation.

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
Turso: Can I really run a million databases?

That is the design goal and the platform API exists to make provisioning and deletion programmatic. The practical constraints are the ones that come with it: migrations fan out, and nothing can query across databases.

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
Turso: How do embedded replicas handle read-after-write?

Reads come from the local replica and writes go to the primary, so a read immediately after a write can return stale data unless you wait for a sync. Application code has to account for that rather than assume it.

Grist: Do nonprofits get discounts on Grist?

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

Source
Turso: What licence is it under?

libSQL and Turso Database are both MIT. Turso Cloud is a commercial managed service built on them, so the engine is genuinely open even though the platform is not.

Turso: Is Turso still an edge database?

No. Data Edge, the multi-region edge replication feature, is deprecated. The current positioning is per-tenant and embedded databases, and older material describing edge replication is out of date.

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