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Spreadsheets · head to head

Quadratic vs Rows

Quadratic logo

Quadratic

Spreadsheets

Infinite-canvas spreadsheet that runs Python, SQL and formulas in the same grid

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Rows logo

Rows

Productivity

Browser spreadsheet whose formulas call live data from analytics, CRM and payment services

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Quadratic aI usage is metered as a dollar allowance rather than a flat entitlement, so a team that adopts the agent enthusiastically will exhaust 20 USD per user per month quickly and the true cost per seat becomes unpredictable.; Rows refresh frequency is the metered resource, so the free plan refreshes manually only and daily automation begins on the paid tier, which means the automatic reporting that justifies the tool is exactly what the free plan withholds.
  • They diverge on capability: Quadratic covers Multi-language cells, Rows covers Integrations in formulas.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Quadratic and Rows actually diverge.

Attributes where Quadratic and Rows differ
AttributeQuadraticRows
Pricing modelPer user per monthfreemium
PlatformsWeb, macOS, Windows, LinuxWeb
CategorySpreadsheetsProductivity

Identical on both: starting price (Free), 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 Quadratic

  • Multi-language cells
  • Infinite canvas
  • Direct database connections
  • AI agent in the sheet
  • WebAssembly engine
  • Python package support

Only in Rows

  • Integrations in formulas
  • Scheduled refresh
  • Publishable sheets
  • Cell enrichment
  • AI tasks
  • Guests
  • API access
  • Version history

What people use each for

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

Quadratic

  • An analyst who wants a SQL result, a Python transformation and a set of manual assumptions visible in one file instead of three toolsnot Rows
  • Ad hoc modelling where part of the logic is genuinely code and part is a judgement call typed into a cellnot Rows
  • Sharing a reproducible analysis with a colleague who will only ever open a spreadsheet, not a notebooknot Rows
  • Prototyping a data pull against a warehouse before committing it to a scheduled pipelinenot Rows

Rows

  • A weekly marketing report that pulls analytics, advertising and CRM figures into one refreshing sheet instead of three manual exports.not Quadratic
  • Agency client dashboards shared as a page, without handing over access to the underlying accounts.not Quadratic
  • Enriching a list of companies or contacts from inside the sheet rather than through a separate tool and a re-import.not Quadratic
  • A small team that needs live numbers in a familiar grid and has nobody available to build a proper reporting stack.not Quadratic

Where each one falls short

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

Quadratic

  • AI usage is metered as a dollar allowance rather than a flat entitlement, so a team that adopts the agent enthusiastically will exhaust 20 USD per user per month quickly and the true cost per seat becomes unpredictable.
  • Self-hosting is available only on the Enterprise plan, so an organisation that cannot send data to the vendor cloud has to enter a sales negotiation rather than run a container.
  • Excel and Google Sheets compatibility is partial, so files with heavy conditional formatting, pivot tables or macros do not survive a round trip and have to be rebuilt.
  • The product is young and the connector list is short, covering the main relational databases and two warehouses, so anything else has to be reached through Python code you write and maintain yourself.
  • There is no real mobile editing experience, which matters more than it sounds for a spreadsheet because approvals and quick checks routinely happen on a phone.

Rows

  • Refresh frequency is the metered resource, so the free plan refreshes manually only and daily automation begins on the paid tier, which means the automatic reporting that justifies the tool is exactly what the free plan withholds.
  • Exports carry values rather than connections, so a downloaded file from Rows is a dead snapshot and anything you built has to be reconstructed from scratch elsewhere, which makes recurring reports quietly expensive to move.
  • Guests are capped by tier at three on free and ten on the entry plan, so sharing a report with a client's team or a group of stakeholders pushes you up a tier for people who only ever look at a page.
  • It is not Excel or Google Sheets, so the function library, add-ins, pivot behaviour, scripting and offline files people rely on are not all present, and it works as a reporting surface rather than as an organisation's general spreadsheet.
  • The Pro tier adds a fixed monthly platform charge on top of the per-user price, so moving from daily to intra-day refresh, or from ten guests to a real audience, is a step change in cost rather than an increment.

Pricing, plan by plan

Quadratic

Free
  • PersonalFree
    • Limited AI usage
    • Limited files and connections
    • Limited sharing
  • Pro$18/month
    • Billed annually
    • 20 USD of AI credits per month
    • Unlimited files
  • Business$36/month
    • Billed annually
    • 40 USD of AI credits per month
    • Advanced permissions
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Quoted
    • Self-hosting option
    • Custom AI usage

Rows

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 5 AI Tasks per month
    • Manual data imports
    • 10 integration accounts
  • Plus$8/month
    • 200 AI Tasks per month
    • Daily data table automation
    • 10 integration accounts
  • Pro$79/month
    • 1,000 AI Tasks per month
    • Per-minute data automation
    • 100 integration accounts
  • Enterprise$null/mo
    • Unlimited AI Tasks
    • Custom integrations and API endpoints
    • Unlimited guest members

Which should you pick?

Choose Quadratic if

  • You need multi-language cells.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, macOS, Windows, Linux.
  • You also want infinite canvas.
Quadratic review

Choose Rows if

  • You need integrations in formulas.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want scheduled refresh.
Rows review

Questions people ask

Is Quadratic or Rows better?
Neither clearly leads. Quadratic starts at Free and Rows at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Quadratic or Rows?
Quadratic starts at Free and Rows at Free.
Does Quadratic or Rows run on more platforms?
Quadratic runs on Web, macOS, Windows, Linux. Rows runs on Web.
Can I use Quadratic for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Quadratic best used for?
Quadratic is most often used for an analyst who wants a sql result, a python transformation and a set of manual assumptions visible in one file instead of three tools, ad hoc modelling where part of the logic is genuinely code and part is a judgement call typed into a cell, sharing a reproducible analysis with a colleague who will only ever open a spreadsheet, not a notebook, prototyping a data pull against a warehouse before committing it to a scheduled pipeline. Of those, an analyst who wants a sql result, a python transformation and a set of manual assumptions visible in one file instead of three tools and ad hoc modelling where part of the logic is genuinely code and part is a judgement call typed into a cell are not what Rows is typically brought in for.
What can Quadratic do that Rows cannot?
Quadratic covers Multi-language cells, Infinite canvas, Direct database connections, AI agent in the sheet. Rows covers Integrations in formulas, Scheduled refresh, Publishable sheets, Cell enrichment.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Quadratic: Do I need to know Python to use it?

No, formulas work on their own, but the reason to choose Quadratic over Google Sheets is the code cells, so a team with no Python will not get the value.

Rows: Can it replace Excel or Google Sheets?

Not for general spreadsheet work. It is for reports and sheets that pull live data, and most teams end up running it alongside a conventional spreadsheet rather than instead of one.

Quadratic: What happens when the AI credits run out?

Prompting stops until the next monthly reset or until you move up a plan; the spreadsheet itself keeps working normally.

Rows: What can I actually do on the free plan?

Real building: unlimited members, ten integration accounts, five AI tasks a month, 1 MB imports, three guests and seven days of version history. What you cannot do is schedule a refresh.

Quadratic: Can it replace a BI tool?

Not for scheduled distribution or governed metrics. It is for exploratory work by one person or a small team, not for dashboards a hundred people read.

Rows: Does the data stay live after I export?

No. Exports contain values only, so the connections and the scheduling do not travel and the file stops updating the moment it leaves.

Quadratic: Is my database query sent to the vendor?

Connections run through the vendor service on all plans except Enterprise self-hosting, which is the option to take if that is unacceptable.

Rows: Is pricing per user?

Yes on the paid tiers, with a fixed platform fee added at Pro. Guests are counted and capped separately from members.

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