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Mobile Development · head to head

Firebase vs RevenueCat

Firebase logo

Firebase

Mobile Development

Google's platform for building web and mobile applications with cloud backend

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
RevenueCat logo

RevenueCat

Mobile Development

In-app subscription infrastructure billed at 1 percent of tracked revenue measured before the app store takes its cut

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Firebase spark plan limited to 1 GiB storage, 50,000 daily reads, 20,000 daily writes; RevenueCat the fee is 1 percent of revenue measured before the app store takes 15 or 30 percent, so the effective rate against money you actually receive is closer to 1.2 to 1.4 percent, a distinction that is easy to miss when modelling the cost.
  • They diverge on capability: Firebase covers Real-time Database, RevenueCat covers Cross-platform entitlements.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Firebase and RevenueCat actually diverge.

Attributes where Firebase and RevenueCat differ
AttributeFirebaseRevenueCat
Pricing modelfreemiumPer month by tracked revenue
PlatformsiOS, Android, Web, Flutter, C++, UnityiOS, Android, Web, React Native, Flutter
Founded1998Unknown

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

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 Firebase

  • Real-time Database
  • REST API
  • Authentication
  • Google Cloud
  • Cloud functions
  • Cloud Storage
  • Web support
  • Mobile support

Only in RevenueCat

  • Cross-platform entitlements
  • Server-side receipt validation
  • Remote paywalls
  • Experiments
  • Revenue charts and cohorts
  • Integrations and webhooks

What people use each for

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

Firebase

  • Mobile app backend developmentnot RevenueCat
  • Real-time data synchronisationnot RevenueCat
  • Web application backendnot RevenueCat
  • Cross-platform app developmentnot RevenueCat

RevenueCat

  • A small app team shipping subscriptions on both stores without writing two receipt validation backendsnot Firebase
  • Changing paywall pricing and layout without waiting for app reviewnot Firebase
  • Running a price experiment and attributing realised revenue rather than checkout events to each variantnot Firebase
  • Giving finance a single view of subscription revenue across App Store, Google Play and web purchasesnot Firebase

Where each one falls short

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

Firebase

  • Spark plan limited to 1 GiB storage, 50,000 daily reads, 20,000 daily writes
  • Spark plan restricts to 100 concurrent database connections
  • Spark plan limits Firebase Studio to 3 workspaces maximum
  • Document size capped at 1 MiB per document
  • Transaction time limited to 270 seconds with 60-second idle expiration
  • Maximum 100 databases per project (increase requires support request)

RevenueCat

  • The fee is 1 percent of revenue measured before the app store takes 15 or 30 percent, so the effective rate against money you actually receive is closer to 1.2 to 1.4 percent, a distinction that is easy to miss when modelling the cost.
  • The bill scales with success rather than with usage or headcount, so the largest invoice arrives in the month of your best growth, which is exactly when cash is committed elsewhere.
  • At high revenue the arithmetic turns against you: 1 million USD of monthly tracked revenue is 10,000 USD a month, at which point building and staffing receipt validation in-house becomes a serious comparison rather than a hypothetical one.
  • Subscriber and entitlement state lives in the vendor system, so migrating away requires re-validating historical receipts and running dual sources of truth during the transition, and that switching cost grows the longer you stay.
  • Growth features such as paywalls and web funnels are charged at the same 1 percent of what they track, so revenue attributed to those tools is billed even where you already had the infrastructure to handle it.

Pricing, plan by plan

Firebase

Free
  • SparkFree
    • No-cost usage with daily-refreshing quotas
    • Cloud Firestore: up to 1 GB storage, 20K writes/day, 50K reads/day
    • Cloud Functions: up to 2M invocations/month, 400K GB-seconds/month
  • Blaze$null/variable
    • Pay-as-you-go usage beyond free tier
    • Cloud Firestore: $5/GB after 1 GB, writes beyond 20K/day at overage rates
    • Cloud Functions: $0.40 per million invocations beyond 2M/month, $0.12/GB for outbound networking beyond 5 GB/month

RevenueCat

Free
  • Pro under thresholdFree
    • Free up to 2,500 USD in monthly tracked revenue
    • All product features included
    • No seat charges
  • Pro$undefined/month
    • 1 percent of monthly tracked revenue above 2,500 USD
    • Tracked revenue is measured before the app store commission
    • No minimum commitment stated
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Quoted
    • Volume discounts
    • Flexible tracking configuration

Which should you pick?

Choose Firebase if

  • You need real-time database.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Web, Flutter, C++, Unity.
  • You also want rest api.
Firebase review

Choose RevenueCat if

  • You need cross-platform entitlements.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Web, React Native, Flutter.
  • You also want server-side receipt validation.
RevenueCat review

Questions people ask

Is Firebase or RevenueCat better?
Neither clearly leads. Firebase starts at Free and RevenueCat at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Firebase or RevenueCat?
Firebase starts at Free and RevenueCat at Free.
Does Firebase or RevenueCat run on more platforms?
Firebase runs on iOS, Android, Web, Flutter, C++, Unity. RevenueCat runs on iOS, Android, Web, React Native, Flutter.
Can I use Firebase for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Firebase best used for?
Firebase is most often used for mobile app backend development, real-time data synchronisation, web application backend, cross-platform app development. Of those, mobile app backend development and real-time data synchronisation are not what RevenueCat is typically brought in for.
What can Firebase do that RevenueCat cannot?
Firebase covers Real-time Database, REST API, Authentication, Google Cloud. RevenueCat covers Cross-platform entitlements, Server-side receipt validation, Remote paywalls, Experiments.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Firebase: What are Firebase's free tier limits?

Firebase Spark plan includes no-cost daily-refreshing quotas: Cloud Firestore up to 1 GB storage with 20K writes and 50K reads per day; Cloud Functions up to 2M invocations monthly; Cloud Storage 5 GB-months with 100 GB downloads monthly; Hosting 10 GB storage and 360 MB daily data transfer; Realtime Database up to 1 GB storage. No payment method required.

Source
RevenueCat: Is it really free to start?

Yes, up to 2,500 USD in monthly tracked revenue, with all features included and no seat charges.

Firebase: How much does Firebase Blaze plan cost?

Firebase Blaze is pay-as-you-go beyond free tier limits. Pricing includes Cloud Firestore storage at $5/GB after 1 GB; Cloud Functions $0.40 per million invocations beyond 2M monthly; Cloud Storage $0.026/GB beyond 5 GB; Hosting $0.15/GB beyond 360 MB daily. New eligible customers receive $300 free credit.

Source
RevenueCat: Is the 1 percent taken from gross or net revenue?

Gross. The vendor bases pricing on pre-platform-cut revenue, so the app store commission is not deducted before the fee is calculated.

Firebase: Which Firebase services are always free regardless of tier?

A/B Testing, Analytics, App Check, Cloud Messaging, and Crashlytics are offered at no cost on both Spark and Blaze plans, with no usage limits stated.

Source
RevenueCat: What happens if RevenueCat is unavailable?

The SDK caches entitlement state locally so existing subscribers usually keep access, but new purchases and restores depend on the service.

RevenueCat: At what point should I build this in-house?

Somewhere above a few hundred thousand dollars of monthly tracked revenue the annual fee funds engineers, though it also buys cross-platform correctness you then own forever.

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