About 18; min
Database platforms for modern applications come in two flavors: managed relational and managed serverless. PlanetScale and Supabase represent different philosophies about what a database platform should be. PlanetScale brings Vitess (YouTube’s MySQL scaling technology) to every developer with branching, non-blocking schema changes, and zero-downtime migrations. Supabase wraps PostgreSQL in a Firebase-like developer experience with auth, storage, real-time subscriptions, and edge functions built in.
Choosing between them depends on whether you need a specialized MySQL database that scales horizontally or a full backend platform built on PostgreSQL.
Quick Pricing Overview
| Plan | PlanetScale | Supabase |
|---|---|---|
| Free | No free tier (hobby removed) | Free (500MB database, 2 projects) |
| Starter | $39/mo (Scaler) | $25/mo (Pro) |
| Pro | $79/mo (Scaler Pro) | $25/mo + usage |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom (Team $599/mo) |
PlanetScale Pricing Breakdown
PlanetScale removed its free tier in 2024. The Scaler plan at $39 per month includes 10GB storage, 1 billion row reads per month, 10 million row writes, and 1 production branch with 2 development branches. Scaler Pro at $79 per month raises limits to 25GB storage, 2.5 billion reads, and 25 million writes with additional production branches and higher connection limits. Enterprise pricing is custom with dedicated clusters, SOC 2 compliance, SLA guarantees, and single-tenant infrastructure. PlanetScale charges for row reads and writes rather than compute time, which makes costs predictable for read-heavy workloads. Database branching — creating isolated copies of your schema for development — is a standout feature available on all plans.
Supabase Pricing Breakdown
Supabase’s free tier includes 500MB database storage, 1GB file storage, 50,000 monthly active users for auth, 500,000 edge function invocations, and 2 active projects. The Pro plan at $25 per month raises storage to 8GB, removes project limits, adds daily backups, and provides 100,000 MAUs for auth. Usage beyond included limits is billed at transparent rates — $0.125 per GB of database storage, $0.09 per GB of bandwidth. The Team plan at $599 per month adds SOC 2 compliance, priority support, SSO, and higher base limits. Enterprise is custom-priced. Every plan includes the same features — Auth, Storage, Edge Functions, Realtime, and the database itself — with limits scaling by tier.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | PlanetScale | Supabase |
|---|---|---|
| Database Engine | MySQL (Vitess) | PostgreSQL |
| Free Tier | None | Yes (500MB, 2 projects) |
| Database Branching | Yes (core feature) | Preview branches (Pro+) |
| Schema Migrations | Non-blocking, zero-downtime | Standard migrations |
| Horizontal Scaling | Vitess sharding (automatic) | Vertical scaling (manual upgrade) |
| Authentication | Not included | Built-in (email, OAuth, magic link) |
| File Storage | Not included | Built-in (S3-compatible) |
| Edge Functions | Not included | Built-in (Deno runtime) |
| Real-Time | Not included | Built-in (Postgres CDC) |
| Row-Level Security | MySQL grants | PostgreSQL RLS (policy-based) |
| REST API | Not auto-generated | Auto-generated (PostgREST) |
| GraphQL | Not included | pg_graphql extension |
| Connection Pooling | Built-in | PgBouncer (built-in) |
| Backup / Recovery | Automatic (point-in-time) | Daily backups (Pro+) |
Cost Scenarios
Side project or MVP
PlanetScale has no free tier — the minimum cost is $39 per month. Supabase’s free plan covers most MVPs with 500MB storage, built-in auth, file storage, and edge functions at zero cost. PlanetScale: $39/mo. Supabase: $0.
Production SaaS (moderate traffic)
PlanetScale Scaler at $39 per month gives you 10GB storage with database branching and zero-downtime migrations. Supabase Pro at $25 per month gives you 8GB storage plus auth, file storage, edge functions, and real-time subscriptions. If you’d need to add separate services for auth (Auth0: $23+/mo) and storage (S3: usage-based) alongside PlanetScale, the total exceeds Supabase’s all-in-one price. PlanetScale: $39/mo (database only). Supabase: $25/mo (full backend).
High-scale application (billions of reads)
PlanetScale shines at scale. Vitess sharding distributes data automatically across nodes, handling billions of reads without manual intervention. Scaler Pro at $79 per month covers 2.5 billion reads. Supabase PostgreSQL scales vertically — you’d need to upgrade compute tiers ($100-400/mo) and eventually consider read replicas. For applications with massive read volumes, PlanetScale’s horizontal scaling model is more cost-effective. PlanetScale: $79/mo. Supabase: $100-400/mo at comparable scale.
Developer Experience
PlanetScale treats your database schema like source code. Create a branch, make schema changes, test them against production data, then merge with a deploy request that applies changes without downtime. This workflow eliminates the fear of database migrations and makes schema changes as safe as code changes. The CLI integrates with your development workflow, and the dashboard provides real-time query analytics showing slow queries and usage patterns.
Supabase provides a complete backend from a single dashboard. The Table Editor lets you manage data visually. The SQL Editor runs queries directly. Auth, Storage, and Edge Functions are configured alongside your database. Auto-generated REST and GraphQL APIs mean you can start building your frontend immediately without writing backend code. For developers who want to go from idea to working app as fast as possible, Supabase removes nearly every backend setup step.
Who Should Pick What
Pick PlanetScale if:
- You need MySQL specifically or your team has deep MySQL expertise
- Database branching and zero-downtime migrations are critical for your workflow
- Horizontal scaling via Vitess is required for your read/write volumes
- You handle auth, storage, and functions through separate specialized services
Pick Supabase if:
- You want a full backend platform (database + auth + storage + functions) in one
- PostgreSQL and its rich extension library fit your data model
- A free tier matters for prototyping and side projects
- Auto-generated APIs and real-time subscriptions speed up your frontend development
Supabase wins for most developers and teams building new applications. The combination of PostgreSQL, built-in auth, storage, edge functions, and real-time features at $25 per month (or free for prototyping) delivers exceptional value. PlanetScale wins for teams that specifically need MySQL with enterprise-grade scaling — its database branching and zero-downtime migrations are best-in-class for managing schema changes at scale. If you’re building a full-stack application and want one platform for your backend, Supabase is the clearer choice. If you’re scaling an existing MySQL application to handle massive traffic, PlanetScale’s Vitess foundation is purpose-built for that challenge.
FAQ
Can Supabase scale like PlanetScale?
Supabase scales vertically by upgrading compute tiers and adding read replicas. PlanetScale scales horizontally via Vitess sharding. For most applications, Supabase handles millions of users fine. For applications requiring billions of daily reads with automatic sharding, PlanetScale has the architectural advantage.
Does PlanetScale support foreign keys?
PlanetScale does not enforce foreign key constraints at the database level due to Vitess limitations. Referential integrity must be handled at the application level. Supabase (PostgreSQL) fully supports foreign keys with standard database-level enforcement.
Is Supabase a Firebase replacement?
Supabase positions itself as an open-source Firebase alternative. It covers similar ground — database, auth, storage, functions, and real-time — but uses PostgreSQL instead of Firestore. Migration from Firebase requires adapting your data model from NoSQL to relational.
Why did PlanetScale remove the free tier?
PlanetScale discontinued its free Hobby plan in April 2024, citing the cost of maintaining free databases at scale. The lowest tier is now $39 per month. This decision shifted many hobby projects to Supabase, Neon, or Turso as free alternatives.
