Saltcorn

Overview

Saltcorn is a visual platform for building database-backed apps, interfaces and workflows. It is strongest for power users and developers who want to shape operational software around their own data and control where it runs. Its breadth is compelling, but teams need to account for deployment and access-control limits.

Key features

Drag-and-drop builders cover relational tables, forms, dashboards, portals and workflows. That combination suits internal databases, approval and compliance tools, customer or staff portals, reservations, payments and legacy replacements. It can bring an organization's data and processes into one app, though the builders do not remove the work of designing and operating that app.

Saltcorn runs on PostgreSQL or SQLite and provides a JSON REST API for other systems to read and write data. Plugins can add data types, views and themes, with examples including Apple Pay, CalDAV, CAPTCHA, charts and AI agents. This extensibility is useful when an app needs capabilities beyond the core builders. Its role model is less flexible for complex organizations: public, staff, user and admin roles are ordered, but cannot express department-specific access rules.

Apps can be packaged for iOS and Android, and offline use is supported through local SQLite storage with later synchronization. Deployment options include Docker, Kubernetes, npm, marketplace templates, desktop use and air-gapped self-hosting. Self-hosted instances make no telemetry calls, and Saltcorn can run fully offline behind a firewall—useful for organizations with strict infrastructure or privacy requirements, provided they can manage their deployment.

Pricing

The MIT-licensed open-source platform costs nothing, with no licence fee or per-seat cost, and is self-hosted. It is the natural choice for technically capable individuals or organizations that want control and can provide their own operating environment.

Saltcorn's shared evaluation hosting also costs nothing, but is for evaluation only. It has weak tenant isolation and no availability or security guarantee, so it should not hold production applications or real data.

For a low-cost self-managed deployment, the DigitalOcean marketplace option starts at $6 a month and includes a one-click droplet with database included. Managed hosting via Elestio starts at $16 a month and includes a dedicated VM, managed installation, TLS/SSL, encryption, backups, monitoring and updates. The latter costs more but shifts routine hosting work to a managed service; neither changes the platform's no-per-seat licensing.

Saltcorn Collective offers application building, support, training and platform enhancements, and aims to respond to enquiries within two working days. This may suit teams seeking help beyond the software, though the service terms and pricing are not provided here.

Platforms

Saltcorn supports Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Windows and web, as well as API access and self-hosting. Its deployment range is a strength for teams that need options from marketplace installs to offline environments; those options also make infrastructure choices part of the decision.

Who it's for

Saltcorn is a good fit for individual power users, developers, agencies, growing companies, enterprises and local government that need custom database apps and can manage hosting themselves or pay for managed hosting. It is a weaker fit for organizations whose permissions must vary by department, or for teams that need production-safe shared hosting without taking on deployment responsibility.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Visual builders cover data, interfaces and workflows in one MIT-licensed platform with no per-seat cost.
• Pros: PostgreSQL or SQLite, a JSON REST API, plugins and mobile offline synchronization give teams several ways to connect and extend apps.
• Pros: Self-hosting and air-gapped operation support deployment and privacy control.
• Cons: The shared free evaluation instance is explicitly unsuitable for production data and carries no availability or security guarantee.
• Cons: Ordered roles cannot handle department-specific access rules, which may rule out Saltcorn for organizations with granular permission needs.
• Cons: Self-hosting offers control but requires deployment and operations capacity; managed hosting adds a monthly cost.

Alternatives

For teams comparing database and app-building tools, see No-Code Database Software, No-Code Development Platforms and No-code app builders.

Lark is worth comparing if a team needs a free plan with 20 users, 100 GB of storage, 18 months of message history and 1,000 monthly automations. Matrify offers a free standard license for up to 300 records and three users, a more bounded option for a small dataset. Ninox has a free plan capped at five users, 100 MB, 5,000 records and 1,000 API calls per month. Airtable may suit teams that prefer its freemium offering; its Team plan is $20 a month billed annually, with 50,000 records per base and 100,000 API calls per workspace per month.

Grist is another freemium option, with a free plan that allows unlimited documents and up to 5,000 records per document. Memento Database offers a free plan with 100 MB cloud storage, three libraries and unlimited entries. Stackby has a free plan with five editors, 50 read-only users, 20 stacks and up to 1,500 rows per stack. NocoBase is a self-hosted alternative whose free Community Edition includes unlimited applications, users and data volume, with NocoBase branding and community support.

Verdict

Choose Saltcorn if you want to build relational, workflow-driven apps with visual tools, avoid per-seat licensing and retain control over deployment. Its combination of extensibility, APIs and offline options is the main reason to choose it. Look elsewhere if department-specific permissions are essential, or if you need production-grade hosting without taking responsibility for the deployment.