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MongoDB vs Supabase

Two sides of the database decision: managed database and backend platform. When each fits, what it costs, who moves from one to the other, and what makers who chose it say.

MongoDBManaged databasellms.txt
SupabaseBackend platformllms.txtMCPCLIIn Bolt, Lovable, v0
Ask your AI about this, with this page as the source:ChatGPT ↗Claude ↗Perplexity ↗

Which fits you

Choose MongoDB if
  • Document-shaped data and teams already fluent in Mongo.

Use it whenYour team already knows Mongo, or your records vary so much in shape that a fixed schema gets in the way.

Trade-offNo joins or schema by default, so relational data and migrations take discipline you'd get for free in Postgres.

Choose Supabase if
  • You want the database, auth and file storage in one project, and plain SQL you can take elsewhere

Use it whenYou want one service for most of the backend and a SQL database you can take with you.

Trade-offAuth, storage and database in one vendor makes leaving harder later, and free projects pause after a week without activity.

At a glance

MongoDBSupabase
Used by131 makers' products · 148 open-source projects563 makers' products · 75 open-source projects
Cost at default usagedatabase size 8 GB, data transfer 50 GB, document or row reads 10 million reads, document or row writes 2 million writes$58/mo Atlas Dedicated M10$25/mo Pro
Moved to it on GitHubpull requests since Oct 202429 from Supabase76 from MongoDB
Downloads14.5M/wk−45% vs npm25.4M/wk+96% vs npm
PricingFree Atlas tier; paid clusters by size. · paid from $0.011/hourFree tier (inactive projects pause); paid plans per project plus usage. · paid from $25/mo
Free tierYesYes
Open sourceNo · self-hostableYes · self-hostable
Incidents, 90 daysfrom its status page19 (7 major)50+ (16 major)

Cost as you grow

Both cost $0 up to 0.5 GB; from 1 GB MongoDB costs less ($8.03 vs $25); from about 8 GB Supabase does ($25 vs $58). They're different kinds of tool — managed database and backend platform — so the prices don't buy the same thing.

$0$10$50$100$2000.51582050100500
SupabaseMongoDBx: database size (GB), other usage scaled with it; held at 730 hours (compute hours per month) · cheapest usable plan at each point, list prices · try your own numbers
The numbers, plan by plan
Database sizeMongoDBSupabase
0.5$0 Atlas Free (M0)$0 Free
1$8.03 Atlas Flex$25 Pro
5$8.03 Atlas Flex$25 Pro
8$58 Atlas Dedicated M10$25 Pro
20over plan limits$27 Pro
50over plan limits$36 Pro
100over plan limits$70 Pro
500over plan limits$345 Pro

From each vendor's pricing page: MongoDB, Supabase.

Who moves from one to the other

Public pull requests on GitHub since Oct 2024 whose title says "MongoDB to Supabase" or the reverse — real code changes, by developers in general rather than makers only.

Supabase → MongoDB29 PRs
All matching pull requests on GitHub ↗
MongoDB → Supabase76 PRs
All matching pull requests on GitHub ↗

What makers say

Makers on using it for database, from Product Hunt and Starter Story interviews, each linked to the source. Products with a page of their own and fuller notes first.

On MongoDB
Shoutout to MongoDB for providing a powerful, flexible database solution that scales with our needs. Your platform helps us manage and analyze vast amounts of data seamlessly!
Exploit Alarm, the makerSep 2026 ↗
…nd technology infrastructure: Amazon Web Services (AWS) , Google Analytics , Qovery , and MongoDB Email Marketing: Sendgrid Social Media: Buffer for automation and Canva for design Freela…
Finvault, the makerOct 2022 ↗
…>Salesforce , Hubspot , HeyMantle Customer Support: Intercom Insights: MixPanel Database: MongoDB Hosting: AWS Internal Communications: Slack Creative Design: Figma + Canva Video recordin…
TxtCart®, the makerAug 2024 ↗
82 more on the MongoDB page →
On Supabase
One Postgres with RLS on every table is the reason a solo founder can ship contracts, invoices and a client portal without a backend team. Auth, storage and realtime came for free.
Accordio AI, the makerSep 2026 ↗
Supabase made it dead simple to manage db and the best part is that we can connect it to Claude for product analysis without having to set up Posthog or other event tracking tools.
Clico, the makerSep 2026 ↗
For powering our backend and database. Managing user uploads and conversion jobs efficiently is critical, and Supabase's real-time capabilities keep everything running smoothly! 🔥
Segwise, the makerSep 2026 ↗
402 more on the Supabase page →

Loved and watch-outs

Themes that recur in makers' words and Hacker News comments, each linked to what it summarises.

MongoDB
Most loved
  • The flexible document model lets fast-changing products evolve their data without rigid migrations. PHPH 2PH 3HN
  • Atlas starts on a free tier and handles scaling, backups and monitoring, so there is little database to manage. PHPH 2PH 3PH 4
  • Atlas Vector Search keeps embeddings next to regular documents, so RAG and agent data combine vector and structured queries. PHHN
Watch-outs
  • Its history of unsafe defaults and lost writes left a lasting reputation that still keeps many developers away. HNHN 2HN 3HN 4
  • Anything beyond simple reads and writes is hard, and aggregation pipelines feel primitive next to SQL, which costs more over time. HNHN 2
  • Indexes are kept in memory, so larger datasets demand a lot of server RAM. HN
On Product Hunt: 5.0★, 68 reviews · mentioned most: flexible schema, NoSQL database, scalable database
Supabase
Most loved
  • One project covers Postgres, auth, storage and realtime, so a solo founder ships without stitching vendors or hiring a backend team. PHPH 2PH 3PH 4
  • It is real Postgres with SQL, row-level security and pgvector rather than a proprietary store. PHPH 2PH 3PH 4
  • Open source and self-hostable, which reduces vendor lock-in. PHPH 2HNPH 3
Watch-outs
  • Row-level security policies are hard to get right, so many apps end up exposing data publicly. HNHN 2HN 3HN 4
  • Reliability has been shaky for some, and it is not really built for self-hosting in practice. HN
  • Per-project billing adds up for developers running many small side projects. HN
On Product Hunt: 5.0★, 899 reviews · mentioned most: authentication features, easy setup, PostgreSQL integration · complaints: documentation gaps

Who uses each

MongoDB131 makers' products
agumbe.devAidaJetAiTermAlchemyzeAlpaca ChatANDREASOAupair ValleyBoltBrand.devChikitAIcmd.haus+119 more
Supabase563 makers' products
1-bit.day21sta0.devAccordio AIAdventoryAident AIAirbook AIAISA (aisa.to) AI Fluency AssessmentAlaiAlmanacAlpaca ChatAmara+551 more
Used by both — often one replacing the other, or each for a different part of the product
Alpaca ChatDropITKuration AIOpenspotVoltAgent

What makers pair each with

With MongoDB
Hosting
Frontend Framework
Transactional Email
LLM API
With Supabase
Frontend Framework
Transactional Email
Hosting
LLM API

Neither quite right?

See the whole database decision →
ConvexBackend platformRealtime, collaborative apps written entirely in TypeScript.vs Supabase →
FirebaseBackend platformMobile apps that need offline sync and client-side SDKs.vs Supabase →
NeonManaged databaseServerless Postgres that scales to zero, with a branch per preview deploy.vs Supabase →
PlanetScaleManaged databaseApps that expect heavy scale and want zero-downtime schema changes.vs Supabase →
TursoManaged databaseSQLite at the edge, or one database per customer.vs Supabase →
PostgreSQLRun it yourselfThe engine behind most of the hosted options above, run on your own server or container for full control and a flat cost.vs MongoDB →vs Supabase →