Quickbase vs Power Apps vs Smartsheet vs owning your software
Prices checked on each vendor's own page on October 8, 2026. List prices only; your contract may differ.
We used to build on these platforms for a living. They're all good at something. If you're on Quickbase and wondering what else is out there, this is how the main options actually compare, including the one most comparison pages leave out: owning the software yourself.
Pick it if your team loves building its own apps and the bill is fine.
Pick it if you're a Microsoft 365 shop with people who want to build.
Pick it if your work is mostly projects, timelines and checklists.
Pick it if your bill is big and growing, or the app runs the business.
The table
| Quickbase | Microsoft Power Apps | Smartsheet | Your own software (Alakazam Labs, built on K2) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | A no code platform for building database apps | Microsoft's low code app platform | Work management built around sheets and projects | Custom software built for you, that you own |
| List price | Team from $35, Business from $55 per user per month, priced annually, plus a platform minimum. Enterprise quoted. Usage plans priced on reads. | Premium $20 per user per month, paid yearly. $12 with a 2,000 seat minimum. Free Developer plan for building and testing. | Pro $9 per member per month billed yearly, 1 to 10 members. Business $19 per member per month billed yearly, 3 or more members. Enterprise custom. | One build fee, quoted after a free review. Then hosting (your own server: free, or ours: quoted) and your AI plan. No per user fees. |
| Price source | quickbase.com/plans-and-pricing | microsoft.com Power Apps pricing | smartsheet.com/pricing | alakazamlabs.com/quickbase-alternative |
| Who builds and changes it | Your builders, Quickbase's AI tools, or a partner | Your makers, or a Microsoft partner | Your team, in sheets, forms and automations | You or your staff ask the agent team in plain words; any developer can work on the code too |
| AI | Intelligence Pack add on (AI Agent, AI Workflows, App Intelligence). Pave AI app builder, a separate product from $0 to $300 a month, Enterprise quoted. | Agentic features in model driven apps; Microsoft 365 Copilot chat in apps (per the pricing page). Copilot Studio sold separately. | "Conversational AI features" on Pro; "connect to external AI tools" on Business | An agent team that built your app and stays with it, on the AI plan you choose (Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok) |
| Where it runs | Quickbase's cloud | Microsoft's cloud | Smartsheet's cloud | Your server, or one we run for you |
| Who owns the app | Runs on Quickbase's platform | Runs on Microsoft's platform | Runs on Smartsheet's platform | You own the code and the data |
| Moving off Quickbase | n/a | Rebuild each app, formula and workflow, yourself or with a partner | Redesign it in sheets, yourself or with a partner | Done for you, about 3.5 weeks for a typical app |
| Pick it if | Your team loves building its own apps and the bill is fine | You're already deep in Microsoft 365 and have makers | Your work is mostly projects, timelines and checklists | Your bill is big and growing, or the app has become the backbone of the business |
Footnotes:
- Quickbase: "Cost shown does not include platform minimum." All users must be on the same plan. Pave pricing from quickbase.com/pave/pricing.
- Power Apps: some Microsoft 365 licenses include limited Power Apps use with standard connectors; they don't give the rights of a standalone premium license (Microsoft Learn). A pay as you go option exists through Azure.
- Smartsheet: Pro allows unlimited free contributors; Business allows unlimited free guests. Currency USD.
- Own software: "From $1,500" is the start where we install K2 and get your agent team running and you build from there. A full Quickbase rebuild is quoted.
Quickbase
What it's good at. Quickbase lets the people who run the business build real database apps without waiting on IT. Relationships, formulas, reports, forms and Pipelines, all without code. It's been around a long time and it's solid. Quickbase also has real AI now: the Intelligence Pack, and Pave, which builds an app from a plain English description.
What to watch. The per user price is a starting point. There's a platform minimum, and reads (API and Pipeline traffic, and on usage plans, views) can push you into add on packages. Your logic lives on the platform: exports give you records, not a running app (export docs).
Pick it if your team builds every week and enjoys it, and the bill isn't a problem.
Microsoft Power Apps
What it's good at. If your company already runs on Microsoft 365, Power Apps sits right next to your email, Teams and SharePoint. At $20 per user per month for Premium, it's cheaper on list than Quickbase Business, and there's a free Developer plan to build and test.
What to watch. The Microsoft 365 rights are limited to standard connectors and Microsoft 365 data; premium connectors and Dataverse need standalone licenses (Microsoft Learn). Moving from Quickbase means rebuilding every app, formula and workflow in a new tool, and someone on your team has to learn it.
Pick it if you're a Microsoft shop with people who want to build.
Smartsheet
What it's good at. Smartsheet is the easiest of the three to pick up. It feels like a spreadsheet, with Gantt, board and calendar views, forms and automations. At $9 or $19 per member per month billed yearly, it's the lowest list price here, and contributors are free on Pro.
What to watch. It's built around sheets and projects, not related database tables. In our experience, a Quickbase app with lots of linked tables and formulas may not map cleanly.
Pick it if your work is mostly projects, timelines and checklists.
Owning your software
What it is. Instead of moving to another platform you rent, you get your app rebuilt as custom software that's yours: the code and the data. We do the rebuild. Our migration agent teams pull out every table, formula, report, form, role, Pipeline, automation and Code Page, then rebuild it and move your records, checked against Quickbase. A typical app takes about 3.5 weeks.
The part that matters most. Your app comes with its own agent team that stays on. You or your staff ask for a change in plain words, and it gets built. You decide how changes go live: straight in, after your OK, or on a test copy first. That keeps the speed people love about Quickbase.
What it costs. One build fee, quoted after a free review. Then hosting and your AI plan. No per user fees, so hiring doesn't raise the bill. K2, the platform it runs on, is free to download and run yourself.
What to watch. It's a project, not a sign up. Someone on your side needs to be available during the move to tell us what's working. And if your bill is small and steady, the build fee may not pay back.
Proof. Appalachian Field Service ran on Quickbase for almost 10 years. They paid about $55,000 a year. Now they pay about $18,000, about $37,000 a year saved, and they moved in about 1.5 months without stopping work (case study).
Pick it if your bill is north of about $30,000 to $40,000 a year and growing, the app runs the business, or one person is the only one who knows how it works.
Quickbase’s low-code environment was initially a draw for us, but after years of using it, its framework began to shape how we approached problems. Working with Alakazam Labs helped us step back, rethink our processes, and build around what our business actually needed.
Read the case study → · Part two: 350 tickets, every one resolved in 3 days →
How to decide in five minutes
- Add up last year's Quickbase bill, including add ons and outside help.
- If it's small and steady, stay. Seriously.
- If you're a Microsoft shop with builders, look at Power Apps.
- If it's mostly projects and checklists, look at Smartsheet.
- If it's big, growing, and the app is the business, talk to us about owning it.
Get a free review of your Quickbase app. If staying is right for you, we'll tell you.
Questions people ask
Is Power Apps cheaper than Quickbase?
On list price, yes. Power Apps Premium is $20 per user per month paid yearly; Quickbase Business is $55 and Team is $35, plus a platform minimum (both vendors' pages, checked 2026-10-08). Your real cost also depends on licenses you already hold and the rebuild work.
Is Smartsheet cheaper than Quickbase?
On list price, yes: $9 (Pro) or $19 (Business) per member per month billed yearly. But Smartsheet is a different kind of tool, built around sheets and projects, so a complex Quickbase app has to be redesigned, not just copied.
Can I move my Quickbase apps to Power Apps or Smartsheet automatically?
We're not aware of an automatic Quickbase importer for either. Your records export to CSV; the formulas, reports, forms and Pipelines have to be rebuilt in the new tool.
What's the cheapest way to leave Quickbase?
If you're happy rebuilding yourself, a lower priced platform. If you want it done for you and owned outright, a rebuild has a one time cost and then no per user fees. Which is cheaper over three years depends on your headcount and current bill.
Quickbase is a trademark of Quickbase, Inc. Power Apps is a trademark of Microsoft. Smartsheet is a trademark of Smartsheet Inc. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them. Prices checked October 8, 2026 and may change.