Features
- Database, auth, storage, and functions in one platform
- Real-time subscriptions via WebSocket
- Built-in teams and role-based permissions
- Self-hosted or Appwrite Cloud
Pros
- Fully open-source with Docker self-hosting
- Clean, well-designed REST API and SDKs
- Active development with responsive community
Cons
- Uses MariaDB internally — no direct SQL access
- Smaller ecosystem than Firebase or Supabase
- Functions runtime is more limited than cloud providers
Overview
Appwrite is an open-source Backend-as-a-Service (BaaS) that provides authentication, databases, file storage, cloud functions, and real-time messaging. It can be self-hosted via Docker or used as a managed cloud service, giving you full control over your backend infrastructure.
Appwrite provides SDKs for web, mobile (iOS, Android, Flutter), and server platforms. Its permission model supports user-level, team-level, and role-based access control. The platform includes a visual dashboard for managing data, users, and functions.
When to Use
Appwrite is a strong choice when you want a self-hosted open-source BaaS, when building mobile applications with Flutter, or when you need a Firebase alternative with Docker deployment. For PostgreSQL access, Supabase is more appropriate.
Getting Started
# Self-host with Docker
docker run -it --rm \
--volume /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock \
appwrite/appwrite init
npm install appwriteimport { Client, Databases } from "appwrite";
const client = new Client()
.setEndpoint("https://cloud.appwrite.io/v1")
.setProject("your-project-id");
const databases = new Databases(client);
const docs = await databases.listDocuments("db-id", "collection-id");