# Alternatives to Parse Platform

Parse Platform (Parse Server) is a fully open-source Node.js backend-as-a-service framework, originally built by Parse Inc. and now community-maintained, providing a database layer, user authentication, REST/GraphQL APIs, cloud functions, file storage, push notifications, and realtime updates via LiveQuery. It's used by developers who want the original Firebase-style BaaS model but fully self-hosted and free of vendor lock-in. It's the open-source engine that products like Back4app are built on, but can be run standalone on any Node.js-capable infrastructure.

Parse Platform ranks #8 of 10 in Backend-as-a-service, with an Alt Score of 81. It is licensed under Apache-2.0, free from Free and available on iOS, macOS, Android, Web and Linux. 11 of 12 checklist rows are verified against a public source.

Source: https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/parse-platform/
Category: Backend-as-a-service

## Overview

- **Who it's for**: Developers building mobile and web apps who want a self-hosted, open-source backend rather than a proprietary hosted BaaS, and who are willing to run and operate their own server and database.
- **What you get**: Parse Server is a Node.js application providing data storage on your own MongoDB or PostgreSQL database, username/password and third-party (OAuth) authentication, file storage via S3, Google Cloud Storage, GridFS, or local disk, Cloud Code custom server-side functions, Live Query realtime subscriptions, and both a REST API and an auto-generated GraphQL API. Class-Level Permissions and Access Control Lists provide row- and schema-level security, and official client SDKs exist for iOS, Android, and JavaScript.
- **How it works**: You install and run the parse-server npm package or Docker image on any infrastructure that runs Node.js, pointing it at your own MongoDB or PostgreSQL instance and supplying an application ID and master key. Client apps then read and write data through the REST API, the auto-generated GraphQL API, or a native Parse SDK, while custom business logic runs as Cloud Code inside the same server process.

## Profile

- **License**: Apache-2.0 (verified 2026-07-30)
- **Pricing model**: Free (verified 2026-07-30)
- **Starts at**: Free (verified 2026-07-30)
- **Platforms**: iOS, macOS, Android, Web, Linux
- **Status**: active (verified 2026-07-30)

## Ranked alternatives

| # | App | Alt Score | Licence | Platforms |
|---|-----|-----------|---------|-----------|
| 1 | [Supabase](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/supabase.md) | 100 | Apache License 2.0 | Web |
| 2 | [Appwrite](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/appwrite.md) | 96 | BSD-3-Clause | Windows, macOS, Linux, Web |
| 3 | [AWS Amplify](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/aws-amplify.md) | 93 | Apache-2.0 | Web, iOS, Android |
| 4 | [Convex](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/convex.md) | 89 | FSL-1.1-Apache-2.0 | Web, Linux |
| 5 | [InstantDB](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/instantdb.md) | 85 | Apache-2.0 | Web, iOS, Android |
| 6 | [Back4app](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/back4app.md) | 81 | ? | Web, iOS, Android |
| 7 | [Firebase](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/firebase.md) | 81 | Proprietary | Web, iOS, Android |
| 8 | [Xano](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/xano.md) | 81 | Proprietary | ? |
| 9 | [PocketBase](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/pocketbase.md) | 78 | MIT License | Linux, Windows, macOS, Web |

Alt Score = Verified coverage (90%) + Visibility (10%). See https://altcatalog.com/how-alt-score-works/

## Feature comparison

Legend: Yes / No / Partial / ? (not verified).

| Backend-as-a-service checklist | Parse Platform | Supabase | Appwrite | AWS Amplify | Convex | InstantDB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Free | OSS + paid hosting | OSS + paid hosting | Usage-based | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starts at | Free | $25/mo (Pro) | $25/mo | Free | $25/developer/month | $30/mo |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache License 2.0 | BSD-3-Clause | Apache-2.0 | FSL-1.1-Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Platforms | iOS, macOS, Android, Web, Linux | Web | Windows, macOS, Linux, Web | Web, iOS, Android | Web, Linux | Web, iOS, Android |
| Managed database | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Auth built in | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial | Yes |
| File / object storage | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Realtime subscriptions | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Serverless / edge functions | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Auto-generated APIs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Client SDKs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Row-level security | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Vector / AI support | ? | Yes | Partial | Yes | Yes | No |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |

## Sources

Sources for Parse Platform. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.

- **Starts at**: Free — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/LICENSE> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: No paid tier exists for Parse Platform itself; it is free, self-hosted, open-source software.
  - Quote: “Apache License Version 2.0, January 2004”
- **License**: Apache-2.0 — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/LICENSE> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Quote: “Apache License Version 2.0, January 2004”
- **Pricing model**: Free — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/LICENSE> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Parse Platform is self-hosted open-source software (Apache-2.0). There is no vendor SaaS pricing; the vendor itself charges nothing (you only pay your own hosting/infra costs). Do not confuse with Bac
  - Quote: “Apache License Version 2.0, January 2004”
- **Platforms**: iOS, macOS, Android, Web, Linux — <https://docs.parseplatform.org/parse-server/guide/#using-parse-sdks-with-parse-server> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Same guide section (Using Parse SDKs with Parse Server) also shows Android and JavaScript (Web) SDK initialization code. Linux is confirmed via the guide's 'Deploying on AWS EC2 Ubuntu using PostgreSQ
  - Quote: “iOS / OS X / watchOS / tvOS”
- **Status**: active — <https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/releases/tag/9.10.0> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Release 9.10.0 published 2026-07-13; GitHub commit history shows commits as recent as 2026-07-26, days before this research (2026-07-30). Actively maintained.
  - Quote: “Release 9.10.0 · parse-community/parse-server”
- **Managed database**: No — <https://docs.parseplatform.org/parse-server/guide/#database> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Parse Server itself does not provide or manage a database — you must bring and operate your own MongoDB or PostgreSQL instance.
  - Quote: “Parse Server uses MongoDB or PostgreSQL as a database.”
- **Auth built in**: Yes — <https://docs.parseplatform.org/parse-server/guide/#oauth-and-3rd-party-authentication> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Also has built-in username/password auth via the Parse.User class (Access Control Lists section of the same guide).
  - Quote: “Parse Server supports 3rd party authentication by using authentication adapters, to allow users to sign up and log in using 3rd party authentication providers.”
- **File / object storage**: Yes — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/README.md> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Lists GridFSBucketAdapter (MongoDB), S3Adapter (Amazon S3), GCSAdapter (Google Cloud Storage), and FSAdapter (local storage).
  - Quote: “Parse Server allows developers to choose from several options when hosting files:”
- **Realtime subscriptions**: Yes — <https://docs.parseplatform.org/parse-server/guide/#live-queries> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Quote: “Once subscribed, the server will notify clients whenever a Parse.Object that matches the Parse.Query is created or updated, in real-time.”
- **Serverless / edge functions**: Partial — <https://docs.parseplatform.org/cloudcode/guide/#what-is-cloud-code> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Cloud Code provides custom server-side functions, but they execute embedded inside your own Parse Server process, not as independently-scaled serverless or edge functions.
  - Quote: “The only difference is that this code runs in your Parse Server rather than running on the user’s mobile device.”
- **Auto-generated APIs**: Yes — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/README.md> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: The REST API is likewise generated automatically from the app's schema/classes.
  - Quote: “In addition to the traditional REST API, Parse Server automatically generates a GraphQL API based on your current application schema.”
- **Self-hostable**: Yes — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/README.md> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Quote: “Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js.”
- **Open source**: Yes — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/LICENSE> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Source is public at github.com/parse-community/parse-server, licensed Apache-2.0.
  - Quote: “Apache License Version 2.0, January 2004”
- **Client SDKs**: Yes — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/README.md> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Quote: “Parse provides SDKs for all the major platforms.”
- **Row-level security**: Yes — <https://docs.parseplatform.org/parse-server/guide/#access-control-lists> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Combined with Class-Level Permissions (CLPs) for schema-level access control.
  - Quote: “The idea behind an ACL is that each object has a list of users and roles along with what permissions that user or role has.”
- **Free tier**: Yes — <https://raw.githubusercontent.com/parse-community/parse-server/alpha/LICENSE> (verified 2026-07-30)
  - Note: Not a 'free tier' of a paid hosted product — Parse Platform is entirely free, open-source, self-hosted software with no paid vendor tier at all.
  - Quote: “Apache License Version 2.0, January 2004”

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Ranked by verified data, never by who paid. https://altcatalog.com/trust/