What is Grist used for?

Grist is a relational spreadsheet that mixes spreadsheet flexibility with database structure, available as a self-hosted server or hosted service. It is a good fit for replacing ad hoc spreadsheets with structured data and hosting internal data tools on your own server.

Is Grist open source?

Yes. Grist is open source under the Apache-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at gristlabs/grist-core and is written mainly in TypeScript.

Yes. Grist is open source, so the software itself is free to use. A managed cloud version is also available, with paid plans from $10 per seat per month.

Can I self-host Grist?

Yes. Grist can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.

What is Grist an alternative to?

Grist is an open-source alternative to Airtable, Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets and Stackby. Other open-source alternatives to Airtable include NocoDB, AITable and Baserow.

Is Grist actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to Grist was on 2 October 2026, and the latest release is v1.7.20, published on 28 September 2026. The project has 12k stars on GitHub.

Grist: open-source alternative to Airtable, Microsoft Excel

About Grist

Grist is a relational spreadsheet that aims to combine the flexibility of a spreadsheet with the robustness of a database. Columns behave as they do in a database, with a name and a type, while users still write formulas and arrange data in a familiar grid. This repository, grist-core, is the Community edition that you can run as a server for hosting spreadsheets.

Two sibling projects exist: grist-desktop, an app for Linux, macOS and Windows that edits spreadsheets stored locally, and grist-static, a fully in-browser build that shows spreadsheets on a website without a back end. You can try the core with Docker or the desktop app. A list of extra features that are not in grist-core is maintained for people comparing the editions.

All three repositories are open source under the Apache License 2.0. Grist Labs, an NYC-based company, develops the project, with significant contributions from French government organizations ANCT and DINUM, and sells an edition with additional features. It also runs free and paid hosted services at getgrist.com. Help is available on Discord and a community forum.

Key features

Typed, database-style spreadsheet columns
Spreadsheet formulas and grid editing
Self-hosted Community edition server
Desktop app for local spreadsheets
In-browser build via grist-static
Docker-based deployment

Good fit for

→Replacing ad hoc spreadsheets with structured data
→Hosting internal data tools on your own server

Built with: TypeScript
Tags: spreadsheet; database; relational; self-hosted; low-code; data-management; typescript

Grist: questions and answers

What is Grist used for?: Grist is a relational spreadsheet that mixes spreadsheet flexibility with database structure, available as a self-hosted server or hosted service. It is a good fit for replacing ad hoc spreadsheets with structured data and hosting internal data tools on your own server.
Is Grist open source?: Yes. Grist is open source under the Apache-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at gristlabs/grist-core and is written mainly in TypeScript.
Is Grist free?: Yes. Grist is open source, so the software itself is free to use. A managed cloud version is also available, with paid plans from $10 per seat per month.
Can I self-host Grist?: Yes. Grist can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.
What is Grist an alternative to?: Grist is an open-source alternative to Airtable, Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets and Stackby. Other open-source alternatives to Airtable include NocoDB, AITable and Baserow.
Is Grist actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to Grist was on 2 October 2026, and the latest release is v1.7.20, published on 28 September 2026. The project has 12k stars on GitHub.