the catalog · ☁️ Hosting
PocketBase
★ 50kSingle-binary Go backend with embedded SQLite, realtime subscriptions, auth, file storage, and admin UI
PocketBase does the job of Firebase, self-hosted. It is MIT-licensed, so you can do essentially what you like with it, and it installs in about one command. Firebase bills $25+ for it. 50k stars on GitHub.
Open-source replacement for Firebase.
- Licence
- MIT
- Self-hosting
- Easy
- The paid one costs
- $25+
- GitHub stars
- 50k
Is it actually a replacement?
We have written a verdict on what it replaces — what you lose, and why people still pay:
How PocketBase runs
Where it runs
PocketBase runs on your server.
Installing it
Download one platform binary and run `pocketbase serve`; build from Go source only for custom extensions.
Where your data lives
Collections, auth records, settings, and application data live in SQLite files under `pb_data`; uploaded files live under `pb_data/storage` by default or in configured S3-compatible storage, and schema migrations can be kept as JavaScript files in `pb_migrations`.
What setup takes
It installs unusually cleanly, but a public deployment still needs process supervision, HTTPS/reverse proxying, backups of `pb_data`, and a deliberate upgrade routine.
The catch compared with Firebase Blaze
PocketBase is excellent for one modest app, but a single SQLite server with no built-in functions runtime cannot match Firebase's offline SDKs, global scaling, messaging, analytics, or managed operations.
PocketBase questions
Is PocketBase open source?
Yes — it is released under MIT.
Can PocketBase replace Firebase?
Our verdict on Firebase Blaze is YES. Supabase (108k stars), PocketBase (59k stars), Appwrite (57k stars) are mature open-source replacements for Firebase Blaze — self-host with real ops work and stop paying.
Can I self-host PocketBase?
Yes — we rate it easy to self-host, and it runs on your server. Download one platform binary and run `pocketbase serve`; build from Go source only for custom extensions.