Set Up Auth and a Database for a New App in One Afternoon
The first afternoon of any new app is the same: where does the data live, and who's allowed in? You can answer both with free tiers that don't expire the week you launch.
Pick your database shape first
Neon is serverless Postgres with branching, so you get a copy-on-write database per feature. Supabase wraps Postgres with auth, instant APIs, and storage — often all you need. PlanetScale is serverless MySQL with branching of its own. Upstash gives you serverless Redis for queues and caches, and Redis Cloud has a 30MB free tier to start. CockroachDB Cloud brings distributed SQL with 50M request units free, and Turso puts SQLite at the edge with 3GB free.
Add auth without writing it yourself
Auth0 is free for 7,000 monthly active users with social login and MFA. Clerk is free for 10,000 MAUs and is built for Next.js and React apps. Both drop in with a few lines and a redirect. If you'd rather not run two services, Supabase bundles auth and database together on its free tier.
Two paths that just work
Path one: Supabase free tier, two projects, auth and Postgres in one place. Path two: Neon for the database plus Clerk for auth, which keeps your user model clean if you grow past one app. Appwrite (75K MAU free) and the open-source PocketBase are solid if you want a backend-in-a-box instead.
Relevant Deals
Appwrite Cloud
Database75K MAU free BaaS — Firebase alternative with auth, database, storage, and functions
Open-source Backend-as-a-Service with authentication, database, storage, and serverless functions. Free cloud tier includes 75,000 monthly active users, 2 GB storage, 750,000 function executions, and 5 GB bandwidth. No credit card required.
Auth0
AuthFree for 7K MAUs — saves $30/mo vs. Auth0 Pro plan
Authentication and authorization platform with social login, MFA, and free tier for 7,000 active users.
Clerk
AuthFree for 10K MAUs — saves $25/mo vs. Clerk Pro
Authentication and user management for Next.js, React, and web apps.
CockroachDB Cloud
DatabaseFree distributed SQL with 50M RUs + 10GB — PostgreSQL-compatible, multi-region, auto-scaling database at zero cost
Distributed SQL database with free Serverless tier. 50M request units/month, 10GB storage, multi-region replication, automatic scaling, and PostgreSQL compatibility. Ideal for global applications needing resilience without operational complexity.
Neon
DatabaseFree $15/mo Postgres with branching — instant database branching for dev workflows
Serverless Postgres with branching, instant provisioning, and generous free tier.
PlanetScale
DatabaseFree 10GB MySQL-compatible database with branching — $30/mo value
Serverless MySQL-compatible database with branching and deploy requests.
PocketBase
DatabaseFree open-source backend — SQLite, auth, file storage, realtime in one binary
Open-source backend with realtime database, auth, and file storage.
Redis Cloud
DatabaseFree 30MB managed Redis — caching and pub/sub for small projects
Managed Redis database with caching, pub/sub, and vector search. Free 30MB tier.
Supabase
DatabaseFree Postgres with auth, realtime, and edge functions — Firebase alternative
Hosted Postgres database with authentication, instant APIs, edge functions.
Turso
DatabaseFree 3GB edge SQLite — global read replicas without the complexity
Edge SQLite database for global applications with generous free tier.
Upstash
DatabaseFree 10K requests/day serverless Redis — built for edge and serverless
Serverless Redis and Kafka for edge applications.