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Both Firebase and Supabase are excellent backends for mobile apps. Here's how we choose between them.
Firebase — when we use it
- Real-time data is core to the product (chat, live dashboards, collaborative tools)
- Push notifications are needed quickly — FCM is tightly integrated
- The app needs to work well offline — Firestore's offline sync is best in class
- Speed to prototype is the priority — Firebase's setup is the fastest
Supabase — when we use it
- The data is relational and queries are complex — PostgreSQL handles this better
- The client wants to avoid vendor lock-in — Supabase is open source
- Row-level security is important — Supabase's RLS is more expressive
- You need a REST or GraphQL API out of the box — Supabase auto-generates this
Our honest take
For most mobile app MVPs, Firebase is still the faster choice. But if you're building something with complex relationships between data or if you want a SQL database under the hood, Supabase is excellent and has caught up significantly in the last year.
The worst decision is switching halfway through. Pick one early and commit. Both are good enough — the switching cost is not worth it.
// About the Author
Written by the founder of CodeHonors — a mobile developer with 8+ years building Android, iOS and Flutter apps. If you found this useful, reach out.