| RunMyStartup | Glide | |
|---|---|---|
| What you can build | Real custom apps and SaaS | Internal tools and simple apps |
| Data source | Dedicated PostgreSQL database | Spreadsheets and Glide Tables |
| Custom business logic | Built by AI team | Limited (no-code actions) |
| Public web app with SEO | Yes (Next.js app) | Limited (PWA, weaker SEO) |
| User accounts and roles | Fully custom | Basic row-level permissions |
| Payments (Stripe) | Built in (AI agent) | Add-on integration |
| Source code ownership | Studio plan+ | No |
| Approval workflow | Yes | No |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Starting price | €39/mo | $60/mo |
Spreadsheet apps vs real products
Glide is famous for one thing: turning a Google Sheet (or its own Glide Tables) into a usable app in an afternoon. Pick a sheet, choose a layout, share a link. Perfect for an internal directory, a field team app, a simple inventory tracker, or a small client portal.
RunMyStartup is not built around a spreadsheet. It builds full-stack web apps with a real PostgreSQL database, custom screens, user accounts, payments, and SEO. The kind of product you can charge money for and grow into a real business.
Glide is fantastic when your data fits in a table and your users mostly read or update rows. It starts to feel limiting the moment you need custom logic, complex relationships, or a public product with serious SEO.
When Glide is exactly right
Glide really shines for internal tools. A logistics team that needs a mobile app to scan deliveries. A real estate agency that wants a quick listing app for its agents. A nonprofit that needs a directory of volunteers. A school that wants a small admin app for its teachers.
In all these cases, the data lives well in rows and columns, the user base is small and known, and the app does not need to be discoverable on Google. Glide ships these in days, sometimes hours.
If that is the shape of your project, Glide is a wonderful choice, and trying to do it with full-stack code is overkill.
When Glide starts to push back
The moment your idea becomes a real product for the public web, Glide starts to feel tight:
- You want a marketplace where buyers and sellers pay each other and you take a cut
- You need subscriptions with usage limits, trials, and team plans
- You want a public, SEO-optimized site that ranks on Google
- Your data has many relations: users, projects, tasks, comments, files
- You need fine-grained business rules that go beyond row filters
At that point, you fight the spreadsheet model instead of leaning on it. RunMyStartup is designed for these projects from day one, with a real database, custom screens, and proper SEO.
Code ownership and future-proofing
Glide apps live entirely on Glide. There is no source code export and your business logic is locked inside the platform's configuration. If you outgrow Glide, you essentially start over.
With RunMyStartup on the Studio plan or above, you get the full Next.js source code of your app in your own GitHub repository. If your business grows and you want to hire a development team later, your code is real, standard, and portable.
Pricing comparison
Glide has a free plan, then Starter at $60/month, Business at $150/month, and Enterprise on quote (annual billing). Costs scale with the number of users, with limits on rows of data, edits, and AI usage.
RunMyStartup starts with Discovery for free, then Founder at €39/month, Studio at €99/month with GitHub source code access, and Scale at €249/month. A 3% commission applies on revenue generated through your app's payments. Hosting, database, emails, and SEO are included.
When Glide is the better choice
- You are building an internal tool for a small, known team
- Your data already lives in a spreadsheet you want to turn into an app
- You need mobile access for a field team or operations
- You do not need SEO, public sign-ups, or custom business rules
- You want the fastest possible path from sheet to app
When RunMyStartup is the better choice
- You are building a public product, not an internal tool
- You need a real database with custom data models and relations
- You want subscriptions, marketplace payouts, or paid memberships
- You need SEO to bring organic traffic from Google
- You want to own your source code and not be tied to one platform
Verdict
Glide is one of the best ways to turn a spreadsheet into a usable app, especially for internal tools. RunMyStartup is for founders building a real product on the open web with custom data, payments, and SEO. Use Glide when your idea fits a table. Use RunMyStartup when your idea fits a real startup.