Airtable Features Explained: Pros, Cons & Comparison with Stackby

Airtable Features: A Deep Dive into What Makes Airtable Popular

If you've spent any time exploring no-code tools, you've probably come across Airtable. Airtable has built quite the name for itself. As of 2024, it's reportedly used by over 450,000 organizations, with teams at Netflix, Shopify, and even TIME using it to organize everything from editorial calendars to product roadmaps. It’s valued at over $11 billion. That’s not pocket change. Clearly, they’re doing something right.

But let’s be honest. The no-code world is getting bigger. And while Airtable is still a big name, it’s not the only one worth paying attention to. Tools like Stackby are not just keeping up, they’re offering a lot more, at a far better price point. So if you’re wondering whether Airtable is the right tool for you, or if you should be checking out an alternative that does more with less, stick around. We’re about to break it all down.

Airtable at a Glance

Launched in 2015, Airtable is a cloud-based collaboration platform that combines the simplicity of spreadsheets with the complexity of databases. In simple terms, Airtable helps teams build custom apps without writing code.

Common Airtable Terminology to start with:

• Bases: Airtable’s version of projects or databases. Every base is like a mini-universe of your data.
• Tables: Similar to individual sheets in Excel or Google Sheets.
• Records and Fields: Rows and columns, but with personality, like attachments, checkboxes, dropdowns, etc.
• Views: You can switch between Grid (spreadsheet-style), Calendar, Kanban, Gallery, Timeline, and Gantt to visualize data.

For a beginner, it’s relatively easy to set up. You create a Base, add your Tables, define your Fields (text, numbers, dropdowns, attachments), and start entering data. Within minutes, you’re building relationships between tables, setting up different Views, and maybe even triggering basic automations.

Key Airtable Features (And What They Mean for You)

1. Relational Databases with a Spreadsheet Interface

Airtable allows you to link records across tables, enabling relational data structures. This means you can, for example, connect a list of clients to their respective projects.

You can create multiple tables and link them together, but it looks and feels like a spreadsheet. No scary UI. No steep learning curve, at least, not in the beginning.

2. Multiple Views

Different teams need different ways of looking at data. A marketing team might love the Kanban View, while operations prefers Gantt. Airtable offers various views to suit your needs:​

• Grid View: The default spreadsheet-like view.
• Kanban View: Ideal for tracking tasks through stages.
• Calendar View: Visualize records with date fields.
• Gallery View: Display records as large cards, useful for visual content.
• Timeline and Gantt Views: For project planning and tracking dependencies.​

But here's the catch, some views like Timeline and Gantt are locked behind premium plans.  So you’ll need to pay up as your needs grow.

3. Custom Fields and Rich Data Types

From attachments and checkboxes to formulas and linked records, Airtable supports a variety of field types. You can even nest lookups and rollups to fetch data across tables.

That said, it can get clunky when you're trying to build more advanced logic. For instance, nesting formulas inside rollups inside another formula... yeah, it's not for the faint-hearted.

4. Airtable Automations

Airtable lets you trigger actions like sending emails, updating fields, or integrating with external tools based on specific changes in your base. For example, when a new lead is added, send an email or update another record.

5. Interface Designer

Airtable launched Interface Designer to help teams build mini front-ends on top of their data. It’s a drag-and-drop builder with dashboards, buttons, and visual elements.

Still, the feature is in beta and, honestly, it shows. Some users report bugs, crashes, and a lack of customizability. It’s promising, but not polished yet.

6. Integrations and Apps

You can integrate Airtable with other tools via Zapier, Make (formerly Integromat), or use built-in apps. There’s an app marketplace, but many are only available on higher-tier plans.

7. Collaboration Tools

Real-time collaboration, comments, tagging, and user permissions are all here. But permissions are table-level only, not row or column level unless you’re on the Enterprise plan.

8. Templates and Use Case Library

Airtable offers a range of templates to help users get started quickly. These templates cover various use cases, from content calendars to project trackers.

Pricing-Tied Feature Limits

Airtable's pricing structure has evolved over time, and as of 2025, it offers four main plans:​

Free Plan: Designed for individuals or very small teams, this plan includes:

• Up to 1,000 records per base
• 1 GB of attachments per base
• 100 automation runs per month
• Interface Designer

Team Plan: Priced at $20 per user per month (billed annually), this plan offers:

• 50,000 records per base
• 20 GB of attachments per base
• 25,000 automation runs per month
• Access to advanced views like Gantt and Timeline
• Expanded color and formatting options
• Granular interface permissions

Business Plan: At $45 per user per month (billed annually), this plan includes:

• 125,000 records per base
• 100 GB of attachments per base
• 100,000 automation runs per month
• Unlimited API calls per workspace per month
• Two-way sync and premium sync integrations

Enterprise Scale Plan: With custom pricing, this plan is tailored for large organizations and offers:

• 500,000 records per base
• 1,000 GB of attachments per base
• 500,000 automation runs per month
• Enhanced security and admin controls
• Enterprise API and extension management
• Audit logs and data loss prevention​

As teams grow and their data needs increase, the costs associated with higher-tier plans can escalate quickly. It's important to assess the specific requirements of your organization to determine the most cost-effective plan.

Who Uses Airtable?

Airtable is used by a lot of different teams. It's flexible, visual, and feels familiar and that's why so many people start using it.

• Marketing teams use it to manage social calendars, content pipelines, influencer lists, and campaign timelines. The visual views like Kanban, Calendar, Gallery, work really well for them.
• Product and engineering teams build roadmaps, track bugs, manage feature requests. They use linked tables to connect everything.
• Content creators and agencies organize their clients, deliverables, assets, and briefs. They often use templates to speed things up.
• Even nonprofits and HR teams can use it. For donor lists, volunteer records, hiring pipelines, onboarding, etc.
• Event planners use it too. They set up everything from venues to RSVPs to vendor contacts.

So, Airtable is best for teams who like structure but don’t want to code. It looks easy at first, but as you scale, you’ll probably notice limits. Record caps. Automation limits. Pricing jumps.

That’s when people start looking around.

Limitations and Challenges

Once you’ve been using Airtable for a while, a few limitations start surfacing, not necessarily deal breakers, but definitely things that make you pause if you're scaling or getting more ambitious with your setup.

Scalability hits a wall

Airtable feels light and fast, until it doesn't. When your base crosses a few thousand records, or if you're attaching too many files, things start slowing down. Performance drops, load times increase, and organizing data becomes more cumbersome than it should be. It’s not always immediate, but it creeps up.

Pricing escalates pretty quickly

A lot of core features, like Gantt view or custom permissions are locked behind higher-tier plans. Going from Free to Pro at $20/user/month (just to access views you may genuinely need) can feel like a big jump, especially for small teams or those managing multiple collaborators.

Interface Designer still feels... unfinished

One of Airtable’s most hyped features - the Interface Designer, lets you build custom dashboards or layouts. It looks promising. But even now, in 2025, it still has some beta-like rough edges. You get limited logic control, it’s a bit clunky for complex use cases, and it’s not as intuitive as the rest of Airtable.

Still not the most flexible app marketplace

Airtable has a marketplace for extensions (formerly called Airtable Apps), but it’s not very active anymore. Many apps haven't been updated in a while, and the variety is limited.

In short, Airtable works really well for a defined group of users: small to mid-sized teams who want a collaborative database that’s easy to understand and visually appealing. But if you’re looking for something highly scalable, automation-heavy, or more customizable, there’s a point where Airtable starts feeling like a really good starter tool, not a power tool.

And yeah, that’s kind of the tipping point where Stackby comes into the picture.

Stackby: A Modern, Scalable Airtable Alternative

Now let’s talk about Stackby. If Airtable feels like a polished downtown studio apartment, Stackby feels more like a spacious, still-under-the-radar loft with twice the storage, and you can knock down walls if you want.

Now, Stackby isn’t just “another Airtable alternative.” It’s a fully capable, no-code work management platform that combines the best of spreadsheets, databases, and no-code automations. Built for flexibility, Stackby empowers teams to build their own tools, workflows, and dashboards.

But before diving into features, let’s talk about how Stackby’s structured.

Workspace → Your team’s digital HQ. It holds all your Stacks. Teams often set up different workspaces by function - say, Marketing, Sales, Operations - to keep things organized.

Stacks → Your project hub where each Stack can include one or more Tables. Think of it as the overall setup for one project, department, or workflow.

Tables → Structured datasets that live inside a Stack. Like sheets in a spreadsheet, but with way more functionality and structure.

Views → Different ways to slice, dice, and look at your data. Stackby supports multiple view types.

Column Fields → The building blocks of your tables, these columns define what kind of data lives in each field.

But it takes a more open-ended approach to flexibility.

Why Stackby Stands Out

If you’re looking at Stackby, you’re probably comparing it to Airtable. And hey, it's fair. Airtable is smooth. But Stackby brings its own unique edge. Here’s what tips the scale in Stackby’s favor:

30+ column types:

Column types go beyond just text, attachments and checkboxes, you get rating columns, progress bars, time trackers, button fields, and even real-time API columns. That means you can link a column directly to a third-party service, define parameters, and fetch values on the fly.

So, say you're managing YouTube campaigns, you can pull in the latest view counts or subscriber stats directly into your table. And it’s all native, no patchy workarounds.

Powerful Views:

Access and visualize data in grid, kanban, calendar, gallery, list, and timeline views. You can filter, sort, group: all the standard stuff, but more powerfully layered.

Internal Automations:

Stackby’s automation engine isn’t the flashiest on the market, but it’s solid. And most importantly, it doesn’t constantly make you worry about how many “runs” or “actions” you’ve used up for the month.

You can:

• Set triggers on form submissions, record changes, or specific dates.
• Send emails, update values, or push notifications within Stackby.
• And now, with internal automations, you can create multi-step workflows, entirely within your Stack, without relying on any external apps.

It’s still improving, sure, but it’s already a huge help if you want basic automation baked right into your workspace.

Apps Marketplace:

Enhance functionality by adding mini-tools (apps) to your Stack like: charts, pivot tables, goal tracker, time tracker, page designer, maps, and more.

1000+ Pre Built Templates:

Need to whip up a content calendar? A client tracker? A production dashboard?

Stackby’s got 1,000+ templates you can clone and use instantly. And not just half-baked samples either, these are real, functional templates across industries: Marketing, Sales, HR, Project Management, Real Estate, even Law Firms.

50+ API Connectors linked to your columns:

Unlike Airtable, where you often need to hook up tools like Zapier or Make to fetch data from other platforms, Stackby lets you connect directly to over 50+ services, Google Analytics, YouTube, Mailchimp, Facebook Ads, Shopify, and more.

And it’s not just one-way. You can pull live data right into your tables, refresh it manually or automatically, and build real-time dashboards without juggling multiple platforms.

5000+ App Integrations:

Easily connect Stackby with over 5000 apps using Zapier, Pabbly, or Integrately, whatever suits your workflow best. Automate across tools without the usual setup hassle.

Granular Sharing & Permissions:

With granular control access at the table, column, views levels, you can:

• Lock down entire views or stacks.
• Hide specific columns from certain collaborators.
• Restrict editing rights per column, per user.

This matters especially if you’re working with external teams, clients, or freelancers and don’t want everyone poking around sensitive stuff.

Responsive Support:

Stackby offers dedicated support via chat, email, and help center resources. Whether you're stuck with automation or just exploring templates, help's usually a click away.

Compliance & Security:

Data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Stackby follows industry-standard security protocols, role-based permissions, and offers fine-grained access controls to keep your data safe.

Transparent & Scalable Pricing:

Unlike Airtable, Stackby’s pricing doesn’t shoot up as your team or data grows. You get access to powerful features, even on the free and starter plans, without hidden surprises.

Airtable vs Stackby: Feature Comparison Table

Choosing the Right Tool for You

Airtable is clean and simple, great if you're just getting started. But as you grow, limits show up fast.

More records? Upgrade. More automations? Upgrade. API work? Not so flexible.

Stackby gives you more room to grow. More features. Better control. And no paywall surprises every other step.

Unlike Airtable, Stackby doesn’t throw you from free straight into an expensive tier, there are in-between plans that actually make sense for different team sizes and needs. So the jump never feels steep.

It’s better for:

• Teams using spreadsheets but needing automation
• Ops teams relying on external APIs
• Agencies juggling clients or workflows
• Anyone done with Airtable’s limits

Final Thoughts

Airtable got a lot of people into the no-code mindset. It changed how teams think about working with data. But it's not always the long-term solution, especially for growing teams or those needing deeper integrations and control.

That’s where Stackby has really found its stride. It’s not trying to be Airtable 2.0. It’s more like a power tool for people who’ve hit the limits of what Airtable can offer, and want something more customizable, without blowing the budget.

So, if you’re in that in-between space, where Airtable’s been good but not quite great lately, it’s probably time to give Stackby a look.

You might be surprised by how far you can go when the tool doesn’t hold you back.