Backendless Pricing Guide 2024: Plans & Features Explained

Backendless pricing tiers start at only $15/month but can go up to more than $7,000/year — which would actually be a fantastic deal. 

Read on to learn:  

• Intro to Backendless and use cases 

• Pricing plans and features 

• Is it worth the price?

• Why Adalo is a better alternative 

Let’s take a closer look at Backendless and some optimal use cases. 

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What is Backendless? 

Backendless is a low-code web app and native mobile app builder that provides the tools to create every part of an app: frontend, backend, and database. Since it’s a low-code platform, having a basic to intermediate understanding of programming, APIs, and database structures is beneficial.

Non-techies might struggle with the steeper learning curve with Backendless, but resources and community support can assist in overcoming initial challenges.

It’s super important to have some coding knowledge, or at the very least, the general logic that makes up the structure of most coding languages. This is because you’ll use Backendless’s coding language, Codeless, to build your app’s backend logic.

There’s no limit to the type of app you can create with Backendless. Choose a premade template for an ordering, internal business, or e-commerce app, or start building your project from scratch. 

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Backendless Pricing 

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Backendless Pricing Tiers

Backendless has two major pricing tiers, one for individuals and small businesses and the other for medium to enterprise-level organizations. The pricing tiers for individuals and small businesses are hosted on Backendless’s cloud space, so they function like most SaaS. 

However, the plans for medium businesses and above allow you to host your app on-premises (on a business’s on-premises servers). This feature gives you much more control over your app’s security and scalability than you’d get from a cloud-based service. 

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Cloud-Based Hosting: Individuals and Small Business Tier

These plans are ideal for folks looking to learn the Backendless building interface or to create a simple start-up app for their small business. 

Free Version

The free version provides enough tools and features to learn Backendless’s building interface. You can tinker with the Codeless language, build a simple backend, and experiment with a custom API key to set permissions for different users.  

You can build up to 20 data tables with 15,000 objects and up to 1GB of file storage and publish your app on the web.  

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Scale Plan ($15/month)

You can add more juice to your app by providing more robust features than the Free Plan. For instance, you’ll get 10 customized API keys, up to 100 databases with 100,000 objects each, the capability to connect your database to up to 1,000 real-time objects to harvest data, 500,000 monthly push notifications, and much more. 

The Scale Plan also allows you to add features a la carte. This is a great option for folks who know precisely which extra features they want to add, as they’ll only need to pay for what they use, resulting in potential savings. 

For instance, here are some of the additional features you can add:

• 10 GB File Storage: $20/month 

• 100,000 data objects: $10/month

• 50 data tables: $20/month

• 10 custom API keys: $50/month

Backendless provides over 20 a la carte features — you can find them all by accessing the website. 

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Backendless Pro: Medium to Enterprise-Level Tier, On-Prem

Got your own servers? Backendless lets you run your app directly on-prem, giving you full control over scaling, security, and other functionalities. 

What about app-building capabilities? The on-prem versions allow for what Backendless calls the Limitless Edition, which is exactly what it sounds like: You’ll be able to build unlimited apps with unlimited databases and records, unlimited API calls, unlimited push notifications, and other features that will induce drool from the mouths of your tech and IT teams.

You’ll also get access to the Backendless Marketplace, where you can find developer-made tools like database connectors and code generators, which you can download to your server to boost your app’s performance. And you’ll get priority support from the Backendless team if you run into any problems. 

Backendless has 3 pro-level plans: 

• Single-sever ($7,200/year): You can run your app from one on-premises server or a developer’s hard drive. 

• Clustered Server (contact sales): For larger companies with at least 3 server nodes. This is a good option for companies with servers in multiple locations or continents.   

• Fully Managed (contact sales): Backendless’s team of experts will set up several service monitors on your servers and observe their performance all day, every day — literally.
  
  Companies that experience changes to their IT environment benefit from this plan, as the Backendless team can suggest optimal guidance to ensure your system and servers always hum in harmony.   

Is Backendless Worth It?

Now that you’ve got an idea of the features and benefits you get from the Backendless pricing tiers, here are some keys you should keep in mind when considering the platform:

• Must be a techie: Ultimately, you’ll need to know how databases, APIs, and programming languages work to use Backendless. You’ll struggle mightily if you’re a beginner to tech. 

• Good if you know exactly what you want in an app: Already have a set of wireframes, targeted third-party apps for API calls, and an estimation of how much data storage your app will need? If so, Backendless is for you — you’ll be able to know exactly which features you require, which can help you control costs. 

• Ideal for organizations with a server or two: While it may appear expensive at $7,200/year, the single-server Backendless Pro Version could be an excellent deal. You’ll have a single database and backend solution that you can scale to the realms of outer space: There’s no limit to the number of apps, databases, or database objects you can build. 
  
  Additionally, you’ll get levels of control over your app’s security that only on-prem can provide. You can sleep easily knowing your data and sensitive info are locked down to the max.   

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Adalo: An Easy Backendless Alternative

Don’t know anything about tech or programming but still want to create an app? Then Adalo is your perfect choice. 

Adalo is a no-code native mobile app builder that doesn’t require coding skills or technical knowledge to create an app. If you sign into an email account, you can create an app with Adalo. The platform leverages a simple drag-and-drop interface, similar to photo-editing software, instead of coding. 

You’ll also get heaps of power: Adalo lets you customize nearly every pixel of your app so its color, components, and layout fit your exact needs. Plus, you’ll be able to connect to 1,000s of third-party integrations, like Zapier, Airtable, and Mixpanel. 

After you create your app, you can publish it on the web, in the Apple App Store, or the Google Play Store, potentially allowing you to reach millions of users. 

Start creating your app for free with Adalo.‍