Short answer: Google Sheets gives a team the most room for one shared workbook, with up to 20 million cells or 100MB per file and 15GB of storage shared across the Google account. Microsoft Excel on the web is free too, with the largest grid, 1,048,576 rows by 16,384 columns, but only 5GB of OneDrive storage. Airtable's free plan caps each base at 1,000 records. For a shared database, Baserow's free cloud plan holds 3,000 rows per workspace, and its first paid step is $10 per user a month billed yearly.
Eight spreadsheet and table tools compared on the caps their free plans set, with the first paid step where a dollar price is published.
Most free spreadsheet roundups mention free tiers only in passing, so the caps that matter most get skipped. The limit that decides the choice is what the free plan lets a team do before it asks for money: how many rows a file holds, how many cells, how many people can edit, how much storage sits behind the file, and when a cap blocks new work. This guide compares eight tools on those caps, with Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel at the top, and it sits alongside the wider spreadsheets category.
Toolradar data: of the 9 spreadsheet tools we track, 67% offer a free or freemium plan and 33% are paid only. The free tier is the first filter for most buyers, so the caps below carry more weight than the feature list. For the broader ranking, see best spreadsheet software.
Methodology: each cap was read on the vendor's own pricing or support page and checked in October 2026, then written the way the page prints it. The tools are ordered by how much a small team gets free before a cap forces a payment, with the first paid step as the tiebreaker. Smartsheet has no permanent free plan, so it sits last, for a team that already expects to pay.
Top Picks
Picked by editorial review, informed by G2 and Capterra review volume and rating and by media mentions, the signals behind our category rankings. How we rate
The most room for one shared workbook: 20 million cells or 100MB per file on the free account.
Starting price
Free; Workspace $7/user/mo yearly
3.7 (997 reviews)
Best for
Small teams that share one working spreadsheet and stay under the file caps.
The largest grid of the group, with a free web version and 5GB of OneDrive storage.
Starting price
Free on the web; Personal $9.99/mo
4.8 (22,705 reviews)
Best for
One person who needs the biggest grid and can live with a small free quota.
Self-hosted, it has no record or seat cap. The cloud free plan holds 1,000 records for up to 3 users.
Starting price
Free cloud; self-host unlimited
Best for
Teams with a developer who will run a server and want a database that looks like a sheet.
| Tool | Starting price | Rating | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Sheets | Free; Workspace $7/user/mo yearly | 3.7 997 reviews | Small teams that share one working spreadsheet and stay under the file caps. |
| Microsoft Excel | Free on the web; Personal $9.99/mo | 4.8 22,705 reviews | One person who needs the biggest grid and can live with a small free quota. |
| NocoDB | Free cloud; self-host unlimited | n/a | Teams with a developer who will run a server and want a database that looks like a sheet. |
| Baserow | Free; Premium $10/user/mo yearly | 4.7 73 reviews | Small teams that outgrow a spreadsheet and want 50,000 rows at the first paid step. |
| Rows | Free; Plus $6/user/mo yearly | 4.9 24 reviews | Growth and ops teams that want many spreadsheets and data connections, not heavy imports. |
| Airtable | Free; Team $20/user/mo yearly | 3.6 644 reviews | Small teams tracking structured records such as clients, content or inventory under 1,000 records. |
| Notion | Free; see Notion's pricing page | 3.5 407 reviews | Teams that already write in Notion and want a light table inside the wiki, not a heavy grid. |
| Smartsheet | Trial only; Pro $9/member/mo yearly | 4.1 26,330 reviews | Operations teams that already plan in spreadsheet-style sheets and will pay from the start. |
Google Sheets
The most room for one shared workbook: 20 million cells or 100MB per file on the free account.
- 4.8 on Capterra (811 reviews)
- 2.4 on SourceForge (186 reviews)
- Starting price
- Free; Workspace $7/user/mo yearly
- Free plan
- Free to use
- Rating
- 3.7 (997 reviews)
Best for: Small teams that share one working spreadsheet and stay under the file caps.
- Pro: The free account covers Sheets, with 15GB of storage shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos
- Pro: The per-file ceiling is 20 million cells or 100MB, and Google's Drive help page states it, so it can be checked before a file grows
- Pro: Business Starter adds pooled storage per user on the annual plan
- Con: Converting an Excel file removes any cell with more than 50,000 characters, so check long text cells first
- Con: Sheets files count toward the 15GB shared with Gmail and Photos, and a full quota blocks new mail
Google Sheets itself is free, which is incredibly generous and makes it accessible to everyone.
Watch out
Storage limits on free tier can be hit quickly.
- Starting price
- Free on the web; Personal $9.99/mo
- Free plan
- Yes
- Rating
- 4.8 (22,705 reviews)
Best for: One person who needs the biggest grid and can live with a small free quota.
- Pro: The grid holds 1,048,576 rows by 16,384 columns, the largest limit on this list
- Pro: Excel for the web is free with a Microsoft account, and it opens the same .xlsx files as desktop
- Pro: Microsoft 365 Personal adds desktop Excel and 1TB of OneDrive for $99.99 a year in the US
- Con: The free plan covers one person and only the browser apps, with no desktop Excel
- Con: The 5GB quota fills quickly once several workbooks sit in OneDrive
Microsoft Excel's pricing is fair, offering a generous free online version and affordable subscription options.
NocoDB
Self-hosted, it has no record or seat cap. The cloud free plan holds 1,000 records for up to 3 users.
- Starting price
- Free cloud; self-host unlimited
- Free plan
- Yes
Best for: Teams with a developer who will run a server and want a database that looks like a sheet.
- Pro: The Community edition, self-hosted, lists unlimited records, storage and seats
- Pro: Cloud Free covers up to 3 users, 1,000 records and 1GB of storage at $0
- Pro: Plus is $12 per seat a month billed yearly, or $15 monthly, for cloud teams that outgrow the free tier
- Con: A shared customer list reaches the 1,000-record and 3-user cloud limits quickly
- Con: Self-hosting moves the cost from a seat fee to a server and an admin who keeps it running
NocoDB's pricing is incredibly generous, offering a fully-featured 'Free Forever' self-hosted option.
- Starting price
- Free; Premium $10/user/mo yearly
- Free plan
- No
- Rating
- 4.7 (73 reviews)
Best for: Small teams that outgrow a spreadsheet and want 50,000 rows at the first paid step.
- Pro: The free cloud plan includes 3,000 rows per workspace and 2GB of storage at $0
- Pro: Premium lifts the cap to 50,000 rows and 20GB for $10 per user a month billed yearly
- Pro: The free plan includes 2,000 automation credits and 500 external app users
- Con: The 3,000-row cap is per workspace, so a second project shares the same rows
- Con: Paid plans are per user, so a five-person team pays $50 a month on Premium billed yearly
Baserow offers incredibly generous pricing, especially with its robust free tier and self-hosted option.
Watch out
Self-hosting requires technical expertise and infrastructure.
- Starting price
- Free; Plus $6/user/mo yearly
- Free plan
- Yes
- Rating
- 4.9 (24 reviews)
Best for: Growth and ops teams that want many spreadsheets and data connections, not heavy imports.
- Pro: The free plan is free forever, with no trial period and no card needed
- Pro: Plus is $6 per user a month billed yearly, or $8 monthly, with 5MB file imports and 10 guests
- Pro: Pro is $59 a month plus $6 per user billed yearly, with 100MB imports and 200 guests
- Con: The free plan caps file imports at 1MB and gives 5 AI tasks a month
- Con: Rows says on its pricing page that it has joined Superhuman, so its plan terms may change
Rows' pricing is generally fair, especially with a robust free tier.
Airtable
A grid-style database: 1,000 records per base free, 5 editors, and a full base blocks new records.
- 2.4 on Trustpilot (387 reviews)
- 4.4 on TrustRadius (239 reviews)
- 4.4 on PeerSpot (18 reviews)
- Starting price
- Free; Team $20/user/mo yearly
- Free plan
- Yes
- Rating
- 3.6 (644 reviews)
Best for: Small teams tracking structured records such as clients, content or inventory under 1,000 records.
- Pro: The free plan includes 1,000 records per base, 1GB of attachments per base and 1,000 API calls a month
- Pro: Going over the record cap blocks new records, but Airtable says it does not remove your existing data
- Pro: On a Team or Business plan, only users with edit access are charged, so read-only collaborators cost nothing
- Con: 1,000 records per base is the cap a growing list reaches first
- Con: The free workspace allows 5 editor or creator collaborators, so a sixth editor needs a paid plan
Airtable is generous for small teams but costs escalate quickly at scale.
Watch out
Free tier caps at 1,000 records per base, most teams hit this within weeks
Notion
A free workspace where databases sit beside documents, with 5MB file uploads and 10 external guests.
- 2.5 on Trustpilot (287 reviews)
- 4.4 on TrustRadius (85 reviews)
- 4.1 on PeerSpot (35 reviews)
- Starting price
- Free; see Notion's pricing page
- Free plan
- Yes
- Rating
- 3.5 (407 reviews)
Best for: Teams that already write in Notion and want a light table inside the wiki, not a heavy grid.
- Pro: The free plan has no seat fee, and databases live in the same workspace as the pages that use them
- Pro: Free includes 7 days of page history and 10 external guests for clients or contractors
- Pro: Databases give table and board views without a second tool to log into
- Con: File uploads cap at 5MB on the free plan, which rules out large attachments
- Con: Paid Notion prices are not listed here, so check Notion's pricing page before budgeting
The Free plan covers individuals with unlimited pages, and paid plans lift the 5 MB upload cap and the 10-guest limit.
Watch out
The Free plan caps file uploads at 5 MB per file; paid plans are unlimited (about 5 GB per file).
Smartsheet
No permanent free plan: a 30-day trial with no card, then a paid Pro plan billed per member.
- 4.4 on G2 (22,745 reviews)
- 4.5 on Capterra (3,545 reviews)
- 2.3 on SourceForge (40 reviews)
- Starting price
- Trial only; Pro $9/member/mo yearly
- Free plan
- No
- Rating
- 4.1 (26,330 reviews)
Best for: Operations teams that already plan in spreadsheet-style sheets and will pay from the start.
- Pro: The 30-day trial needs no credit card, so a team can test its real workflow before it pays
- Pro: Pro is $9 per member a month billed yearly, for up to 10 members
- Pro: Sheets, forms and reports sit in the same tool, which suits a team that tracks work in rows
- Con: No permanent free plan, so the free-limits question has no free answer on this tool
- Con: Business is $19 per member a month billed yearly, or $24 monthly, and Enterprise is quote-only
Smartsheet's pricing is on the higher side, especially for smaller teams, with the Pro tier at $9/member/month and Business at $24/member/month.
Watch out
Business tier requires 3+ members minimum
Other Spreadsheets tools worth considering
More published tools from our Spreadsheets category, ordered by our category ranking. They are not part of the editorial picks above.
What a free spreadsheet tool gives you
A spreadsheet tool keeps data in rows and columns and calculates across them. The free version is a working grid, but the vendor sets a ceiling on rows, cells, collaborators, file size, storage or automation runs, and that ceiling is where the upgrade prompt begins. Google Sheets and Excel cap the size of one file. Airtable, Baserow and NocoDB cap records, the rows of a table-like database. Storage caps decide how many files fit in the account. The useful question is which ceiling a real project reaches first.
Some tools blur the line. Airtable and Baserow look like spreadsheets, but they store records in linked tables with forms and views. A 1,000-record cap on one of those feels very different from a 1,048,576-row grid, even though both are called free spreadsheets.
Why the free caps decide the choice
A free spreadsheet is judged by the limit it hits first. A two-person budget tracker in Google Sheets is unlikely to reach a 20 million cell ceiling, but a client list on Airtable's free plan can reach 1,000 records as the list grows. Teams that outgrow a free plan have to move their data, and a move in the middle of a quarter costs more than the subscription it avoids.
The first paid step matters as much. Among the tools on this list that publish a dollar price, the first paid plan runs from the lowest step at Rows up to the Airtable Team plan. Google Workspace Business Starter adds company email on a per-user annual plan. A team of ten seats pays about $840 a year on Starter and about $2,400 a year on Airtable's Team plan, before any add-on, so the free tier is also a budget decision.
Key Features to Look For
Cell and file size on grid tools (Essential)
Google Sheets stops a file at 20 million cells or 100MB. Excel's grid is 1,048,576 rows by 16,384 columns, and one cell holds up to 32,767 characters. A grid tool is limited by file size before it runs out of rows.
Storage behind the account (Important)
A personal Google Account shares 15GB across Gmail, Drive and Photos, and Sheets files count against it. A free Microsoft account has 5GB of OneDrive, and Baserow's free cloud plan gives 2GB per workspace.
Automation and API caps (Important)
Airtable's free plan lists 1,000 API calls per workspace each month and 75 unique automations per base. Baserow includes 2,000 automation credits, and Rows gives 5 AI tasks a month on Free.
Import file size (Important)
Rows caps a file import at 1MB on Free, 5MB on Plus and 100MB on Pro. Notion caps file uploads at 5MB on its free plan. A large CSV can fail on the import step before any row cap applies.
Self-hosted option (Nice to have)
NocoDB's Community edition is self-hosted and lists unlimited records, storage and seats. The cost moves from a seat fee to a server your team runs and keeps patched.
Trial instead of a free plan (Important)
Smartsheet offers a 30-day free trial with no credit card and no permanent free plan. The first real step on Smartsheet is a paid one, so the trial is the only test before money changes hands. Compare Airtable against Smartsheet and the Smartsheet alternatives before choosing.
How to choose a free spreadsheet
-
Start with the file. A single large workbook of numbers fits in Google Sheets and in Excel's grid, so test the 100MB and 20 million cell caps on your largest real file.
-
Count the people who must edit, not the people who look. Airtable's five editor seats and NocoDB's three cloud users cap a team sooner than the row count does.
-
Check the record count for a database. A list of customers, orders or projects grows one row at a time, so Airtable's 1,000 records per base and NocoDB's 1,000 cloud records fill up first.
-
Plan the storage. A Google account shares 15GB with Gmail and Photos, and a Microsoft account's 5GB holds every workbook saved to OneDrive, so count the files you will keep, not just the file you open today.
-
Decide whether you need a database. Linked records and forms favour Airtable, Baserow or NocoDB, while a plain grid favours Google Sheets or Excel.
Pricing Overview
Google Sheets (free account)
The free account: 15GB shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos, with Sheets files up to 20 million cells or 100MB.
Free with a Google Account
Google Workspace Business Starter
Company email and business features, with pooled storage per user, for teams that outgrow the personal account.
$7/user/mo billed annually, $8.40 flexible
Microsoft 365 Personal
Desktop Excel and 1TB of OneDrive for one person who needs the full desktop app.
$9.99/mo or $99.99/yr (US)
Airtable Team
Teams that need more than five editors or creators on one workspace.
$20/user/mo billed annually, $24 monthly
NocoDB Plus
Cloud users who need more than three users or 1,000 records and do not want to self-host.
$12/seat/mo billed annually, $15 monthly
Smartsheet Pro
Up to 10 members on spreadsheet-style work management, after the 30-day trial ends.
$9/member/mo billed annually, $12 monthly
Pricing Comparison
| Tool | Free rows, records or cells | Free people | Free storage or file size | Free automation or API | Cheapest paid step |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
20 million cells per file | Not stated | 100MB per file; 15GB shared across the account | Not stated for Sheets | Workspace Starter, $7/user/mo annual | |
1,048,576 rows by 16,384 columns on the desktop grid | 1 person on the free plan | 5GB OneDrive; 32,767 characters per cell | Not stated | Microsoft 365 Personal, $9.99/mo or $99.99/yr | |
NocoDB (cloud) | 1,000 records | Up to 3 users | 1GB storage | Not stated | Plus, $12/seat/mo annual |
NocoDB (self-hosted) | Unlimited records | Unlimited seats | Unlimited storage | Not stated | Free, you run the server |
Baserow (cloud) | 3,000 rows per workspace | 500 external app users | 2GB per workspace | 2,000 automation credits | Premium, $10/user/mo annual |
Rows | Spreadsheets unlimited | 3 guest members | 1MB file import | 5 AI tasks a month | Plus, $6/user/mo annual |
Airtable | 1,000 records per base | 5 editor or creator collaborators | 1GB attachments per base | 1,000 API calls a month; 75 automations per base | Team, $20/user/mo annual |
Notion | Not stated | 10 external guests | 5MB file uploads; 7-day page history | Not stated | See Notion's pricing page |
Smartsheet | No free plan | 30-day trial, no credit card | Not applicable | Not applicable | Pro, $9/member/mo annual |
Prices and limits checked on each vendor's page in October 2026: Airtable plans, Airtable pricing, Google file limits, Google Workspace editions, Excel limits, Microsoft storage quotas, Microsoft 365 plans, Rows pricing, Baserow pricing, NocoDB pricing, Notion pricing and Smartsheet pricing.
Mistakes to Avoid
- ×
Judging by the row count alone, Google Sheets caps a file by cells and size, so a wide sheet can hit 20 million cells or 100MB long before its row count looks full.
- ×
Ignoring the editor count, Airtable's free workspace allows 5 editor or creator collaborators, and a sixth editor needs a paid plan.
- ×
- ×
Converting Excel to Sheets without a check, any cell with more than 50,000 characters is removed when an Excel file is converted, so test the largest text cells first.
- ×
Working in a full account, Gmail, Drive and Photos share 15GB, and a full quota blocks new uploads and new mail until space is freed.
Expert Tips
- →
Find the binding cap first, write down the one number your project reaches first, such as records per base or file size, and rank tools by that number, not by the feature list.
- →
Keep long text out of the grid, Excel allows 32,767 characters per cell, so put long notes in a document and link to them from the sheet.
- →
Count editors, not viewers, Airtable does not charge for read-only collaborators, so give most of your team read access and only the people who edit a base need an editor seat.
- →
Watch the OneDrive quota for Excel, the 5GB free quota is the one a web-only user hits, so move older workbooks to a local drive before the quota fills.
- →
Build the real workflow in the trial, Smartsheet's 30-day trial needs no card, so load a live project into it before you choose a paid plan.
The Bottom Line
Google Sheets is the free pick for one shared workbook, with 20 million cells or 100MB per file. Microsoft Excel on the web has the largest grid and 5GB of OneDrive storage, and desktop Excel comes with Microsoft 365 Personal in the US. For a growing database, Baserow offers 3,000 free rows per workspace and Airtable 1,000 records per base. Choose by the cap your project reaches first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Google Sheets free?
Yes. A personal Google Account includes up to 15GB of storage shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos, and Sheets files count against that quota. Google Workspace Business Starter adds business features and company email on a per-user plan, with the annual rate listed in the pricing table.
Is Microsoft Excel free?
Excel for the web is free with a Microsoft account and a 5GB OneDrive quota, but the free plan covers the browser apps only. Microsoft 365 Personal adds desktop Excel and 1TB of OneDrive for $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year in the US.
How many rows can a free spreadsheet hold?
Excel's grid holds 1,048,576 rows by 16,384 columns. Google Sheets caps a file at 20 million cells or 100MB, so the row count depends on how many columns you use. Airtable's free plan stops at 1,000 records per base.
How much does Airtable cost?
The free plan caps each base at 1,000 records, 1GB of attachments per base and 5 editor or creator collaborators. The Team plan costs $20 per user a month billed yearly, or $24 monthly, and read-only collaborators are not charged.
What is the best free spreadsheet for a team?
Is there a free spreadsheet with no limits?
Among the hosted tools here, every free plan has a cap. NocoDB's self-hosted Community edition lists unlimited records, storage and seats, but your team has to run and maintain the server.
Does Smartsheet have a free plan?
No permanent free plan. Smartsheet offers a 30-day free trial with no credit card, and then bills the Pro plan per member, at the annual or monthly rate in the pricing table.
Cite this page: Toolradar, "Best Free Spreadsheet Software in 2026: Cell and User Limits", updated October 2026, https://toolradar.com/guides/best-free-spreadsheet-software
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