Database applications are gaining in popularity as they grow in popularity in the market. App-based solutions like Coda, Evernote, Roam Research, etc. Among them, Notion vs Airtable are two of the best with unique ways of getting things done.
Notion is similar to Evernote or Trello, acting as a brain to help you remember and organize things. Airtable’s approach is slightly different. It allows you to create a custom information database based on your preferences. It’s similar to Google Sheets but more flexible and easier to use. In this article, we will talk in detail about the differences between the two above.
CROSS-PLATFORM AVAILABILITY
Notion is available on iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and Web. However, Notion on mobile is still incomplete. They are simply web wrappers so you’ll have a performance hit when you want to get the task done.
Airtable is accessible on Android, iOS, and the Web. Airtable mobile app is better than Notion.
USER INTERFACE
Both Notion and Airtable allow you to create a Workspace from scratch. However, the overall approach between the two applications is different.
Notion gives you a blank white page. You can create a workspace with the options located on the left sidebar. You can start working on a page and create multiple subpages for it. The creation of a Notes page is personalized to Notion the first time you use it.
Airtable also allows you to create databases and add information like Notion. However, Airtable provides rows and columns for you to create an archive page. It is identical to Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel. This is more suitable software for project processing and creating custom databases than creating a Note.
TEMPLATES
You can create your own page when you start using Notion and Airtable, but most users prefer a pre-built template to get started.
Notion’s sample library is quite extensive. Initially, the company provided only a few samples to use the software. After that, Notion’s community-generated templates became more and more useful. The company has a passionate community of converting into ready-to-use templates for each use case. One can choose a Notion template for Project Management, Wikipedia, habit tracking, financial tracking,…
Airtable is also quite complete in terms of templates for users to choose from. There are hundreds of templates to choose from, such as Content Calendar, Project Tracker, Bug Tracker, User Research, Noval Planning, Art Gallery Management, and more.
FEATURES
The notion has full features such as text formatting, background color, integration with other applications such as Google, Figma, InVision,… Although not supported by the company, you can add custom widgets Third-party tweaks like Weather, Progress Bar, Clock,… to the Comments page. In short, users have all the tools to create an eye-catching Notion page with emojis, widgets, banners, and more.
Airtable allows you to create unlimited columns with multiple styles. You can add lines, checkboxes, Contributors, date and time,… You can also change the color of a category for better visualization. In addition, Airtable also has an automation feature. You can customize automatic calendars like Send weekly notifications, Post to Twitter, Send Slack messages, Create new records in Google Calendar,…
Airtable’s third-party app integration is also richer than Notion’s. such as Jira, Miro, Pexels, AirFlow,…
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Notion and Airtable are gaining popularity among small teams and startups due to their powerful project management capabilities. You can import project management templates into the software and add related tasks, comments, and details.
One can also invite other users and give them admin access to handle project tasks. As for features, Notion lets you add comments, dates, times, assign users, and view the entire database in multiple views, including Timeline, Calendar, Lists, Kanban boards, and more.
Project management is also perfect on Airtable. It goes beyond Notion with automation. You can create a rule like, if the user changes the status from persistent to complete in Airtable, the system will send a notification in a specific Slack channel.
PRICE
The notion is free for personal use with unlimited blocks. When it comes to project management, you can invite up to 5 members. Then be prepared to pay $5 per member per month.
Airtable paid plans to cost $10 per seat per month. It allows you to integrate more records and 5GB of attachments per facility.