Knack Alternative: Loocey DB
Knack is priced by records, not seats. If your team needs more records and more builders, here is how Loocey DB compares.
- Last Updated October 8, 2026
- Category No-Code Database Software
- Approach Facts with sources, no made-up claims
Knack is a hosted no-code platform for database-driven web apps, founded in 2010. It is priced per plan rather than per seat, with no limit on users, which makes it attractive for apps with many logged-in users.
The trade-off is records: Starter allows 20,000 records, Pro 50,000, and each app user counts as a record. Starter also allows only 1 builder.
Teams look for a Knack alternative when those limits start to bind.
Key Differences at a Glance
- Knack at 10 Users
- $49/month flat (Starter: 1 builder, 20,000 records); Pro $110
- Loocey DB at 10 Users
- $49/month (Pro, 10 users included)
Why Teams Look Elsewhere
- Record limits
- One builder on Starter
- No Kanban view listed
- No free plan
What Loocey DB Offers
- Unlimited records
- A dedicated PostgreSQL database
- Relationships with real foreign keys
- Kanban and Calendar views
- Users included in every plan
- An MCP server for AI assistants
Why Teams Look for a Knack Alternative
Record limits
Starter allows 20,000 records and Pro 50,000, and every app user counts as a record.
One builder on Starter
Starter allows 1 shared builder; Pro ($110/month billed annually) is needed for more.
No Kanban view listed
Knack’s documented elements include Table, List, Calendar, Form, Charts and Pivot; a Kanban view is not listed.
No free plan
Knack offers a 14-day trial but no free plan.
Where Knack Is Strong
To be fair: Knack’s flat pricing is very affordable for small teams ($49/month billed annually on Starter regardless of users), and it is built for customer-facing portals with logins, page-level access and record filtering by user.
It also has automations (Knack Flows), an AI app builder and an MCP server.
Knack vs Loocey DB: Head-to-Head
| Feature | Knack | Loocey DB |
|---|---|---|
| Category | No-code database web app builder | No-code relational database & app builder |
| Real PostgreSQL / Dedicated Database | ✗ Not advertised | ✓ A dedicated PostgreSQL database instance for every account |
| Relational Links / Foreign Keys | ✓ One-to-many, many-to-many and one-to-one connections | ✓ Relationship columns create real foreign keys (Cascade, Restrict, Set Null, No Action) |
| Column (Field) Types | “20+” field types | ✓ 50+ column types, stored as typed database columns |
| Views | Table, List, Search, Calendar, Details, Form, Charts, Pivot; Map on Pro+ | Table, Kanban/Pipeline and Calendar, saved as view tabs |
| Field-Level Permissions | Partial Page-level access and record filtering by user; field-level not documented | Coming Soon Granular Access Controls (App, table, field and record level). Today: company-wide roles |
| Automations | ✓ Knack Flows on all plans; scheduled tasks on Pro+ | Coming Soon Workflows & Automations |
| MCP Server for AI Assistants | ✓ Official hosted MCP server (schema, not UI pages) | ✓ Tables, columns, records, views/filters, imports and search |
| API | ✓ REST API; 1,000 calls/day on Starter | ✓ API keys, Main API included on every plan |
| Self-Hosting | ✗ Not advertised | ✗ Cloud only |
| Price at 10 Users (Annual Billing) | $49/month flat (Starter: 1 builder, 20,000 records); Pro $110 | $49/month (Pro, 10 users included) |
| Free Plan / Trial | ✓ 14-day trial (no free plan) | See the pricing page for current offers |
| Public Reviews | See G2 (rating not quoted) | Customer reviews published on loocey.com |
A ✗ means the capability was not advertised in the vendor’s published materials (pricing page, help center and developer docs) when we checked (October 8, 2026).
Vendors change their products, so always verify current capabilities.
Knack vs Loocey DB: Price by Team Size
| Monthly Cost, Billed Annually | 5 Users | 10 Users | 20 Users |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knack (Starter) | $49 | $49 | $49 |
| Loocey DB | $29 Standard | $49 Pro | $198 Enterprise |
Knack: Flat; 1 builder, 20,000 records. Pro $110.
Prices as listed on each vendor’s pricing page on October 8, 2026, in USD per month with annual billing. Per-seat plans assume every user is billable (many vendors do not charge for viewers).
Loocey DB uses the cheapest plan for each team size, plus $19/user/month above the plan’s included users. Verify current pricing before you buy.
Knack at a Glance
Knack is a hosted no-code platform for database-driven web apps: relational tables plus pages and views for logged-in users with roles.
Connections support one-to-many, many-to-many and one-to-one relationships, with formula and equation fields.
Plans are priced by records and storage rather than seats.
Starter allows 20,000 records, 2 GB, 3 apps and 1 builder; Pro allows 50,000 records and unlimited builders.
- Founded
- 2010
- Headquarters
- Not verified (fully remote)
- Pricing
- Flat per plan, not per seat: Starter $49, Pro $110 and Corporate from $250 per month billed annually ($59, $130 and from $300 billed monthly). No limit on users, but each app user counts as a record.
- Free Plan / Trial
- 14-day trial; no free plan
- Public Reviews
- Rating not quoted; see G2
Independent Sources
The Alternative
How Loocey DB Replaces Knack
Unlimited records
Records are unlimited on every Loocey DB plan, and users do not count as records.
A dedicated PostgreSQL database
Every Loocey account gets its own dedicated PostgreSQL database instance. Tables are real PostgreSQL tables with typed columns, indexes and unique, regex and min/max constraints.
Relationships with real foreign keys
Relationship columns create foreign keys with On Delete rules (Cascade, Restrict, Set Null or No Action), work across Apps, and support Existing Relationship (join) columns and dependent dropdowns.
Kanban and Calendar views
Switch between Table, Kanban/Pipeline and Calendar views and save each as a view tab.
Users included in every plan
Standard includes 5 users for $29/month, Pro includes 10 users for $49/month and Enterprise includes 20 users for $198/month, billed annually. Additional users are $19/user/month.
An MCP server for AI assistants
A compatible AI assistant can create tables and columns, add and update records, search your data, build saved views and filters, and import spreadsheets, acting as a real Loocey user with that user’s role.
Not Built Yet, and Labeled That Way
- Coming Soon Workflows & Automations
- Coming Soon Granular Access Controls (App-, table-, field- and record-level permissions)
See every feature on the Loocey DB page and every plan on the Loocey DB pricing page.
Which Should You Pick?
Pick Knack If…
Pick Knack if you are building a customer-facing web portal with logins and a single builder is enough.
Pick Loocey DB If…
Pick Loocey DB if you want a real relational database (a dedicated PostgreSQL instance, typed columns, foreign keys, indexes and SQL tools) behind a no-code interface, with users included in every plan, an MCP server for AI assistants, and room to grow into other Loocey apps such as Loocey CRM and Loocey DLA.
Knack Alternative FAQ
How does Knack pricing compare with Loocey DB?
As listed on October 8, 2026, Knack Starter is $49/month billed annually with 20,000 records and 1 builder, and Pro is $110/month with 50,000 records. Loocey DB Pro is $49/month billed annually for 10 users with unlimited records.
Is Loocey DB good for customer portals like Knack?
Loocey DB is built for your internal team, not public portals. Public forms and public sharing are not available.
If you need a customer-facing portal, Knack is the better fit.
Can I move from Knack to Loocey DB?
Yes. Export your Knack tables to CSV and import them into Loocey DB, mapping each column.
Connections become relationship columns with real foreign keys.
What does Knack have that Loocey DB does not?
Loocey DB does not have automations yet (Workflows & Automations are coming soon), and field-, record- and App-level permissions are coming soon as Granular Access Controls; today, permissions are company-wide roles. Loocey DB has Table, Kanban/Pipeline and Calendar views, with no Gallery, Gantt or Timeline view, and it is cloud only.
Compare the head-to-head table on this page for the details.
How we compare: product facts on this page were checked against each vendor’s public pricing page, help center and developer documentation on October 8, 2026. A ✗ means the capability was not advertised in the vendor’s published materials at that time; “Partial” marks a related but not equivalent feature.
Vendors change their products and prices, so always confirm current details directly. We link to independent sources such as G2, Crunchbase and Wikipedia rather than to competitor websites.