I’m reaching out for guidance on moving our business away from Airtable. We started using it about 3 years ago when we were small, but now our team has grown and we’re managing around 150+ tables spread across multiple workspaces.
Airtable worked well initially because we could set up workflows fast, but we’re now facing major bottlenecks. The interface is getting clunky for users and the database limitations are holding us back. We need something more powerful and flexible.
I’m hoping to get insights on these key areas:
Running parallel systems: How can we build a new database that functions properly while still connecting to our existing Airtable setup? Moving everything overnight seems impossible.
Step-by-step transition: Has anyone pulled off a gradual switch like this? What method worked for you?
Software and workflows: Which tools helped you handle the transition and maintain synchronization between both platforms?
I’d really appreciate hearing from folks who’ve tackled similar challenges. The biggest worry is maintaining business operations during the switch. We’re a lean team without resources for a huge technical overhaul.
We undertook a similar migration about two years ago with approximately 120 tables. During our transition, we found that parallel systems worked exceptionally well, utilizing Zapier for real-time synchronization between Airtable and our new PostgreSQL setup over a period of four months. We prioritized migrating the most critical workflows first and operated both platforms concurrently for six weeks until each department was fully transitioned. A crucial element of our success was developing a detailed field mapping document early on, as data types often don’t align perfectly between different systems. It’s essential to allow your team time to adapt to new interfaces, so training should be factored into your timeline. Additionally, having a rollback plan for each migrated section helped provide reassurance to the team as we progressed.
Been there. We had 200+ tables when I pushed for our migration. Here’s what worked.
Audit what you actually need first. About 30% of our tables were unused or redundant. Cut those.
For parallel systems, we used Latenode to sync data between Airtable and our new setup. Cheaper than Zapier and handled complex workflows better. Set it up once and let it run.
Migrate by business process, not by table. If customer onboarding touches 8 tables, move all 8 together. Makes testing way easier.
We kept Airtable running 3 months after going live. Gave everyone confidence they could fall back if needed. Never had to.
Biggest mistake teams make: trying to replicate Airtable exactly. Don’t. Fix those weird workarounds you built over the years.
What platform are you considering? That changes the whole approach.
totally relate! we switched from Airtable too. my advice would be to tackle the less important tables first. if they break, it won’t be a disaster. and seriously, plan for way more data cleanup time than you expect. good luck with everything!