Glide: our review

Glide is a no-code platform that starts from a simple point: you already have a spreadsheet that runs your business — a job tracker, a prospect list, an inventory. Glide turns it into a web and mobile app your teams can open on their phone, with authentication, notifications and offline mode.

What it actually does

You connect a data source (Google Sheets, Excel, Airtable or Glide's own internal database), and the platform automatically generates an interface suited to the column structure: a list for records, a detail card for each one, a calendar for dates. You adjust the layout, add actions (send an email, notify a user, edit a row), and publish.

A concrete example: a construction SME tracking its jobs in a Google Sheet. With Glide, each site foreman opens the app on their phone, sees the day's jobs, checks off completed work, and the salesperson back at the office sees the table update in real time. No development, no app store, just a link to share.

Glide has recently added an AI layer that lets you generate views, forms or summaries in plain language, and includes an assistant to build apps from a simple description.

Why it interests us

Glide solves a problem we run into in almost every automation consulting engagement: the gap between the Excel file that runs the department and the app the team actually deserves. That gap closes in a few hours rather than a few weeks, and the result is immediately usable in the field.

The Solo plan at $25/month is an affordable entry point, and the free plan lets you test the tool before committing. The ability to publish a Progressive Web App without going through app stores adds a real logistical advantage for field teams.

Where it falls short

The main reservation is data location: everything is hosted in the United States, with no European residency option. For an app that holds customer data, HR information or data covered by the GDPR, that's a blocking point we consistently flag in our audits.

The second is AI model training. The pricing page explicitly states that opting out is only available on paid plans — meaning free users' data trains the model by default. That's rarely documented this clearly by a vendor, and it's both honest and a problem: a team testing the tool with its real data feeds the model without knowing it.

Finally, Glide remains fundamentally a spreadsheet with a presentation layer on top. For complex needs — multi-branch business logic, ERP integration, fine-grained permissions — the tool quickly reaches its limits.

Our recommendation

Glide is the tool to pick when you already have a process running in a spreadsheet and want to turn it into an app with no development budget. The result is usable within hours, and the Solo plan at $25/month lets you test it with no commitment.

But don't put personal data into a Glide app without first checking your GDPR compliance, and move to at least a paid plan if you don't want your data training the vendor's models.