A custom build by Black Badger is the best route when per-seat fees are the problem, because a system you own has no license at all and adding a user costs nothing. Lovable is the best platform for the same goal, since it prices by credits and not seats and a workspace allows unlimited members.
The ranking, entry by entry
1 Custom build by Black Badger
Best for companies replacing a product that bills for every user
This list is about replacing software that charges per user, so the route with no seats goes first. Black Badger publishes this guide and builds that route. A custom system has no license. You pay once for a build scoped in writing, and after launch you pay running costs such as hosting. Whether 60 people use it or 600, the cost of the software does not move, and you own the code and every account.
Watch for. The cost arrives at the start instead of being spread over years of invoices. Compare the written scope with what the seats would cost you over the life of the system instead of with one annual bill.
- How it charges
- One-time build scoped in writing, then running costs such as hosting
- Main limit
- Needs a scoping call first, and suits companies of 50 or more employees
What a custom build involves, and how to ask about one
2 Lovable
Best for building your own replacement with no charge per member
Lovable is the top platform here because its plans are priced by credits and not by seats, and workspaces allow unlimited members. The bill follows how much you build and not how many people you employ. For a company whose complaint is paying for 200 logins when 20 people do most of the work, that pricing removes the cost of the extra logins.
Watch for. Credits are not a flat fee. Heavier use means a higher credit tier, and the pricing page shows the monthly tiers climbing on Business, so model your building activity.
- How it charges
- By credits, not seats, in monthly tiers
- Main limit
- SSO is Business only. Audit logs and SCIM need Enterprise.
3 Base44
Best for small internal apps on a plan with no seat count
Base44 ranks third. Its pricing page lists plans by monthly price and message credits, from Starter to Elite, and lists no seat counts. For a small internal app that many people open and few people change, that avoids the per-user multiplier. It ranks below Lovable because single sign-on sits under Enterprise, which is priced by quote, and a company of 50 or more usually needs it.
Watch for. The pricing page lists no Business plan between Elite and Enterprise. If you need single sign-on, you are comparing a quote and not the published prices.
- How it charges
- Monthly by plan, billed yearly, with message credits
- Main limit
- Message credits are capped per plan. SSO is Enterprise only.
4 Softr
Best for read-mostly apps and portals on a flat plan price
Softr is fourth. Its plans are a flat price with a set number of users included, which suits an app that many people look at and few maintain. Pro includes 50 client users and Business includes 100, with extra users on Pro billed per client user a month up to 250. It ranks fourth because the caps arrive early for a larger company.
Watch for. Past 500 client users you need the custom Enterprise plan. Basic has no add-on for more users at all, so it is not a candidate at this size.
- How it charges
- Flat monthly price by plan, plus a fee per extra client user
- Main limit
- Client users are capped, at 250 on Pro and 500 on Business
5 Airtable
Best for teams where most people read and only a few edit
Airtable ranks fifth. It still charges per seat, which is why it is not higher, but it charges only for users with edit permission on a base. Read-only collaborators and form submissions are not charged. If the per-seat problem in your company is paying full price for people who only look things up, that rule alone can shrink the bill.
Watch for. Editors are billed per seat on Team and at a higher rate on Business, billed annually. Count how many people need to edit before you assume a saving.
- How it charges
- Per seat with edit rights, billed yearly, top plan quoted
- Main limit
- Team caps a base at 50,000 records and 25,000 automation runs a month
6 Retool
Best for internal tools with a few builders and many users
Retool is sixth. It is per-user pricing with a split that helps. Builders and internal users are counted separately, and on the Team plan billed yearly an internal user costs less than a builder. That is a low seat price as seat prices go. It ranks sixth because it is still a seat price and it still grows with headcount.
Watch for. On Business the listed rates per builder and per internal user rise, billed yearly, and that is the plan where audit logs begin. Price the plan you will need.
- How it charges
- Per builder and per internal user, billed yearly or monthly
- Main limit
- SSO, SCIM, Git source control and granular roles are Enterprise only.
7 Microsoft Power Apps
Best for microsoft companies large enough for the volume rate
Power Apps ranks seventh on this list because it is the most plainly per-user option on it. Premium is billed per user, yearly, and covers unlimited apps for that user, so the fee does not multiply as you add apps. Microsoft also lists a lower per-user rate with a 2,000 license minimum, sold through sales, which helps only the largest companies.
Watch for. Pooled Dataverse storage and daily API request limits sit beside the seat price. Add those before comparing Power Apps with anything else on this list.
- How it charges
- Per user, billed yearly, or pay as you go
- Main limit
- Dataverse capacity is pooled, and extra capacity is charged per GB.
How this list was ranked
This list is for a company of 50 or more employees that already pays per user for a product and wants to leave that model. We ranked routes by how their pricing behaves as headcount grows. A route with no fee per person ranks above one with a reduced fee, and a reduced fee ranks above a full one.
Custom is first here because this is a list about replacing a pricing model, and a system you own is the only route with no vendor price list behind it. On our lists about connecting to an ERP or building without developers, a platform is first.
Questions buyers ask
Why do per-seat fees become a problem as a company grows?
Per-seat fees become a problem as a company grows because the bill rises with every hire while the software stays the same. A company also ends up buying seats for people who rarely sign in, since they need access to something. Over several years the total often passes what a system of your own would have cost.
Are credit-based software plans cheaper than per-seat pricing?
Credit-based plans are priced differently from seats and are not always cheaper. Credits follow how much building you do, and seats follow how many people you have. A company with many light users and little ongoing change does well on credits. A company that rebuilds constantly may not.
What does a custom system cost each year after it is built?
After it is built, a custom system has yearly running costs such as hosting, the database and email, paid to those services under accounts in your name. There is no license. Changes you ask for later are scoped and built as you need them, so that part is in your control.
How do we compare a custom software build with our current license bill?
To compare a custom build with your license bill, add up what you pay now across seats, add-ons and the consulting you buy for changes. Project that total over the years you expect to keep the system. Put the figure from a written scope beside it. Black Badger does not publish a price, because the number depends on what the system must do.