6 Best Hex Alternatives for 2025
Discover top alternatives to Hex for building data apps, SQL analysis, and interactive dashboards.
Overview
While Hex offers a robust data workspace, teams often seek alternatives that provide better performance, more affordable pricing, superior AI capabilities, or greater flexibility in deployment and sharing. Whether you need faster query execution, open-source options, or more generous free tiers, several strong alternatives cater to different analytical needs and team structures.
Livedocs
Livedocs is the premier Hex alternative, offering DuckDB-powered performance that executes queries instantly rather than relying on slow cloud compute. Unlike Hex's limited AI features, Livedocs provides full AI agents with model choice (GPT-4, Claude, Gemini) and terminal access for complete environment control.
Pros:
- DuckDB and Polars for instant query performance
- AI agents with model selection (GPT-4, Claude, Gemini)
- Terminal access and full environment control
- Multiple sharing modes (live, static, embedded)
- Generous free tier with transparent pricing
- Built-in scheduling and workflow automation
Cons:
- Newer platform with growing ecosystem
- May require learning curve for reactive execution
Best for:
Teams wanting Hex's data app capabilities plus faster performance, AI flexibility, and affordable pricing without enterprise commitments.
Databricks
Databricks provides enterprise-grade notebooks and data engineering capabilities built on Apache Spark. While powerful for large-scale distributed computing, it comes with steep costs, complex cluster management, and slow startup times.
Pros:
- Enterprise-scale Spark integration
- Powerful for distributed computing
- Strong ML and data engineering features
- Collaborative notebooks with versioning
- Integration with data lakes
Cons:
- Very expensive, enterprise-focused pricing
- Slow cluster startup (minutes)
- Complex setup and steep learning curve
- Overkill for standard analytics
- Requires Spark expertise
Best for:
Large enterprises with big data requirements, teams already using Spark, and organizations needing massive-scale distributed computing.
Deepnote
Deepnote offers collaborative cloud notebooks with real-time editing similar to Google Docs. It provides a clean interface and managed environment but has more limited free tier resources, slower performance on large datasets, and basic AI assistance without model customization.
Pros:
- Real-time collaboration features
- Clean, user-friendly interface
- Jupyter-compatible
- Managed environment, zero setup
- Good database connectors
Cons:
- Limited free tier resources
- Slower performance on large datasets
- Basic AI without model choice
- No terminal access
- More restricted than Hex for customization
Best for:
Small teams wanting simple, managed collaborative notebooks without the complexity or cost of enterprise platforms.
Jupyter
Jupyter is the foundational open-source notebook platform that inspired modern data tools. It offers complete flexibility and extensibility but requires manual setup, lacks built-in collaboration, and needs additional tooling for database connectivity and sharing.
Pros:
- Completely free and open-source
- Full control and flexibility
- Extensive ecosystem and extensions
- Supports multiple languages
- Runs anywhere (local, cloud, on-prem)
Cons:
- Requires manual setup and configuration
- No built-in collaboration
- Need to manage environments manually
- No native database connectors
- File-based versioning only
Best for:
Data scientists needing complete control, teams with infrastructure, and organizations requiring open-source solutions without vendor lock-in.
Mode
Mode focuses on SQL-first analytics and reporting for business intelligence teams. It excels at scheduled SQL queries and dashboard distribution but lacks Python notebook flexibility, has limited data transformation capabilities, and targets enterprise pricing.
Pros:
- SQL-first approach for analysts
- Scheduled query execution
- Dashboard distribution and reporting
- Good for BI use cases
- Warehouse connectivity
Cons:
- Limited Python support
- Enterprise pricing model
- Less flexible than Hex for exploration
- Focused on reporting, not analysis
- No advanced data app features
Best for:
SQL analysts creating scheduled reports and dashboards, teams prioritizing business intelligence over data science workflows.
Observable
Observable specializes in JavaScript-based reactive notebooks and D3 visualizations, creating stunning interactive data stories. However, it's limited to JavaScript (no Python or SQL), focuses primarily on visualization rather than analysis, and lacks database connectivity for production data work.
Pros:
- Reactive JavaScript notebooks
- D3.js integration for stunning visualizations
- Interactive and publishable
- Great for visual storytelling
- Web-first, shareable
Cons:
- JavaScript only (no Python or SQL)
- Limited database connectivity
- Focused on visualization, not analysis
- File size limits for data
- Not suitable for data science workflows
Best for:
Frontend developers and visualization specialists creating interactive data stories and custom D3 visualizations for web publishing.
Feature Comparison
| Tool | Setup | Languages | Data | Visualization | Collaboration | AI Agent | Engine | Scheduling | Sharing | Terminal | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Livedocs | Zero-setup | Python, SQL, AI | All major DBs + files | Native + Python | Realtime | Yes, choose model | DuckDB + Polars | Yes + KV/secrets | Live/static/embed | Yes | $0 + $10 AI credits |
| Deepnote | Managed | Python, SQL | Cloud connectors | Charts + Python | Realtime | Basic, no choice | Standard runtime | Limited | Notebook only | No | Free with limits |
| Jupyter | Manual setup | Python only | Libraries only | Code-based | File/Git | No | Sequential | No | Files only | External | Free OSS |
| Databricks | Cluster-based | Python, SQL | In-platform | Basic + libs | Team only | No | Slow starts | Enterprise jobs | Notebook only | Limited | Expensive |
| Observable | Managed | JavaScript | Browser/APIs | D3/JS elite | Realtime | No | Browser only | No | Embeds/static | No | Free + paid |
| Mode | Managed | SQL only | Warehouses | Report charts | Team share | No | Warehouse-bound | Scheduled | Dashboard embeds | No | Enterprise |
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