Compare backend options

Run APIs, auth, files,
and jobs together.

Daptin serves data, identity, files, actions, integrations, realtime events, and metering from one Go process. You run that process on your infrastructure.

See the decision framework ↓

ONE DAPTIN PROCESS

Services use the same
tables and permissions.

API requests, actions, files, events, integrations, and metering refer to the same records, users, and groups.

Table definitions

A table’s columns, relationships, validation, and permission settings determine its API routes and record events.

Permission checks

Users and groups control who may read or change records, follow relationships, run actions, subscribe to topics, and use stored credentials.

Available APIs

Clients can use JSON:API, GraphQL, OpenAPI, WebSockets, OAuth/OIDC, OpenAI-compatible routes, file routes, and enabled protocols.

Deployment

One Go binary runs the services. Multiple instances can share the database, file storage, cache, PubSub, and rate-limit counters.

DEPLOYMENT RESPONSIBILITIES

Daptin, managed BaaS,
or custom services.

The choice determines who runs the database and application services, which APIs clients use, and how much custom server code your team maintains.

CHOOSE DAPTIN WHEN

You need several Daptin services.

You need some combination of APIs, users, permissions, files, scheduled actions, integrations, WebSockets, or metering.
You want to self-host and use SQLite, MySQL, MariaDB, or PostgreSQL.
You need Daptin’s mail, FTP, WebDAV-style, OAuth/OIDC, or OpenAI-compatible routes.
Your team wants to operate these services in one Daptin deployment.

CONSIDER A MANAGED BAAS WHEN

You want the vendor to run production.

You want a vendor to operate the database, global delivery, scaling, and service reliability.
Your application uses the provider’s available services and pricing model.
Cloud-specific SDKs, control panels, and deployment requirements are acceptable.
Your team does not want to maintain the application server or database.

BUILD CUSTOM SERVICES WHEN

Daptin’s APIs do not match the work.

The backend mainly performs specialized computation such as media processing, simulation, or low-latency transaction handling.
Different services already need separate scaling, deployment, or engineering ownership.
Your team can maintain authentication, authorization, monitoring, deployment, and integration code.
Most requests do not read or change ordinary database records.

SERVICE COMPARISON

Services combined
in Daptin.

Backend services compared with the corresponding Daptin features
Need	Separate services	Daptin features
Data delivery	CRUD service, query layer, API specification	JSON:API, GraphQL, aggregation, OpenAPI, and table metadata generated from the schema
Identity and policy	Auth provider plus application authorization code	Users, groups, ownership, row, relation, action, and topic permissions
Backend work	Functions, queues, cron jobs, workflow code	Actions with ordered steps, cron schedules, status changes, and record events
Files and content	Object store, upload service, file metadata, site host	Asset columns, cloud stores, upload flows, templates, feeds, and subsites
External systems	Provider SDKs, OAuth token stores, secret handling	OpenAPI integrations, OAuth or custom credentials, and permission-checked action calls
API business controls	Gateway limits, usage pipeline, quota service, billing hooks	Plans, memberships, rate limits, usage records, quotas, and credit actions

ADD DAPTIN TO AN EXISTING STACK

Start with
one service.

New application

Define its tables in YAML or JSON and use Daptin for the API, users, files, and actions.

Data API

Add structured records, relationships, permissions, imports, and a web dashboard beside an existing application.

Integration proxy

Store OAuth tokens and encrypted credentials, import OpenAPI operations, and call them through Daptin.

LLM and usage proxy

Expose OpenAI-compatible routes, select providers, stream responses, and record model usage.

Files and protocols

Add file storage, hosted sites, mail, FTP, feeds, or WebSockets beside the core application.

CURRENT LIMITS

Check these limits
before choosing Daptin.

Infrastructure operations

Your team manages production infrastructure, backups, monitoring, upgrades, and incidents.

Workflow features

Daptin can run ordered action steps and cron schedules and restrict status changes. It does not implement hierarchical states, parallel workflow branches, or a full BPM engine.

Protocol compatibility

CalDAV/CardDAV provide basic WebDAV-style storage. Test optional protocols against the clients you need to support.

Application design

You must choose the tables, relationships, permissions, validation rules, error handling, and server-side actions for your application.

RUNNABLE DEMOS

Run the demo repositories.

The demos test the OpenAI-compatible API, OAuth/OIDC provider, per-user integration credentials, metering, quotas, and credit accounting.

Browse demos and clients →

TRY DAPTIN LOCALLY

Run the server and
inspect its API.

Start the quickstart →See how requests are handled ↗

Run APIs, auth, files,and jobs together.

Services use the sametables and permissions.