What is Metabase and how to self-host Metabase?

Making data accessible and understandable for everyone in your team is crucial. What is Metabase? It's one of the most popular open-source business intelligence tools that lets you ask questions about your data and displays the answers in formats that make sense, whether that's a bar graph or a detailed table.

While the cloud version is great, self-hosting gives you full control and can significantly reduce costs. In this guide, I'll show you how to self-host Metabase using Sliplane, the easiest way to get it running in under 2 minutes.

Want full control over the server? Check out our step-by-step guide on self-hosting Metabase on Ubuntu 24.04 with PostgreSQL if you prefer to manage your own infrastructure with Docker and Caddy.

Watch this 45-second guide to see how easy it is to deploy Metabase:

Why Self-Host Metabase?

Before we dive into the "how", let's talk about the "why".

1. Metabase Pricing: The hosted cloud version of Metabase starts at a reasonable price, but as you scale, costs can increase. Self-hosting the Open Source edition is free (infrastructure costs aside), making it a very attractive option for startups and budget-conscious businesses.
2. Data Privacy: When you self-host, your data never leaves your infrastructure. This is non-negotiable for many companies working with sensitive data.
3. Customization: With direct access to the Metabase GitHub repository code and the Metabase API, you have more freedom to tweak and integrate the tool exactly how you need it.

Metabase vs Alternatives

It's always good to know where you stand. How does standard market pricing and features compare?

Many people search for Metabase vs Power BI or Metabase Alternatives like Superset. While Power BI is powerful for Microsoft shops, Metabase shines with its intuitive UI ("Questions") that non-technical team members love.

Deploying Metabase on Sliplane

If you don't want to manage servers, SSH keys, or Docker updates, you can use Sliplane. We handle the infrastructure so you can focus on the data.

Step 1: Sign up and Create a Server

Go to sliplane.io and sign up. If you haven't already, create a server.

Step 2: Select the Metabase Preset

Click on "Deploy Service" and search for Metabase. We have a pre-configured template that includes the persistent database setup automatically.

Step 3: Go Live

Click "Deploy". In about 2 minutes, your Metabase alternatives research will be over because you'll have a fully functional Metabase instance running on your own domain with SSL certificates automatically handled.

FAQ

Is Metabase free?

Yes, the Open Source Edition is free to self-host. They also have paid "Pro" and "Enterprise" plans if you need advanced embedding, auditing, or SSO features.

How do I update Metabase?

If you are using Docker, simply pull the new image and restart your container:

docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

On Sliplane, just click the "Update" button in your service dashboard.

Metabase vs Power BI: Which is better?

If you need deep Excel integration and have a Microsoft stack, Power BI is strong. If you want a tool that anyone in your company can use to explore data without learning a complex query language, Metabase is often the better choice.

Conclusion

Self-hosting Metabase is a powerful way to bring business intelligence to your team without the heavy price tag. If you want full control, follow our guide on deploying Metabase on Ubuntu 24.04 with PostgreSQL. If you'd rather skip the server management, Sliplane gets you there in minutes.

Not sure if Metabase is the right fit? Check out our comparison of 5 open-source Metabase alternatives to see how it stacks up against tools like Apache Superset, Redash, and Lightdash.

Cheers, Atakan