Airtable

Airtable has the power and functionality of a database but is as easy to use as a spreadsheet! As someone who sells software (saas), Airtable allowed me to essentially create programs for my clients even though I do not code. Airtable sets the new gold standard for what a spreadsheet should be able to do. i cannot go back to a normal spreadsheet now.

There are a few critical features you'll run into that stop this software from being perfect unfortunately. It's a shame too because they seem very obviously needed and demanded; things like having storage space increase option past premium plan limit, writing formula across cells from multiple tables instead of just the same table, etc. I have hope these things will be part of the development roadmap soon though.

When I first started to use Airtable, I came away deeply frustrated with it's usability. It's sometimes slow, straightly obtuse to use and has many "pending features" that would be extremely helpful for some of the simplest of tasks.

However, there came a time when I had to organise a league table for a tournament over the internet, and all of sudden, Airtable clicked.

What Airtable is good at is creating a database of entries for a specific use, so for example, making an internet registration form where a user can enter data and "register" their interest in a particular thing is so quick and easy to do.

I created an application form which auto stored the data into a highly organised table that I could then use however I wanted (I created a league table from the registered users with ease and shared the results of the league as the scoring progressed) - all via the internet, I don't know of a way that I could have achieved this without AirTable, Google Docs would have been a possible solution, but Airtable allows you to add attachments easily (so images, etc) as well as allowing you to manipulate (And hide) data in any way you can think of using Rollups and Lookups - two of it's most powerful features.

Once you get used to it, Airtable becomes useful, and I can see myself using it again and again when I want to organise a very specific and distributed task on the internet.

Don't think this is Excel in a different disguise, it's not, it's not as adaptable and not as powerful as Excel. You couldn't use it to track a project or manage a holiday system or anything like that, but creating a full customer list for a newsletter? Yep, easy, that's the kind of thing it DOES do really well.

It could use a few more features on the free tier of the software (the paid tier unlocks "blocks" - which is a strange name for plugins, which allow you to view the data in different visual ways but ultimately it's not as well integrated as it should be and therefore has a limited use)

Another thing is that Airtables mobile interface is woeful compared to it's desktop version, and for some reason you can't access the desktop website via mobile. I have no idea what compelled them to make this decision but it's something they need to address in the future. The mobile layout is next to useless.

Airtable does what a lot of basic database and spreadsheet manager do, but most robustly with complex features and with more visual pizazz. For visual thinkers and organizers, Airtable makes the average tracking task or information management responsibility both a pleasure and a joy.

As with any feature-packed professional software, There is a learning curve with mastering where tools are and what all the platform can do. Once you get a hang of the interface and the many customization options, you will be sailing with delight.

We have integrate Airtable in all of our work field in the company, and not much learning curves needed to get all the the user fully familiar and get used to the software. Storing document and resources and marking it for which project or user are using it. Limiting access or giving user credential for certain user making the project organization more effective.

There are too many feature that we are not using and implementing to our system, but still need to pay for it as it is a part of the subscribing plan. A customized plan with a feature that we can select with a lower yearly plan would attract many user to switch to this software. Overall, it is still one of the best project management in the market.