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Alex Spinov
Alex Spinov

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Teable Has a Free API — Heres How to Build an Airtable Alternative You Own

#opensource #database #nocode #tutorial

Teable is an open-source Airtable alternative built on PostgreSQL. Spreadsheet UI with database power — real SQL under the hood, full API access, and self-hosted.

Why Teable?

  • PostgreSQL-backed: Real database, not a spreadsheet
  • Airtable-like UI: Drag-and-drop, views, filters
  • API-first: Full REST API for everything
  • Self-hosted: Your data, your server
  • Realtime: Collaborative editing
  • 100K+ rows: Handles real data, not just demos
  • Views: Grid, Kanban, Form, Gallery, Calendar

Self-Host 

git clone https://github.com/teableio/teable.git
cd teable
docker compose up -d
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Open http://localhost:3000

API: List Records 

curl https://your-teable.com/api/table/TABLE_ID/record \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer API_TOKEN' \
  -G -d 'fieldKeyType=name'
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API: Create Record 

curl -X POST https://your-teable.com/api/table/TABLE_ID/record \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer API_TOKEN' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "records": [
      {
        "fields": {
          "Name": "Alice Johnson",
          "Email": "alice@example.com",
          "Status": "Active",
          "Score": 95
        }
      }
    ]
  }'
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API: Update Record 

curl -X PATCH https://your-teable.com/api/table/TABLE_ID/record \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer API_TOKEN' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "records": [
      {
        "id": "rec_xxx",
        "fields": {"Status": "Completed", "Score": 100}
      }
    ]
  }'
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API: Query with Filters 

curl https://your-teable.com/api/table/TABLE_ID/record \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer API_TOKEN' \
  -G --data-urlencode 'filter={"conjunction":"and","filterSet":[{"fieldId":"fld_xxx","operator":"is","value":"Active"}]}' \
  -d 'sort=[{"fieldId":"fld_yyy","order":"desc"}]' \
  -d 'take=20'
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API: Delete Record 

curl -X DELETE https://your-teable.com/api/table/TABLE_ID/record/RECORD_ID \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer API_TOKEN'
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JavaScript SDK 

import { TeableSDK } from '@teable/sdk';

const teable = new TeableSDK({ baseUrl: 'https://your-teable.com', token: 'API_TOKEN' });

// List records
const records = await teable.record.getRecords({
  tableId: 'tbl_xxx',
  take: 50,
  fieldKeyType: 'name',
});

// Create record
await teable.record.createRecords({
  tableId: 'tbl_xxx',
  records: [{ fields: { Name: 'Bob', Email: 'bob@example.com' } }],
});
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Webhooks 

curl -X POST https://your-teable.com/api/table/TABLE_ID/webhook \
  -H 'Authorization: Bearer API_TOKEN' \
  -d '{
    "url": "https://your-app.com/webhook",
    "events": ["record.created", "record.updated"]
  }'
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Real-World Use Case

A startup paid $240/year for Airtable Pro (5 users). They switched to self-hosted Teable — same spreadsheet UI, same API, but with real PostgreSQL queries. They can now join Teable data with their production database directly.

Need to automate data collection? Check out my Apify actors for ready-made scrapers, or email spinov001@gmail.com for custom solutions.

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