Compare with Glide
Glide Classic, GlideOS or a Glide alternative
Glide now offers GlideOS and Glide Classic as separate products, and says it currently has no tool for moving a Classic app across. Compare both with an Exepad app, starting from what a CSV export carries.
Glide
Where Glide fits.
Glide turns spreadsheets into business apps, and it now does so in two separate products. GlideOS, the new platform, builds apps through chat from a spreadsheet, a prompt or a file. Glide Classic, the original no-code builder, keeps its own plans, and Glide says existing Classic apps continue to function as before.[1][2][4][12]
One database per project
In GlideOS, every app lives in a project, and all the apps in a project read and write the same database. A connected Google Sheet is pulled into that database, and GlideOS does not write changes back to the sheet.[5][6]
Classic apps stay in sync with their source
Glide Classic apps run on Glide Tables, Big Tables or an outside source such as Google Sheets, Airtable or Excel. When that source is read and write, the app and the data stay in two-way sync.[13]
Exepad
Where Exepad fits.
Exepad is Your App Cloud. Describe the app in Studio, check each screen, then publish it to the web, where people open it in a browser on a laptop or a phone. Where a Glide Classic app can read a synced sheet, an Exepad app starts from the CSV you export and keeps those rows itself.
Your exported rows become the app's records
Upload the CSV from Glide and the app keeps those rows in its own database. The upload is a snapshot, so decide where edits happen next: in the app, by a deliberate re-import, or through a supported integration.
Sign-in for customers and field staff
Customers, contractors and field staff sign in to the published app through its own authentication, and the app can email them, such as a note when a job is assigned. Describe the access for each collection, then test the access and the messages before you share the link.
Models that suggest, people who decide
If your Glide app collects field photos or notes, a Vision or Language model in an app can suggest a condition or a summary for each one when someone asks. An agent can work through records when asked or on a schedule you set. Test both on records you have already checked. A person confirms anything that leads to a decision, and model usage is metered separately.
Compare the work you need to do.
| Consider | Glide | Exepad |
|---|---|---|
| Where the data lives | GlideOS keeps one database per project, shared by every app in it. Tables start from an uploaded file, a connected Google Sheet, an outside source such as a SQL database, or a description.[6][5][4] | In the app's own database. Name the collections in Studio, upload the rows, and compare a sample with the Glide table they came from. |
| Google Sheets | Glide Classic keeps a read-and-write sheet in two-way sync. GlideOS pulls a sheet into its database, and edits made through the app stay in GlideOS.[13][6] | Export the sheet and upload the file. It arrives as a snapshot, so retire the sheet or re-import it on purpose rather than letting both copies take edits. |
| Who can open the app | Members of your organization, anyone with the link after signing in, or anyone with the link. Both public options need the Plus plan or higher.[7] | People sign in through the app's own authentication, with the access you describe for each collection. Check it with a test account. |
| Builders and app users | Team members work inside the organization as Viewers, Editors or Admins and are billed to the plan. App users open published apps without access to the builder.[8] | Each Exepad account has one builder, who works in Studio. Everyone else signs in to the published app as one of its users. |
| AI inside apps | GlideOS adds features such as AI chat, summaries and image generation when you describe them, and this runtime AI draws on credits. Classic offers Glide AI columns and actions on paid plans.[3][10][17] | Language and Vision models inside an app, working on the records and photos you choose. Review what they return; model usage is metered separately. |
| Automation | GlideOS workflows run named steps from a schedule, a webhook, a connected service, an app action or a manual run. How many can be enabled depends on the plan.[9] | Scheduled tasks, including agent tasks, and email sent by the app. Rebuild each workflow you still need and test it with sample records. |
| Building from outside tools | On Pro and Enterprise, an MCP client such as Cursor can work in your projects the way GlideOS does, moving the agent's work to your own plan with that provider.[11] | Apps are built and published in Studio. Exepad's MCP server has three read tools, for keys, the wallet and plan limits. |
| Getting data and code out | Export CSV for any table in a project. The pricing page lists viewing code and project files under Enterprise.[6][2] | You can export your app's data and code. Export the rebuilt app once and read the result before you count on it as a backup. |
| How plans are charged | GlideOS paid plans include monthly credits, and each plan sets how many team members, published apps, projects and enabled workflows you get; on Pro, credits are included per member. Glide Classic plans count users and updates.[2][10][18] | Free puts one one-page site live; an app with saved data, sign-in or email needs a paid plan to go live. See Pricing for the current plans. The models and services an app uses are metered separately. |
| Leaving Glide Classic | GlideOS apps live in a separate account and can't share data with Classic apps. Glide currently has no tool for moving a Classic app across.[2] | Also a rebuild, starting from the tables you export. Keep the Classic app running until the Exepad app passes your checks. |
Choose Glide when
Your Classic app still does its job.
Glide says existing Classic apps keep working as before. If the app and its synced sheet still serve the team, staying put avoids a rebuild in either GlideOS or Exepad.
The sheet has to stay the working copy.
On plans that include Sheets sync, Glide Classic keeps a read-and-write Google Sheet in two-way sync, so people can go on editing the sheet. An Exepad upload is a snapshot and would not follow those edits.
Several apps must share one set of tables.
In a GlideOS project, a field app, a dashboard and a customer portal can all read and write the same database. If that shared project is the point, GlideOS is built around it.
You want your own AI client to do the building.
On GlideOS Pro, an MCP client such as Cursor can work in your projects, moving the agent's work to your own plan with that provider. Exepad's MCP server for developer keys only reads keys, the wallet and plan limits.
Choose Exepad when
The Classic app needs rebuilding anyway.
Glide says a move to GlideOS means starting fresh, so either route is a rebuild. Rebuild the same table and screens in each, then keep the one your users prefer.
Customers or contractors must sign in.
Glide calls these people app users, such as field technicians or clients using a portal. In an Exepad app they sign in through its authentication, and the app can email them, for example when a job closes. Try both with a test account first.
Incoming work orders need a first pass.
On a schedule you set, an agent in an app can group the day's new work orders by site and draft a short summary of each. A dispatcher reads the drafts and assigns the jobs.
What changes when you move from Glide.
Glide documents a CSV export in both products, with different steps. Check which product your app runs on, then go through the notes below before you export.
What an export brings
- Every table in a GlideOS project. Open Data, pick the table, and choose Export CSV from its menu. Values that start with =, +, - or @ get a leading apostrophe, though numbers export unchanged.[6]
- The Glide Table columns you select. In Glide Classic, right-click the table in the Data Editor, choose Export, and pick the columns to include. A Big Tables export arrives by email as a CSV.[14][15]
- Filtered rows through Generate CSV. This Classic action can build a CSV from a relation or query column, so the file holds filtered rows, and stores the file's URL in a column. It is not available for Big Tables.[16]
What stays behind
- Empty and linked columns. Glide's notes on exporting a Glide Table say empty columns are left out, and so are computed columns that link to other tables. List the relations you rely on.[14]
- User-specific columns. Generate CSV takes global basic and computed columns, not user-specific ones. Per-user data kept in a User Profile row can be exported by choosing that row as the source.[16]
- Workflow steps. Glide describes the export for tables. Open each workflow's Definition, which lists its steps in order, and note the ones you still need.[6][9]
- The Classic app itself. Glide's FAQ says a move to GlideOS means starting fresh, because there is currently no tool for migrating Classic apps.[2]
Rebuild it in Exepad
Export the table people change most
Pick the busiest table, such as jobs or equipment. Upload its CSV to Studio and say what one row stands for.
Describe the relations again
For each relation or lookup the export dropped, say which column points to which table. Open a few linked records in both apps.
Rebuild the screens by audience
List the tabs each group of users sees in the Glide app. Describe those screens and forms in Studio, including what someone on a phone needs.
Set sign-in and access
Replace Glide's privacy and sign-in settings with the access you describe for each collection. Sign in as a second user to check it.
Recreate the workflows that still matter
Turn scheduled runs into scheduled tasks and notifications into email the app sends. Test each one, and name who reviews agent output.
Run both, then switch
Keep the Glide app live while a few people use the new one. Publish after review, then send everyone the new link.
Try it with one task.
Move an equipment checkout table first
An illustrative pilot for Atlas Tech, a sample IT team in San Diego that lends laptops and cameras from a Glide Classic app. Prove one table before you rebuild the rest.
In Glide Classic, right-click the Equipment table in the Data Editor, choose Export, and keep every column you use.
In Studio, describe a checkout log with item, serial number, borrower, due date, a return photo and a status of Available, Out or Repair.
Add a button that asks a Vision model to suggest Good or Damaged from the return photo. Try it on returns you already graded, and have the IT lead confirm each suggestion.
Check fifteen items in both apps, including the borrower links you described again.
Keep lending from Glide while you run those checks, and send staff the new link once they pass.
Together in your app cloud
The pieces behind the possibility.
Choose the models and services that support the experience you want to create.
Data models
Turn information into useful structure
Database
Keep data and context for apps and agents
File storage
A home for your documents and media
Vision models
Make sense of images and documents
Authentication
Give the right people access
A little more context
Good questions.
Can I move a Glide Classic app to GlideOS instead?
Not with a tool today. Glide's pricing FAQ says GlideOS apps live in a separate account, can't share data with Classic apps, and that it currently has no tool for migrating them. Moving to GlideOS means starting fresh, so compare it and Exepad using the same exported tables.
Does Exepad sync with Google Sheets the way Glide does?
Not through an upload. Glide Classic keeps a read-and-write sheet in two-way sync, and GlideOS pulls a connected sheet into its database without writing back. A file you upload to Exepad is a snapshot. After the move, changes come from edits in the app, a deliberate re-import or a supported integration.
How do I export my data from Glide?
In GlideOS, open Data in the project, pick a table and choose Export CSV. In Glide Classic, right-click a Glide Table in the Data Editor and choose Export; a Big Tables export arrives by email. Classic table exports skip empty columns and computed columns that link to other tables.
How is usage counted in Glide and in Exepad?
GlideOS counts AI work in credits, both while you build and in AI features inside apps, and workflow steps and integration calls draw on them too. Glide Classic plans count users and updates. In Exepad, an app with saved data, sign-in or email needs a paid plan to go live, and model and service usage is metered separately.
Can customers use the app without joining my team?
In GlideOS, people who only use an app are app users, not team members, and the public access options need the Plus plan or higher. In Exepad, customers sign in through the app's authentication. Describe the access for each collection and try it with a test account.
Can an agent in Exepad do what a Glide workflow did?
Partly, and you design the handover. A GlideOS workflow runs named steps from a trigger or a manual run. In an Exepad app, an agent works when asked or on a schedule you set, with the context and actions you allow, and a person reviews results that lead to decisions. Rebuild one workflow and compare its runs.
If I rebuild in Exepad, can I export the app later?
Yes. You can export your app's data and code. Having been through one Glide export, run the same check here: export the rebuilt app early and confirm it holds the records you moved and the relations you described again.
Explore Pricing for plans, included capabilities, and usage details.
Related guides.
Compare other tools.
Sources.
Glide details checked September 25, 2026. Confirm them on Glide's site before you decide.
- Glide: product overview ↗
- Glide: GlideOS pricing and FAQ ↗
- Glide: the GlideOS platform ↗
- Glide: what is GlideOS ↗
- Glide: GlideOS projects ↗
- Glide: GlideOS data, import and export ↗
- Glide: GlideOS publishing and sharing ↗
- Glide: GlideOS organizations and members ↗
- Glide: GlideOS workflows ↗
- Glide: GlideOS credits and usage ↗
- Glide: connect with MCP ↗
- Glide: Glide Classic ↗
- Glide Classic: introduction to data sources ↗
- Glide Classic: Glide Tables and table export ↗
- Glide Classic: Big Tables ↗
- Glide Classic: Generate CSV action ↗
- Glide Classic: Glide AI ↗
- Glide Classic: plans and pricing ↗
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