Can I use Metabase output commercially or embed it in my product?
▼
Yes — you can embed dashboards/charts in your product, but note: for white-label (remove “Powered by Metabase” badge) and full branding control you’ll need the paid embedding features (Pro/Enterprise).
How many dashboards/questions/users can I have?
▼
For most plans, dashboards and questions are “unlimited” (you can create as many charts/dashboards as you need).The user-seat limits apply in some pricing tiers (e.g., Starter includes a certain number of users, extra users cost more).
Can non-technical users build reports?
▼
Yes — Metabase offers a visual query builder for non-SQL users, so business users can filter/group data and build charts. Analysts can use the SQL editor if needed.
What about data governance, security, permissions?
▼
Metabase supports collections, permissions on dashboards/collections, and in higher tiers it supports row- and column-level permissions, SSO/SCIM, auditing. For self-hosted you’ll also manage infrastructure security.
Do I have to host it on my own? Is there a cloud version?
▼
You have options: self-host the open-source edition (you manage infra) or use Metabase Cloud (managed hosting). Each has trade-offs (cost, control, maintenance).
What’s the hidden cost of the free version?
▼
While the open-source edition is free to license, you bear infrastructure, operations, upgrades, monitoring and support costs yourself. If you don’t have a dev/ops team, this may add overhead.
How does upgrading or migrating work?
▼
If you’re on self-hosted open-source and decide to move to a paid managed plan, Metabase says the upgrade/migration is straightforward: you can bring dashboards/questions/collections over.
