Here then is the best database software for Mac that make excellent alternatives to Microsoft Access for Mac. Knack is easily the best database software for Mac users by some distance. Knack is everything that Microsoft Access and traditional database software isn’t – elegant, simple to use yet still powerful. Best Database Application For Mac Free; Free Database App; Alternatives to Microsoft Access on the Mac File Maker Pro. FileMaker is probably the best known database application for the Mac. It has a feature set comparable to Microsoft Access, but with a strong focus on forms (layouts) as the primary way of accessing databases. Software developers, data architects and power users have expressed a need to run Microsoft Access on their Mac without partitioning their hard drives or restarting. Firstly, if you fall into this category, Parallels Desktop for Mac can assist you with developing application software without reformatting or rebooting your machine.
- Download and usage of the Community version in the production environment are free of cost. IBM DB2’s Standard edition costs $1,850, and the Advanced edition costs $7,800 per virtual processor core (VPC) for 90 days. Teradata is one of the oldest and most trusted database software.
- The Best Free Database Software app downloads for Mac: MySQL Workbench MySQL Database Server OpenBase SQL RazorSQL Stor TablePlus SQL Anywhere Develop. Microsoft Access by Microsoft Corporation is a database management application that works with the MDB file format. Unfortunately, there is no version of Microsoft Access for Mac released yet.
'I spent the last few years looking for a low-cost way to track inventory at an elementary school I work at. Most apps that seemed like they “could” get the job done, all had considerable subscription costs, and were therefore not going to work with a School’s budget. My goal was to find an app that allowed me to use the camera on my iPhone to scan the barcodes that our school uses to identify our assets to either add the item, or search for it later. Several apps that even had this, the barcode scanning was limited, not always that accurate, or didn’t allow to scan on both data entry as well as searching for it.
I first downloaded TapForms on my iPhone, and as I explored through the app, I started to see that it had the features of many these ultra-expensive apps as well as features they did not have! Not only was I able to complete a full inventory in 10% of the time it took with paper, but now this year, I’m expanding all that data I collected last year, and presenting in a nice way that I can start keeping track of other things in each room that were not part of my required inventory.
Many other apps I tried, if you wanted to change the form after collecting the data, it messed it all up, and I would have to re-inventory after making any adjustments to the forms. Tap Forms has blown me away in how much it can do, and I’m now buying the Mac version to expand what I can do with it a little further (printing barcodes from the records I’ve collected). This truly is a very versatile app, and it has made inventory an absolute breeze!
Thank you for making such a great product, and selling it at such an accessible price.'
— Matthew Johnson
File Maker Pro
Access Alternative For Mac
FileMaker is probably the best known database application for the Mac. It has a feature set comparable to Microsoft Access, but with a strong focus on forms (layouts) as the primary way of accessing databases. Similar to Access, FileMaker stores your database logic and all the data in a single file. It also has some support for scripting, and offers options for publishing databases on the web.
However, it's also necessary to note that FileMaker is very different from Access. There is a strict distinction between application logic and the underlying tables in Access. In FileMaker, logic and data are more closely linked. The underlying tables are more or less hidden from the user, and not as easily accessible via SQL as in Access.
Bento
Bento was the entry level database application from the makers of Filemaker. Unfortunately it has been discontinued in July 2013 and is no longer available for purchase.
Open Office / Libre Office
Open Office and Libre office include a database application that tries to mimic Microsoft Access. It is difficult to use and misses many important features, such as simple import/export tools.
SQLite (using Base)
SQLite is not a full database application like Access. There are no forms or reports in SQLite, there's only your data and a simple, fast SQL engine. SQLite is used by many applications under the hood as an internal format and therefore most interesting to application developers.
A command line utility for SQLite 3 is included with every Mac, aptly named sqlite3. Most people will however prefer working with a graphical application like the excellent Base from Menial (available on the Mac App Store). Base offers a simple interface for viewing tables (with support for images) and creating custom SQL queries.
Apple Numbers and Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Access Alternatives For Mac
Numbers and Excel are spreadsheet applications and thus not a replacement for Microsoft Access. However, they have good support for working with tables. If your database consists of only few tables and no forms, these apps might just do the trick. You can at least sort and filter your tables.
Converting Access Databases to Apple Numbers with MDB Viewer
Converting Access Databases to Microsoft Excel with MDB Viewer
Microsoft Access in Parallels / VMWare
Microsoft Access Equivalent For Mac
If none of the above are suitable, you can always ressort to actually running Microsoft Access on your Mac using virtualisation software like Parallels Desktop or VMWare Fusion.