Vibecode Coda
track this build5 steps, step by step0%A doc with tables and buttons is buildable; Coda's editor, formula engine, packs/integrations, permissions, and team workflows make full parity difficult.
You are building a lean indie version of Coda. Create the following project files first, then implement the application by following them. Keep the files updated as decisions change. Do not collapse this into a single README or prompt. ===== README.md ===== # Coda indie build ## Goal Build the smallest trustworthy replacement for the core Coda workflow for one developer or a tiny team. ## Scope Build a rich doc editor, embedded tables, formulas, buttons, and simple automations. ## Quick start 1. Install the documented dependencies. 2. Copy `.env.example` to `.env`. 3. Run the development command chosen during implementation. 4. Complete the acceptance checks in `BUILD_PLAN.md`. ## Honest limits This build deliberately does not replace: - formula language - packs - permissions - automations - templates - collaboration - doc-app UX If those capabilities are essential, use AFFiNE instead of pretending the gap is solved. ===== AGENTS.md ===== # Agent instructions - Optimize for a working, understandable weekend build. - Prefer the fewest moving parts that satisfy the brief. - Do not invent cryptography, security guarantees, APIs, or compliance claims. - Keep secrets out of source control and logs. - Add focused tests for destructive, security-sensitive, and data-loss paths. - Run the project checks before declaring the build complete. - Record any deliberate shortcut in the README under "Tradeoffs". ===== BUILD_PLAN.md ===== # Build plan ## Original build brief Build me a docs-with-tables workspace to replace Coda, single-user. Requirements: - Local web app: Node + Express + better-sqlite3, server-rendered pages with vanilla JS, no build step. - Docs are Markdown edited in a textarea with live preview (marked); a fenced block naming a table, like table:Expenses, renders that table live inside the doc. - Tables have typed columns (text/number/date/select/checkbox), inline row editing, and are real SQLite tables I can query with other tools. - Formula columns: a JS expression over the row's other fields (price * qty) evaluated server-side with new Function over plain values only, recomputed on edit. No imports, no network access in formulas. - Buttons in docs: a doc can declare a button that runs one whitelisted server action (add row with defaults, mark done); docs never execute arbitrary code. - Named views per table: filter + sort saved and embeddable in any doc. - CSV export per table, Markdown export per doc; localhost only, no accounts, no telemetry. - Out of scope: collaboration, permissions, and packs/integrations. Coda's formula language and pack ecosystem are the product; this is my personal version. - README: setup and where the data lives on disk. ## Required capabilities - rich text editor - database tables - formula engine - auth - integrations - hosted backend ## Delivery order 1. Scaffold the smallest runnable application and document its commands. 2. Implement the primary data model and core workflow. 3. Add validation, safe failure states, and persistence. 4. Cover the critical path with automated tests. 5. Exercise a clean install from the README and fix every missing step. ## Done when - A new user can go from clone to first successful workflow using only the README. - The core workflow works without paid infrastructure unless the brief requires it. - Tests cover the highest-risk behavior. - Known limitations are explicit rather than hidden. ===== .env.example ===== # Copy to .env and document every variable when it is introduced. # Never put real credentials in this file. APP_ENV=development # Add only values required by the selected implementation.
You are building a lean indie version of Coda. Create the following project files first, then implement the application by following them. Keep the files updated as decisions change. Do not collapse this into a single README or prompt. ===== README.md ===== # Coda indie build ## Goal Build the smallest trustworthy replacement for the core Coda workflow for one developer or a tiny team. ## Scope Build a rich doc editor, embedded tables, formulas, buttons, and simple automations. ## Quick start 1. Install the documented dependencies. 2. Copy `.env.example` to `.env`. 3. Run the development command chosen during implementation. 4. Complete the acceptance checks in `BUILD_PLAN.md`. ## Honest limits This build deliberately does not replace: - formula language - packs - permissions - automations - templates - collaboration - doc-app UX If those capabilities are essential, use AFFiNE instead of pretending the gap is solved. ===== AGENTS.md ===== # Agent instructions - Optimize for a working, understandable weekend build. - Prefer the fewest moving parts that satisfy the brief. - Do not invent cryptography, security guarantees, APIs, or compliance claims. - Keep secrets out of source control and logs. - Add focused tests for destructive, security-sensitive, and data-loss paths. - Run the project checks before declaring the build complete. - Record any deliberate shortcut in the README under "Tradeoffs". ===== BUILD_PLAN.md ===== # Build plan ## Original build brief Build me a docs-with-tables workspace to replace Coda, single-user. Requirements: - Local web app: Node + Express + better-sqlite3, server-rendered pages with vanilla JS, no build step. - Docs are Markdown edited in a textarea with live preview (marked); a fenced block naming a table, like table:Expenses, renders that table live inside the doc. - Tables have typed columns (text/number/date/select/checkbox), inline row editing, and are real SQLite tables I can query with other tools. - Formula columns: a JS expression over the row's other fields (price * qty) evaluated server-side with new Function over plain values only, recomputed on edit. No imports, no network access in formulas. - Buttons in docs: a doc can declare a button that runs one whitelisted server action (add row with defaults, mark done); docs never execute arbitrary code. - Named views per table: filter + sort saved and embeddable in any doc. - CSV export per table, Markdown export per doc; localhost only, no accounts, no telemetry. - Out of scope: collaboration, permissions, and packs/integrations. Coda's formula language and pack ecosystem are the product; this is my personal version. - README: setup and where the data lives on disk. ## Required capabilities - rich text editor - database tables - formula engine - auth - integrations - hosted backend ## Delivery order 1. Scaffold the smallest runnable application and document its commands. 2. Implement the primary data model and core workflow. 3. Add validation, safe failure states, and persistence. 4. Cover the critical path with automated tests. 5. Exercise a clean install from the README and fix every missing step. ## Done when - A new user can go from clone to first successful workflow using only the README. - The core workflow works without paid infrastructure unless the brief requires it. - Tests cover the highest-risk behavior. - Known limitations are explicit rather than hidden. ===== .env.example ===== # Copy to .env and document every variable when it is introduced. # Never put real credentials in this file. APP_ENV=development # Add only values required by the selected implementation.
You are building a production product version of Coda. Create the following project files first, then implement the application by following them. Keep the files updated as decisions change. Do not collapse this into a single README or prompt. ===== PRODUCT.md ===== # Coda product brief ## Problem A doc with tables and buttons is buildable; Coda's editor, formula engine, packs/integrations, permissions, and team workflows make full parity difficult. ## Product outcome Build a rich doc editor, embedded tables, formulas, buttons, and simple automations. ## Target user A serious builder who needs a maintainable product foundation rather than a one-off demo. ## Required capabilities - rich text editor - database tables - formula engine - auth - integrations - hosted backend ## Explicit non-goals for v1 - formula language - packs - permissions - automations - templates - collaboration - doc-app UX ## Success criteria - The primary workflow is measurable end to end. - Setup is reproducible in a clean environment. - Failure, recovery, and support paths are documented. - Product claims match what the implementation actually guarantees. ===== ARCHITECTURE.md ===== # Architecture ## Starting brief Build me a docs-with-tables workspace to replace Coda, single-user. Requirements: - Local web app: Node + Express + better-sqlite3, server-rendered pages with vanilla JS, no build step. - Docs are Markdown edited in a textarea with live preview (marked); a fenced block naming a table, like table:Expenses, renders that table live inside the doc. - Tables have typed columns (text/number/date/select/checkbox), inline row editing, and are real SQLite tables I can query with other tools. - Formula columns: a JS expression over the row's other fields (price * qty) evaluated server-side with new Function over plain values only, recomputed on edit. No imports, no network access in formulas. - Buttons in docs: a doc can declare a button that runs one whitelisted server action (add row with defaults, mark done); docs never execute arbitrary code. - Named views per table: filter + sort saved and embeddable in any doc. - CSV export per table, Markdown export per doc; localhost only, no accounts, no telemetry. - Out of scope: collaboration, permissions, and packs/integrations. Coda's formula language and pack ecosystem are the product; this is my personal version. - README: setup and where the data lives on disk. ## Boundaries Separate the product into replaceable modules for interface, application logic, persistence, external integrations, and operational concerns. Keep domain logic independent from delivery frameworks and vendors. ## Production baseline - Configuration: validated at startup with safe local defaults where possible. - Security: least privilege, input validation, secret redaction, rate limits on abuse-prone paths, and no invented security primitives. - Data: explicit schema and migrations, transactional writes where integrity matters, backup and restore instructions. - Integrations: adapters around third-party providers, idempotent webhook or job processing, bounded retries, and timeouts. - Observability: structured logs with request or operation IDs, an error-tracking hook, and health/readiness checks where a server exists. - Quality: unit tests for domain rules, integration tests at module boundaries, and one end-to-end critical-path test. ## Decision records For each major dependency, document why it was chosen, its failure mode, and how it can be replaced. Do not introduce infrastructure until a requirement justifies it. ===== AGENTS.md ===== # Agent instructions - Read `PRODUCT.md` and `ARCHITECTURE.md` before changing code. - Implement milestone by milestone; keep each change reviewable and leave the application runnable. - Treat authentication, payments, encryption, imports, webhooks, and destructive actions as high-risk boundaries when present. - Never invent cryptography or silently weaken a requirement to make a test pass. - Use provider interfaces for external services and deterministic fakes in tests. - Add migrations and rollback or recovery notes for persistent data changes. - Log useful operational context without credentials, tokens, passwords, or personal data. - Update documentation and run all checks before completing a milestone. ===== MILESTONES.md ===== # Delivery milestones ## M0 — Decisions and scaffold - Confirm the runtime, persistence model, threat boundaries, and deployment target. - Create a reproducible local environment and continuous checks. ## M1 — Core workflow - Implement the smallest end-to-end product path with validation and tests. - Keep integrations behind interfaces. ## M2 — Trust layer - Add secure failure behavior, recovery paths, audit-relevant events, and data safeguards. - Test abuse cases and destructive operations. ## M3 — Operability - Add structured logs, error reporting hooks, health signals, backup/restore documentation, and deployment configuration. ## M4 — Release gate - Run a clean-install test, critical-path end-to-end test, dependency review, and documented rollback exercise. - Compare the shipped behavior with `PRODUCT.md` and publish remaining limitations. ===== OPERATIONS.md ===== # Operations ## Before release - Validate configuration and secrets at startup. - Define backup, restore, and rollback procedures and test them. - Document logs, error tracking, health signals, and alert ownership. - Set dependency update and vulnerability review expectations. ## Incident checklist 1. Contain the issue without destroying evidence or user data. 2. Record the timeline and affected scope. 3. Rotate exposed secrets and revoke compromised sessions or credentials. 4. Restore from a verified source when needed. 5. Document the root cause, remediation, and regression test. ## Launch constraint Do not market omitted Coda capabilities as implemented. The v1 non-goals in `PRODUCT.md` remain user-visible limitations until they are deliberately delivered.
# Coda indie build ## Goal Build the smallest trustworthy replacement for the core Coda workflow for one developer or a tiny team. ## Scope Build a rich doc editor, embedded tables, formulas, buttons, and simple automations. ## Quick start 1. Install the documented dependencies. 2. Copy `.env.example` to `.env`. 3. Run the development command chosen during implementation. 4. Complete the acceptance checks in `BUILD_PLAN.md`. ## Honest limits This build deliberately does not replace: - formula language - packs - permissions - automations - templates - collaboration - doc-app UX If those capabilities are essential, use AFFiNE instead of pretending the gap is solved.
# Agent instructions - Optimize for a working, understandable weekend build. - Prefer the fewest moving parts that satisfy the brief. - Do not invent cryptography, security guarantees, APIs, or compliance claims. - Keep secrets out of source control and logs. - Add focused tests for destructive, security-sensitive, and data-loss paths. - Run the project checks before declaring the build complete. - Record any deliberate shortcut in the README under "Tradeoffs".
# Build plan ## Original build brief Build me a docs-with-tables workspace to replace Coda, single-user. Requirements: - Local web app: Node + Express + better-sqlite3, server-rendered pages with vanilla JS, no build step. - Docs are Markdown edited in a textarea with live preview (marked); a fenced block naming a table, like table:Expenses, renders that table live inside the doc. - Tables have typed columns (text/number/date/select/checkbox), inline row editing, and are real SQLite tables I can query with other tools. - Formula columns: a JS expression over the row's other fields (price * qty) evaluated server-side with new Function over plain values only, recomputed on edit. No imports, no network access in formulas. - Buttons in docs: a doc can declare a button that runs one whitelisted server action (add row with defaults, mark done); docs never execute arbitrary code. - Named views per table: filter + sort saved and embeddable in any doc. - CSV export per table, Markdown export per doc; localhost only, no accounts, no telemetry. - Out of scope: collaboration, permissions, and packs/integrations. Coda's formula language and pack ecosystem are the product; this is my personal version. - README: setup and where the data lives on disk. ## Required capabilities - rich text editor - database tables - formula engine - auth - integrations - hosted backend ## Delivery order 1. Scaffold the smallest runnable application and document its commands. 2. Implement the primary data model and core workflow. 3. Add validation, safe failure states, and persistence. 4. Cover the critical path with automated tests. 5. Exercise a clean install from the README and fix every missing step. ## Done when - A new user can go from clone to first successful workflow using only the README. - The core workflow works without paid infrastructure unless the brief requires it. - Tests cover the highest-risk behavior. - Known limitations are explicit rather than hidden.
# Copy to .env and document every variable when it is introduced. # Never put real credentials in this file. APP_ENV=development # Add only values required by the selected implementation.
# Coda product brief ## Problem A doc with tables and buttons is buildable; Coda's editor, formula engine, packs/integrations, permissions, and team workflows make full parity difficult. ## Product outcome Build a rich doc editor, embedded tables, formulas, buttons, and simple automations. ## Target user A serious builder who needs a maintainable product foundation rather than a one-off demo. ## Required capabilities - rich text editor - database tables - formula engine - auth - integrations - hosted backend ## Explicit non-goals for v1 - formula language - packs - permissions - automations - templates - collaboration - doc-app UX ## Success criteria - The primary workflow is measurable end to end. - Setup is reproducible in a clean environment. - Failure, recovery, and support paths are documented. - Product claims match what the implementation actually guarantees.
# Architecture ## Starting brief Build me a docs-with-tables workspace to replace Coda, single-user. Requirements: - Local web app: Node + Express + better-sqlite3, server-rendered pages with vanilla JS, no build step. - Docs are Markdown edited in a textarea with live preview (marked); a fenced block naming a table, like table:Expenses, renders that table live inside the doc. - Tables have typed columns (text/number/date/select/checkbox), inline row editing, and are real SQLite tables I can query with other tools. - Formula columns: a JS expression over the row's other fields (price * qty) evaluated server-side with new Function over plain values only, recomputed on edit. No imports, no network access in formulas. - Buttons in docs: a doc can declare a button that runs one whitelisted server action (add row with defaults, mark done); docs never execute arbitrary code. - Named views per table: filter + sort saved and embeddable in any doc. - CSV export per table, Markdown export per doc; localhost only, no accounts, no telemetry. - Out of scope: collaboration, permissions, and packs/integrations. Coda's formula language and pack ecosystem are the product; this is my personal version. - README: setup and where the data lives on disk. ## Boundaries Separate the product into replaceable modules for interface, application logic, persistence, external integrations, and operational concerns. Keep domain logic independent from delivery frameworks and vendors. ## Production baseline - Configuration: validated at startup with safe local defaults where possible. - Security: least privilege, input validation, secret redaction, rate limits on abuse-prone paths, and no invented security primitives. - Data: explicit schema and migrations, transactional writes where integrity matters, backup and restore instructions. - Integrations: adapters around third-party providers, idempotent webhook or job processing, bounded retries, and timeouts. - Observability: structured logs with request or operation IDs, an error-tracking hook, and health/readiness checks where a server exists. - Quality: unit tests for domain rules, integration tests at module boundaries, and one end-to-end critical-path test. ## Decision records For each major dependency, document why it was chosen, its failure mode, and how it can be replaced. Do not introduce infrastructure until a requirement justifies it.
# Agent instructions - Read `PRODUCT.md` and `ARCHITECTURE.md` before changing code. - Implement milestone by milestone; keep each change reviewable and leave the application runnable. - Treat authentication, payments, encryption, imports, webhooks, and destructive actions as high-risk boundaries when present. - Never invent cryptography or silently weaken a requirement to make a test pass. - Use provider interfaces for external services and deterministic fakes in tests. - Add migrations and rollback or recovery notes for persistent data changes. - Log useful operational context without credentials, tokens, passwords, or personal data. - Update documentation and run all checks before completing a milestone.
# Delivery milestones ## M0 — Decisions and scaffold - Confirm the runtime, persistence model, threat boundaries, and deployment target. - Create a reproducible local environment and continuous checks. ## M1 — Core workflow - Implement the smallest end-to-end product path with validation and tests. - Keep integrations behind interfaces. ## M2 — Trust layer - Add secure failure behavior, recovery paths, audit-relevant events, and data safeguards. - Test abuse cases and destructive operations. ## M3 — Operability - Add structured logs, error reporting hooks, health signals, backup/restore documentation, and deployment configuration. ## M4 — Release gate - Run a clean-install test, critical-path end-to-end test, dependency review, and documented rollback exercise. - Compare the shipped behavior with `PRODUCT.md` and publish remaining limitations.
# Operations ## Before release - Validate configuration and secrets at startup. - Define backup, restore, and rollback procedures and test them. - Document logs, error tracking, health signals, and alert ownership. - Set dependency update and vulnerability review expectations. ## Incident checklist 1. Contain the issue without destroying evidence or user data. 2. Record the timeline and affected scope. 3. Rotate exposed secrets and revoke compromised sessions or credentials. 4. Restore from a verified source when needed. 5. Document the root cause, remediation, and regression test. ## Launch constraint Do not market omitted Coda capabilities as implemented. The v1 non-goals in `PRODUCT.md` remain user-visible limitations until they are deliberately delivered.
$ choose a build depth, inspect the files, then open the complete pack in your agent · this prompt is generated from the build plan · improve it via PR
They pay because docs become tools that teammates can understand and maintain.
xformula language
xpacks
xpermissions
xautomations
xtemplates
xcollaboration
xdoc-app UX
Don't feel like building it? These folks already made it free.
no votes, no pay-to-list · just what's real
Coda pricing
| plan | monthly | annual (per mo) | what you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| free | $0/workspace | $0/workspace | Personal docs have no object/page cap; shared docs cap at 50 objects and 1,000 rows; 1 GB attachments/doc, 10 MB/file, 7-day history, 35 time + 100 event automations/doc/month, 100 rows/sync table |
| pro | $15/user | $12/user | Per Doc Maker; unlimited doc size; 5 GB attachments/doc, 250 MB/file, 30-day history, 100 time + 500 event automations/doc/month, 2,000 AI credits/Doc Maker/month, 10,000 rows/sync table |
| business | $40/user | $33/user | Per Doc Maker; unlimited attachments/doc and history; 250 MB/file; unlimited automations; 6,000 AI credits/Doc Maker/month; 10,000 rows/sync table |
| enterprise | custom | — | Custom contract; 12,000 AI credits/Doc Maker/month; unlimited attachments/doc, history and automations; 250 MB/file |
free tierPersonal docs have no object/page cap; shared docs: 50 objects and 1,000 rows; 1 GB attachments/doc, 10 MB/file, 7-day history, 35 time + 100 event automations/doc/month, 100 rows/sync table
billingmonthly + annual; Pro $15 monthly or $12/Doc Maker/month annually; Business $40 monthly or $33 annually; editors/viewers are free
hidden costsWorkspace admins and Doc Makers are billable; editors are free. Depending on admin settings, an editor who creates a doc/page or uses AI can become a billable Doc Maker after a 7- or 14-day grace/trial. Paid Packs are extra per Doc Maker per month with no annual option (for example, the Figma Pack is $10/Doc Maker/month). Annual-plan seat additions are prorated and billed monthly.
verified 2026-08-13 · source ↗
Vibecode Coda
Kinda. The core of Coda is buildable in a weekend with the prompt on this page, but there are real gaps: formula language, packs. Read the honest list above before committing.
How much does Coda cost?
Coda costs about $12/month (Pro Doc Maker, checked 2026-07-30), which is $144 per year.
What do I lose by replacing Coda?
Honestly: formula language; packs; permissions; automations; templates; collaboration; doc-app UX. If any of those are load-bearing for you, keep paying.
Is there an open-source alternative to Coda?
Yes: Fibery Free (Coda for ten people, with relational docs and 250 automations before the bill exists.) Superhuman Docs Free (Coda is now Superhuman Docs; the free plan still has collaborative docs, connected tables, forms, formulas, and automations.) The prompt is for when you want it exactly your way.