Notebooks & data apps · Evidence

Evidence

Open-source "BI-as-code" framework that turns SQL and Markdown files into version-controlled static reports and dashboards.

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Evidence applies a code-first, git-friendly workflow to business intelligence: analysts write SQL queries and Markdown in plain text files, and Evidence compiles them into a static site of charts, tables, and narrative reports using an embedded DuckDB-based query engine. Because reports are files, not database rows in a proprietary BI tool, they can be reviewed in pull requests, diffed, and deployed like any other code artifact — output can be hosted on any static-site host or self-hosted with the official Docker image. Evidence Cloud is the company's paid managed hosting layer, adding scheduled data refresh, row-level access control, a browser-based editor, and AI-assisted authoring for teams that don't want to run their own deployment pipeline. Evidence is often positioned as a "reports-as-code" alternative to drag-and-drop BI tools like Looker or Metabase for teams comfortable with SQL and git.

At a glance

Vendor Evidence
Pricing model Free tier + paid plans
Free tier Yes
Deployment Cloud, Self-hosted
Open source Yes (MIT)
Best for SQL-fluent analytics teams who want git-versioned, code-first reports instead of a drag-and-drop BI tool.

Pricing

The core framework is free, open source, and self-hostable; Evidence Cloud adds managed hosting starting at $2,500/month for teams, with custom Enterprise contracts above that.

Plan Price Notes
Team $2,500/month unlimited users and projects, billed monthly, includes 20K AI credits
Enterprise custom annual contract; SSO, SCIM, row-level access rules, deploy on your own infrastructure

Prices read from the vendor's own page on September 21, 2026. Vendors change prices; check the source before you budget.

Features

  • SQL + Markdown source files compiled into a static report site
  • Built-in DuckDB-based query engine ("Universal SQL")
  • Git-based version control and pull-request review of reports
  • Self-hostable via static hosts or the official Docker image
  • Evidence Cloud: scheduled data refresh, caching, and access control
  • AI-assisted report authoring (Evidence Cloud)

Integrations

Profile last reviewed September 21, 2026

Alternatives

Observable JavaScript-native notebooks and static-site framework built for reactive, interactive data visualizations. Quarto Open-source scientific and technical publishing system that renders code, text, and figures into papers, reports, and websites. Streamlit Open-source Python framework for turning scripts into shareable data apps and dashboards without front-end code.

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Terms to know

Dashboard A visual display of the metrics a team needs to monitor, usually updated on a schedule or in real time. Data storytelling Combining data, visuals and narrative so an audience understands an analysis and knows what to do about it. dbt (data build tool) An open-source tool from dbt Labs that lets analytics teams write data transformations as version-controlled, tested SQL. Self-service BI BI tooling that lets business users build their own reports and explore data without waiting on IT or analytics teams. Business intelligence (BI) The practice of turning company data into dashboards, reports and metrics that guide business decisions. Query engine The software component that parses, plans, and executes queries against one or more data sources.

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