---
title: "Introducing no-cost trials for Data Connect"
description: "Introducing no-cost trials for Data Connect"
published: "2026-03-12"
last_updated: "2026-03-12"
authors:
  - "Cynthia Wang (Developer Relations Engineer)"
categories:
  - "SQL Connect"
  - "PostgreSQL"
  - "Billing"
canonical_url: "https://firebase.blog/posts/2026/03/fdc-ift"
---

# Introducing no-cost trials for Data Connect

*Published March 12, 2026 by Cynthia Wang (Developer Relations Engineer)*

---
> **Note:** Firebase Data Connect has been renamed to SQL Connect. Learn more in the [SQL Connect announcement](https://firebase.blog/posts/2026/04/whats-new-sql-connect).

Building a quick prototype or trying out a new tool shouldn't require navigating billing setups or worrying about surprise charges. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce the no-cost trial for Firebase Data Connect.

Starting today, you can spin up a PostgreSQL database instance for no cost for 90 days—no credit card required. Just initialize your project and start prototyping. Here’s how it works:

### No-cost trial on Spark plans

If your project is on the free Spark plan—meaning you don't have a billing account linked—it's eligible for a limited-time trial at no cost. You can now provision a PostgreSQL database instance through Data Connect in the console:

*   **No credit card required:** No billing plan is required for the Spark plan.
*   **90-day lifespan:** You can create one trial database instance over the lifetime of a single Firebase project. The database instance will be suspended after 90 days.
*   **Hardware:** The trial provisions a PostgreSQL 17 instance equivalent to a [db-f1-micro](https://g.dev/cloud/sql-calculator-fdc-ift), giving you 1 vCPU, 10 GB of SSD storage, and around 628 MB of memory.
*   **Daily quotas:** The instance handles a daily limit of around 8000 operations and 330 MiB of egress.
*   **Management:** Use the `gcloud sql` [family of CLI commands](https://g.dev/cloud/gcloud-sql-cli-fdc-ift) to interact with the instance directly.
*   **Configuration locks:** You cannot change core settings like storage and memory limits. Cost-incurring operations—like creating read replicas, enabling High Availability, or initiating manual backups—are blocked.

#### What happens after 90 days?

We’ll send you an alert before your trial expires. At the 90-day mark, your database will be suspended and enter a 30-day grace period. If you’re ready to take your app to production, simply upgrade your project to the Blaze (pay-as-you-go) plan (see pricing [here](https://g.dev/firebase/data-connect-pricing-ift)) to unsuspend your instance and unlock configuration controls. If you choose not to upgrade, the instance will be safely deleted after the grace period.

### No-cost trial on Blaze plans

If your project is on the Blaze plan and has a billing account attached, you qualify for a no-cost Cloud SQL trial for 3 months.

*   **Project instances:** You can have 1 free trial Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL instance per project, which can co-exist with any number of paid instances.
*   **Trial quotas:** You have a total of 5 free trials available per billing account.
*   **Hardware:** Equivalent to a PostgreSQL 17 [db-f1-micro](https://g.dev/cloud/sql-calculator-fdc-ift) instance that has 1 vCPU, 10 GB SSD storage, and around 628 MB of memory.
*   **Configuration Limits:** Unlike the Spark plan trial, Blaze users _can_ change configuration settings—like adding compute resources, setting up a private IP, or creating read replicas. However, if you make any changes to your database instance configuration, you will exit the trial and be billed according to Cloud SQL pricing.
*   **After 3 months:** Once the 3-month trial period ends, you are automatically charged according to standard [Cloud SQL pricing](https://g.dev/cloud/sql-pricing-fdc-ift).

### Get started today

We want you to focus on realizing your app ideas, not paying before you’ve even started coding. [Jump right into building](https://g.dev/firebase/console-fdc-ift-launch) your SQL app by initializing Firebase Data Connect in the [Firebase Console](https://g.dev/firebase/console-fdc-ift-launch). For a full breakdown of the trial limits, quotas, and what's included, check out our [pricing documentation](https://g.dev/firebase/data-connect-pricing-ift).

We’re excited to see what you build! As always, we’d love to hear your feedback—please share your thoughts with us on [Firebase’s UserVoice](https://firebase.uservoice.com/forums/948424-general?category_id=501596), and don’t forget to use the **Data Connect** tag!