Sync

What is Sync?

Sync migrates schema changes from one base to another — without losing data.

When you update your Airtable schema (add a table, rename a column, add a field), you rebuild your test base to apply those changes. Once verified, you use Sync to push only the schema changes to your production base, leaving all existing production data intact.

How to use Sync

1. Make your schema changes in Airtable
2. Rebuild your test base to apply the changes
3. Verify the test base looks correct
4. Go to your production base in the dashboard
5. Open the Sync tab
6. Select your test base as the source
7. Review the diff (tables and columns that will be added, modified, or removed)
8. Click Apply Sync

Sync applies only the structural changes. Your production data stays exactly where it is.

What Sync can do

• Add new tables
• Add new columns to existing tables
• Modify column types (where compatible)

What Sync cannot do

• Sync does not move data between bases
• Sync does not remove tables that were deleted in Airtable (to prevent accidental data loss — you must drop them manually if intended)
• Sync cannot apply changes that would violate existing data constraints (e.g. adding a NOT NULL column to a table that already has rows)

Why not just rebuild production?

Rebuilding drops and recreates the schema, which destroys all data that your app has written to the production database. Sync applies only the changes needed, so production data is preserved.