Introduction — How to Disable RLS in Supabase the Right Way
Understanding how to disable RLS in Supabase is essential for anyone building quickly with Supabase, especially when early development triggers errors such as:
- “new row violates row-level security policy”
- “no insert policy exists for table”
- “RLS denied access to table”
Many beginners — and even experienced developers — hit these issues before they fully understand how Supabase’s security model works. This guide shows you how to disable RLS in Supabase safely, when it’s appropriate to disable it, and why turning RLS off during early development can prevent unnecessary frustration.
Whether you’re coding manually or using AI tools like Lovable, Bolt.new, v0, Cursor, or PromptXL, learning how to disable RLS in Supabase is the fastest way to keep your workflow smooth and error-free.
Why You May Need to Disable RLS in Supabase
Before learning how to disable RLS in Supabase, it’s important to understand why developers do it during early development.
You should disable RLS when:
- You are building UI first and backend later
- You’re using AI to generate CRUD code
- You need your app to “just work” for rapid prototyping
- Your schema is incomplete
- You haven’t added
user_idororganization_idownership fields - You are testing bulk inserts or migrations
Supabase enables RLS by default for security.
But during early building, this can interrupt your momentum.
This is why every modern Supabase development workflow — including PromptXL’s — includes a step to temporarily disable RLS.
How to Disable RLS in Supabase (SQL Method)
Here is the official and simplest way to disable RLS on any table:
ALTER TABLE your_table DISABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;
Replace your_table with your actual table name:
ALTER TABLE tasks DISABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;
Once you run this:
- Supabase stops enforcing RLS checks
- All SELECT/INSERT/UPDATE/DELETE operations are allowed
- The table behaves like a normal PostgreSQL public table
This is the most direct way to disable RLS in Supabase.
How to Disable RLS in Supabase (Dashboard Method)
If you prefer the UI:
- Go to Supabase Dashboard
- Select your Project
- Navigate to Table Editor
- Click the table you want to modify
- Click the Policies tab
- Toggle RLS: OFF
This instantly disables Row Level Security for that table.
When You Should NOT Disable RLS in Supabase
Even though you’re learning how to disable RLS in Supabase, understand that disabling RLS is only for development.
You should NOT disable RLS if:
- Your app is in production
- You store user-specific or sensitive data
- You have multiple users or organizations
- You need workspace-level privacy
- Your data must be secure
RLS is the most powerful layer of protection in Supabase.
It exists to prevent data leaks and unauthorized access.
How Long Should RLS Stay Disabled?
This is the #1 question developers ask.
Best practice:
Disable RLS during:
- UI creation
- CRUD prototyping
- Schema evolution
- Early database planning
- AI-assisted development
Enable RLS when:
- Your tables include ownership fields (
user_id, etc.) - Your CRUD logic is stable
- Your Supabase auth setup works
- You’re preparing for production
- You are ready to write policies
This is exactly how PromptXL structures its workflow — build fast with RLS off, secure later with clean, automated policies.
What Happens After You Disable RLS in Supabase?
Once disabled:
- Your queries will stop failing
- Your UI will sync with your database
- AI-generated CRUD code will work instantly
- Your data will be open to all authorized connections
Important:
Supabase still requires authentication unless you override API policies.
Disabling RLS does not make your entire backend “public,” but it does remove per-row access checks.
How to Re-Enable RLS Later
After your app structure is ready and your user_id fields are set:
ALTER TABLE your_table ENABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;
Then recreate the necessary policies.
This is part of a structured workflow, not a random toggle.
Supabase RLS Workflow Recommended by PromptXL
Here is the modern, frictionless development process:
- Disable RLS at the beginning
- Build UI + CRUD without headaches
- Add user_id or organization_id
- Enable RLS once schema is stable
- Add the 4 essential policies
- Test authenticated flows
- Add multi-tenant policies if needed
This workflow saves HOURS of debugging time.
Why Developers Using AI Should Disable RLS Early
If you use Lovable, Bolt, v0, Cursor, or PromptXL:
- AI assumes the database is open
- Supabase assumes the database is locked
Disabling RLS balances this mismatch so you can actually build.
All modern vibe coders follow this flow.
Common Mistakes When Disabling RLS
Avoid these issues:
❌ Forgetting to re-enable RLS later
❌ Not adding user_id before enabling RLS
❌ Using service-role keys on the frontend
❌ Assuming disabling RLS = making tables public
❌ Leaving production tables with RLS off
This guide explains how to disable RLS in Supabase safely, without compromising long-term security.
Final Summary — How to Disable RLS in Supabase
To disable RLS:
ALTER TABLE your_table DISABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY;
Use it during:
- fast prototyping
- schema development
- AI-generated code building
- early UI creation
But always re-enable it when going to production.
This workflow ensures:
- fast development
- fewer errors
- secure production apps
- a smooth developer experience
Try PromptXL — Build Fast. Fix Less. Secure Automatically.
If you want to skip RLS confusion entirely, PromptXL gives you the cleanest possible Supabase development flow:
- ✔ Correct RLS workflow baked in
- ✔ Automatic
user_idand ownership mapping - ✔ Policies generated properly
- ✔ Multi-tenant tables built correctly
- ✔ AI prompts that understand Supabase
- ✔ Zero broken CRUD calls
- ✔ Faster app building with less debugging
PromptXL helps you build Supabase apps the right way, without fighting RLS.
🚀 Build smarter.
🔐 Build safer.
⚡ Build faster.
Try PromptXL today and transform the way you build Supabase apps.