Compare the Top Free Embedded Database Systems as of November 2025

What are Free Embedded Database Systems?

Embedded database systems are lightweight, self-contained databases that are integrated directly into applications, allowing data management without requiring a separate database server. They are optimized for performance and simplicity, often running within the same process as the host application, making them ideal for use in mobile apps, IoT devices, and small-scale applications. These databases support SQL or other query languages and offer full database functionality, including transaction management and data integrity. Embedded database systems are designed to operate with minimal configuration, providing fast, reliable data storage and retrieval within constrained environments. Their ease of integration and low resource usage make them essential for applications that need efficient local data management without the overhead of external databases. Compare and read user reviews of the best Free Embedded Database systems currently available using the table below. This list is updated regularly.

  • 1
    MySQL

    MySQL

    Oracle

    MySQL is the world's most popular open source database. With its proven performance, reliability, and ease-of-use, MySQL has become the leading database choice for web-based applications, used by high profile web properties including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and all five of the top five websites*. Additionally, it is an extremely popular choice as embedded database, distributed by thousands of ISVs and OEMs.
    Starting Price: Free
  • 2
    Apache Phoenix

    Apache Phoenix

    Apache Software Foundation

    Apache Phoenix enables OLTP and operational analytics in Hadoop for low-latency applications by combining the best of both worlds. The power of standard SQL and JDBC APIs with full ACID transaction capabilities and the flexibility of late-bound, schema-on-read capabilities from the NoSQL world by leveraging HBase as its backing store. Apache Phoenix is fully integrated with other Hadoop products such as Spark, Hive, Pig, Flume, and Map Reduce. Become the trusted data platform for OLTP and operational analytics for Hadoop through well-defined, industry-standard APIs. Apache Phoenix takes your SQL query, compiles it into a series of HBase scans, and orchestrates the running of those scans to produce regular JDBC result sets. Direct use of the HBase API, along with coprocessors and custom filters, results in performance on the order of milliseconds for small queries, or seconds for tens of millions of rows.
    Starting Price: Free
  • 3
    Firebird

    Firebird

    Firebird Foundation

    Firebird is a relational database offering many ANSI SQL standard features that runs on Linux, Windows, and a variety of Unix platforms. Firebird offers excellent concurrency, high performance, and powerful language support for stored procedures and triggers. It has been used in production systems, under a variety of names, since 1981. The Firebird Project is a commercially independent project of C and C++ programmers, technical advisors and supporters developing and enhancing a multi-platform relational database management system based on the source code released by Inprise Corp (now known as Borland Software Corp) on 25 July, 2000. The Firebird Project supplies users, developers, and administrators with various kinds of documentation, from Quick Start guides to expert-level articles devoted to various aspects of Firebird.
  • 4
    IBM Informix
    IBM Informix® is a fast and flexible database with the ability to seamlessly integrate SQL, NoSQL/JSON, and time series and spatial data. Its versatility and ease of use make Informix a preferred solution for a wide range of environments, from enterprise data warehouses to individual application development. Also, with its small footprint and self-managing capabilities, Informix is well suited for embedded data-management solutions. IoT data demands robust processing and integration capabilities. Informix offers a hybrid database system with minimal administrative requirements and memory footprint combined with powerful functionality. Key features make Informix ideal for multi-tiered architectures that require processing at the device level, at gateway layers and in the cloud. Native encryption to protect data at rest and in motion. Support for flexible schema, multiple APIs and configurations.
  • 5
    Valentina Studio

    Valentina Studio

    Paradigma Software

    Create, administer, query and explore Valentina DB, MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL and SQLite databases for FREE. Design business reports running in Valentina Studio Pro, on Valentina Server or in an application with an Application Developer Kit. Backward Engineering in Standard with forwarding Engineering in Valentina Studio Pro. Reverse engineering and create diagrams for existing databases. Add new objects to diagrams. Write SQL queries with auto-completion, color syntax. Define, manage, save favorite queries; access recent queries. Function browser dictionary of each function. Consoles for errors, warnings, and performance. Search, Export result records into CSV, JSON, Excel. Edit properties of multiple objects at the same time. Drill down to tables and fields; incredible fast searching. Reverse engineering and create diagrams for existing databases. Add new objects to diagrams. Add/drop users, and groups, and manage privileges.
  • 6
    SAP HANA
    SAP HANA in-memory database is for transactional and analytical workloads with any data type — on a single data copy. It breaks down the transactional and analytical silos in organizations, for quick decision-making, on premise and in the cloud. Innovate without boundaries on a database management system, where you can develop intelligent and live solutions for quick decision-making on a single data copy. And with advanced analytics, you can support next-generation transactional processing. Build data solutions with cloud-native scalability, speed, and performance. With the SAP HANA Cloud database, you can gain trusted, business-ready information from a single solution, while enabling security, privacy, and anonymization with proven enterprise reliability. An intelligent enterprise runs on insight from data – and more than ever, this insight must be delivered in real time.
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