Comparison

MySQL vs SQLite

On the evidence we track, MySQL leads this comparison with a composite score of 65/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.

Machine formatsMarkdownJSONGraphQLMarkdown is open. JSON and GraphQL need a free key.
★MySQL65
SQLite60
Score
vioscaleAI score
MySQL65 / 100medium · 53%
SQLite60 / 100medium · 53%
Pricing
Free tier
MySQL✓
SQLite✓
Model
Price level
MySQLfree
SQLitefree
Transparent
MySQL✗
SQLite✓
Adoption
Dependent repos
MySQL664
SQLite0
Github stars
MySQL12,441
SQLite10,602
Stackoverflow questions
MySQL230,000
SQLite40,000
Activity
Commits last 30d
MySQL100
SQLite100
Release
Cadence days
MySQL90
SQLite60
License
Spdx
MySQLGPL-2.0
SQLiteblessing
Language
Primary
MySQLC++
SQLiteC
Market
Content
Faq
MySQL8 items
SQLite7 items

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for relational databases. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Core
SQL model
MySQLFull SQL
SQLiteFull SQL
Transactions
ACID transactions
MySQLFull
SQLiteFull
Highest isolation level
MySQLSerializable
SQLite-
Consistency
Consistency
MySQLStrong
SQLiteStrong
Scale
Horizontal scale
MySQLNatively distributed
SQLiteSingle-node
Replication
Replication
MySQLAsync
SQLiteAsync
Availability
Automatic failover / HA
MySQL✓
SQLite✗
Deployment
Deployment
MySQLSelf-hosted
SQLiteEmbedded
Serverless / scale-to-zero
MySQL✓
SQLite✓
Compatibility
Wire compatibility
MySQLMySQL protocol
SQLiteNone
Extensibility
Extensions / plugins / UDFs
MySQL✓
SQLite✓
Licensing
Licence class
MySQLCopyleft
SQLitePermissive OSS
Data types
JSON / document support
MySQL✓
SQLite✓
Geo / spatial
MySQL-
SQLiteExtension

What each one is

The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.

MySQL

Leader

MySQL is an open-source SQL database server. MySQL Cluster extends it with real-time transaction processing capabilities for distributed deployments.

Independently observed

SQLite

An open-source, zero-configuration database engine that provides complete SQL functionality in a compact library designed to be embedded directly into applications with minimal setup or external dependencies.

Independently observed

Pricing

List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.

MySQL

Leader
Open sourceFree tier

Community edition free; Enterprise/Standard/Classic editions require contacting sales

  • MySQL Community ServerFree
  • MySQL Enterprise EditionContact sales
  • MySQL Standard EditionContact sales
  • MySQL Classic EditionContact sales
as of verify ↗

SQLite

Open sourceFree tier

Free and open source, public domain

as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.

Platforms
Web
MySQL✓
SQLite✓
iOS
MySQL✗
SQLite✓
Android
MySQL✗
SQLite✓
macOS
MySQL✗
SQLite✓
Windows
MySQL✗
SQLite✓
Linux
MySQL✗
SQLite✓
CLI
MySQL✗
SQLite✓
Deployment
Self-hosted
MySQL✓
SQLite✓
Still deciding?

MySQL or SQLite: which one depends on you

A composite score cannot know your constraints. Describe them and both get re-weighted against what you actually need, with the evidence behind every position.

Free to run, no account needed to start. How the evaluation works

Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.