# Riak KV vs RocksDB

**Leader by Vioscale score:** RocksDB

| Attribute | Riak KV | RocksDB |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 26.3 (45% (low)) | 61 (48% (low)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 0 | 72 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | - | 2,684 |
| adoption.github_stars | 17 | 32,011 |
| adoption.package_downloads_weekly | - | 1,832 |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true,"self_hosted":true}` | `{"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | A scalable, enterprise-focused database solution designed for distributed data storage and retrieval at scale. | An embeddable C++ database library optimized for high-performance storage and retrieval on flash drives and RAM, supporting workloads from application caching to multi-terabyte data storage with configurable write and read performance tradeoffs. |
| features.capabilities | `{"clustering":"sharded","deployment":"self_hosted","consistency":"tunable","eviction_ttl":true,"storage_tier":"persistent","data_structures":"kv_only"}` | `{"clustering":"single_node","deployment":"embedded","consistency":"strong","persistence":"append_log","storage_tier":"persistent","licence_class":"copyleft","multi_threaded":true,"data_structures":"kv_only"}` |
| integrations.count | 4 | - |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Apache Spark"},{"name":"Apache Solr"},{"name":"Apache Mesos"},{"name":"Redis"}]` | - |
| language.primary | Erlang | C++ |
| license.spdx | Apache-2.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| platform.support | - | `{"linux":true}` |
| pricing | `{"freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://riak.com","retrievedAt":"2026-08-03T21:12:35.768Z"}` | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://rocksdb.org","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T21:39:20.137Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | low | free |
| release.cadence_days | - | 21 |
| release.history | - | `[{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v11.8.1","date":"2026-08-07T17:30:50Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.8.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v11.1.2","date":"2026-06-25T01:05:56Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.1.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v11.1.1","date":"2026-04-29T21:42:29Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.1.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v11.0.4","date":"2026-04-07T22:14:36Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.0.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.10.1","date":"2026-02-02T19:07:20Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.10.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v8.11.5","date":"2026-01-21T17:25:14Z","type":"stable","version":"v8.11.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.9.1","date":"2026-01-06T03:41:23Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.9.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.8.3","date":"2026-01-06T03:36:05Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.8.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.7.5","date":"2025-10-22T21:41:35Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.7.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.6.2","date":"2025-10-22T17:48:16Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.6.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.5.1","date":"2025-08-11T15:38:38Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.5.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.4.2","date":"2025-07-11T00:32:43Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.4.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.2.1","date":"2025-04-29T21:06:48Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.2.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.1.3","date":"2025-04-14T20:50:23Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.1.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.11.2","date":"2025-03-29T21:45:52Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.11.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.0.1","date":"2025-03-31T18:29:41Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.0.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.10.0","date":"2025-01-02T18:31:00Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.9.3","date":"2024-12-17T18:06:55Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.9.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.8.4","date":"2024-12-03T21:25:53Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.8.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.7.4","date":"2024-11-01T16:39:27Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.7.4"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | yes | yes |
| security.scorecard | - | 7.1 |
| security.vulnerabilities | - | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=maven&package_name=org.rocksdb%3Arocksdbjni&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Key-Value Stores)

| Capability | Riak KV | RocksDB |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Storage** |  |  |
| Storage tier | Persistent | Persistent |
| Persistence | - | Append-only log |
| Data structures | KV-only | KV-only |
| **Protocol** |  |  |
| Wire protocol | - | - |
| **Distribution** |  |  |
| Clustering | Sharded | Single-node |
| Consistency | Tunable | Strong |
| **Ops** |  |  |
| Eviction / TTL policies | ✓ | - |
| Multi-threaded | - | ✓ |
| Pub/Sub / streams | - | - |
| Transactions / atomic ops | - | - |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Deployment | Self-hosted | Embedded |
| **Licensing** |  |  |
| Licence class | - | Copyleft |
| **Compatibility** |  |  |
| Redis API compatibility | - | - |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T17:09:54.794Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*