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MariaDB Reviews

Vendor: MariaDB
4.1 out of 5
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What is MariaDB?

MariaDB is an open source relational database created by the original founders of MySQL. It is considered one of the most popular and trusted database servers throughout the world. MariaDB is a valued component found in most cloud offerings and is the default in many Linux tools. It is also widely used by Wikipedia, WordPress, and Google, among other well-known sites. Maria DB easily melds data into concise information from a vast array of applications, such as banking, online shopping, websites, and more.

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MariaDB is the #5 ranked solution in top Open Source Databases and top Relational Databases. PeerSpot users give MariaDB an average rating of 8.2 out of 10. MariaDB is most commonly compared to SQL Server: MariaDB vs SQL Server. MariaDB is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 49% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a computer software company, accounting for 15% of all views.
Buyer's Guide
MariaDB
September 2025
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MariaDB mindshare

Product category:
Open Source Databases
As of October 2025, the mindshare of MariaDB in the Open Source Databases category stands at 6.7%, down from 8.0% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Open Source Databases Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
MariaDB6.7%
PostgreSQL16.6%
Firebird SQL15.2%
Other61.5%
Open Source Databases

PeerResearch reports based on MariaDB reviews

TypeTitleDate
CategoryOpen Source DatabasesOct 5, 2025Download
ProductReviews, tips, and advice from real usersOct 5, 2025Download
ComparisonMariaDB vs MySQLOct 5, 2025Download
ComparisonMariaDB vs PostgreSQLOct 5, 2025Download
ComparisonMariaDB vs Firebird SQLOct 5, 2025Download
Suggested products
TitleRatingMindshareRecommending
SQL Server4.2N/A93%270 interviewsAdd to research
Teradata4.1N/A87%77 interviewsAdd to research
 
 
Key learnings from peers

Valuable Features

MariaDB offers reliability, excellent performance, and speed. It is user-friendly and easy to install. Users appreciate open-source benefits and community support. Standout features include scalability, strong integration capabilities, and powerful analytics tools like ColumnStore. It excels in replication and query performance. Its compatibility with MySQL allows easy migration, and multi-core usage improves performance. Additionally, it provides robust monitoring and online community engagement contributes to its popularity. Ideal for diverse applications, from telephony to cloud services.
  • "Configuration, setup, and schema design are good features in MariaDB, and typical database features we have used include backup, configuration, recovery, archiving, and ETL."
  • "Visual Studio offers unit testing integration and extensive searching capabilities."
  • "The initial setup of MariaDB is simple enough."

Room for Improvement

MariaDB requires improvements in scalability, redundancy, stability, and security. Users find integration with enterprise systems, BI tools, and AWS lacking. The user interface and materialized views need enhancement, while support for technical assistance and stored procedures is sought. Pricing, performance with complex queries, and write-intensive applications also need addressing. Enhancements in data import, multi-drive support, clustering, replication, and automation are desired, alongside more compatibility and management features for better user experience.
  • "Complex queries in MariaDB where the query needs to parse thousands of lines or data values face some performance issues."
  • "The features available are very basic."
  • "The only potential area for improvement could be the pricing model, which might benefit from being more flexible or a bit cheaper."

ROI

Ninety percent of users express confidence in ROI with MariaDB. Some new adopters are yet to assess returns. Significant savings arise from eliminating Oracle licenses, prompting many to note time-efficiency benefits. MariaDB’s community support, including GitHub contributions, enhances its versatility and functionality. Its features such as data compression, audit plugins, and encryption types make it adaptable across various applications.

Pricing

MariaDB offers a compelling mix of cost-effective solutions with flexibility in licensing options. Many users highlight the appeal of its open-source community version, which is free of charge, making it an attractive choice for those with budget constraints. The enterprise version, while offering additional features and support, comes with a licensing cost of around $4000 annually, still regarded as more affordable compared to Oracle. MariaDB balances between cost and capability effectively.
  • "MariaDB is available for free."
  • "The tool is open-source."
  • "The product is not expensive."

Popular Use Cases

MariaDB is utilized extensively for various applications, including eCommerce, payroll, business intelligence, financial software, and cloud platforms. Users commonly use MariaDB for database operations such as structured data storage, complex queries, and data warehousing. It supports web applications, telecommunications infrastructure, IoT systems, and ERP systems. Many entities opt for MariaDB due to its open-source nature and compatibility with applications like ServiceNow, offering improved query execution and database management.

Service and Support

MariaDB's technical support is appreciated by many who find responses timely and helpful. While some rely on documentation and community resources for troubleshooting, others who interact with MariaDB support rate their experiences positively, noting effective problem-solving. Many users haven't needed to contact support due to their own expertise or small-scale deployments. Paid support and community support offer distinct benefits, accommodating varied needs across different users.

Deployment

MariaDB's initial setup is straightforward, efficient, and not overly complex, often completed within a few hours or less with minimal resources and staff. Many users find it resembles MySQL in ease, though production environments may require some additional configuration. Community support can aid with any issues. Automation, especially with tools like Docker, further simplifies deployment, although some organizations note configurations may need fine-tuning for optimal performance and advanced setups like clustering could increase complexity.

Scalability

MariaDB is flexible for small to medium-scale deployments but presents challenges with massive databases. It is generally regarded as scalable, though horizontal scaling might need enhancements or additional configurations. Many organizations utilize it across various departments with different user counts, ensuring good performance. However, larger databases may require alternative tools like MariaDB SkySQL for enhanced scalability. The database supports growing user demands by enabling easy node addition with satisfactory performance post-optimizations.

Stability

MariaDB exhibits high stability with many users experiencing reliable performance. Some have successfully supported up to 40,000 concurrent users without downtime. However, a few noted challenges, particularly with clustering and replication. Proper tuning and skilled management are essential for large instances. Rare issues are often linked to external factors like operating system updates. MariaDB's stability is consistently rated between eight to ten out of ten by numerous users, reflecting strong confidence in day-to-day usage.
These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.
Download our MariaDB Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.

Review data by company size

By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business22
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise22
By reviewers
By visitors reading reviews
Company SizeCount
Small Business219
Midsize Enterprise115
Large Enterprise325
By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
University
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
7%
Government
6%
Retailer
4%
Media Company
3%
Healthcare Company
3%
Construction Company
3%
Hospitality Company
3%
Real Estate/Law Firm
3%
Performing Arts
2%
Energy/Utilities Company
2%
Non Profit
2%
Wholesaler/Distributor
2%
Insurance Company
1%
Transportation Company
1%
Outsourcing Company
1%
Logistics Company
1%
Legal Firm
1%
Recruiting/Hr Firm
1%
Recreational Facilities/Services Company
1%
Pharma/Biotech Company
1%

Compare MariaDB with alternative products

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Learn more about MariaDB

MariaDB was originally created to improve MySQL performance. It is the most widely chosen database server due to the solution being super fast, robust, user-friendly, and easily scalable. MariaDB also offers a substantial ecosystem of plugins, storage engines, and numerous other valuable tools that make it very attractive for a significant offering of use cases.

The solution’s newest functionalities include compatibility with Oracle Database and Temporal Data Tables, and advanced clustering with Galera Cluster 4, which make it easier for users to research data history from any point in the past. Additionally, the most recent versions include JSON and GIS features. MariaDB is committed to staying an open source solution.

MariaDB Features

  • More storage: MariaDB works with more storage engines than MySQL and most other database servers available. Some storage options include, but are not limited to ARCHIVE, MERGE, CSV, MEMORY, BLACKHOLE, MyISAM, ColumnStore, MyRocks, and Cassandra.

  • Super fast: MariaDB offers faster authentication checks. The FlushSSL permits SSL certificates to be reloaded without a server restart, resulting in huge time savings.

  • Improved testing: MariaDB offers an extending testing suite that runs faster and can test more than ever before. Bugs can be easily fixed and invalid tests removed.

  • Genuinely open source: Every code in MariaDB is GPL, LGPL, or BSD. Client libraries [for Windows (ODBC), Java (JDBC), or C] allow linking to closed source software. All fixed bug cases and development plans are completely public. MariaDB is a community-developed solution representing the true spirit of open source products.

Reviews from Real Users

Faustine C., Engineering Supervisor- Corporate Data Solutions and Services at TZ Telecoms Corporation, shares, “The software provides a lot of information on what is happening inside the database. For most performance parameters it is easy to know if something is not right in the configuration or optimization which helps engineers take remedial fine-tuning measures. For example, if the database is underperforming it is easy to know which performance parameter can be adjusted to handle the workload. It is difficult to troubleshoot database issues if many performance parameters can not be monitored or debugged which is the case with some database management systems. It provides great monitoring of data storage, processing, and performance stability which is really important for real-time data storage and processing. It's a user-friendly product.”

A PeerSpot user who is a Senior Engineer at a tech services company relates, “ The solution's high availability is its most valuable aspect. We have found the product to be stable and the initial setup is pretty simple. I'd rate the solution at a ten out of ten. I'm very happy with it overall. I would recommend the solution to others. It's easy to find details about the product online and to learn about it.”

MariaDB customers

Google, Wikipedia, Tencent, Verizon, DBS Bank, Deutsche Bank, Telefónica, Huatai Securities

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Product Categories

Product Categories
Open Source Databases
Relational Databases Tools

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MariaDB Reviews Summary
Author infoRatingReview Summary
Co-Founder at Vsigma IT Labs Pvt Ltd3.5We've used MariaDB for web applications and found it stable with solid features, though performance lags during complex queries or large datasets. Setup has a learning curve, support is helpful, and it's best suited for small to medium workloads.
Senior Technical Manager at Johnson Controls, Inc.4.5We are in IoT intrusion systems, using MariaDB for UI purposes with a 3-node multi-master setup on Kubernetes. It offers good scalability and seamless integration, but we face deadlock issues and downtime. It's more affordable than Oracle or SQL Server.
General Manager at Xurpas Software, Inc.4.0I support MariaDB for ERP systems, valuing its query speed and ease of use compared to PostgreSQL. While MariaDB lacks stored procedure capabilities and scalability like PostgreSQL, its lower hardware costs make it a preferable option for most clients.
Senior Cloud Performance Engineer at Oracle4.0I find MariaDB beneficial for its faster query execution and improved security in my work with ServiceNow. However, it can be inflexible for complex needs, lacking built-in analytics and features like time series data support. Oracle offers more comprehensive solutions.
Associate, Software Developer (Appian) at The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development3.5I use MariaDB primarily for data processing and storage in my company. It is cloud-based, fast, and SQL-compliant. We previously used a different solution, but switched to MariaDB as preferred by Appian. Improvement is needed in document caching.
Product Manager at Hyundai Autoever Company2.5We migrated from Oracle to MariaDB during our cloud transition because of its speed, multi-processing capabilities, and lightweight nature. However, MariaDB needs stronger indexes, improved query handling, and better customer support. We also evaluated Finsecure and AWS databases.
Senior IT Architect at AFD Technologies3.5MariaDB is a good database solution, although it lacks some maturity metrics compared to Postgres. It could benefit from improved tablespaces management and space utilization. Its active server capabilities are advantageous over competitors, and it suits specific project needs.
jmitchell@natbankmw.com at NBM4.5We use MariaDB primarily for smaller systems due to its speed and functionality, preferring Oracle for mission-critical operations. While it offers better value and functionality, improvements are needed in scalability and integration compared to higher-end solutions.