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LocalDB vs MySQL comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

LocalDB
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
17th
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
MySQL
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
152
Ranking in other categories
Open Source Databases (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of LocalDB is 1.5%, down from 2.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MySQL is 6.1%, down from 8.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Relational Databases Tools Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
MySQL6.1%
LocalDB1.5%
Other92.4%
Relational Databases Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Srini-Dhanaraj - PeerSpot reviewer
Founder & CEO at imfine.club
The database always has structured data, like rows, columns, and bases
LocalDB is an excellent solution for learners, beginners, and projects of negligible size; it is very good. Any startup can use a local database to start. Once they grow beyond its limits, they can migrate to a MS SQL server that's also available on-premises. I rate it ten out of ten.
Prabir Kumar Kundu - PeerSpot reviewer
SR AVP–Presales Cloud & Platform Management Services at Path Infotech ltd
Offers robust security and availability with impressive replication capabilities
Regarding their documentation and interface, there is room for improvement. Documentation is definitely required when running multiple databases on a cluster system. The load balancer, MySQL LB, which is used to connect to the application, lacks clear documentation. When there are multiple application servers connecting to the MySQL cluster and going through the MySQL load balancer, the documentation is not user-friendly. It's there, but only technical persons with deep knowledge of the MySQL database can implement it. Most of the community users or ISVs who use MySQL don't have many technical persons or DBA experts, so they face some challenges for the high availability of connecting high available databases from high available applications. That documentation should be simplified.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The most valuable feature of LocalDBis the connection between the application and DB."
"LocalDB is an excellent solution for learners, beginners, and projects of negligible size; it is very good."
"The initial setup was simple."
"The initial setup is very straightforward. The guidelines are very easy to follow. Maintenance is very easy and requires very little manpower."
"The solution is fast."
"What I've been most pleased with is the cost point, performance, and ease of use."
"The ML modules in MySQL are advantageous since they make data handling easy and quick at MNQM."
"Fully scalable and stable SQL-based RDBMS, with a straightforward and easy setup."
"The initial setup for the SQL database is not complex and it even integrates into the platform. You set up the recipe and then just follow the runbook, the build book. Then it works as long as you follow the procedures."
"SKIP LOCKED is a valuable feature."
"MySQL is easy and convenient for me. I don't need to rely on anyone. I can write the code and extract the information. It is fast if you know how to use it. The solution is not expensive, and most of the developers know how to use it. It is easy to create tables. The solution is stable and has good performance. The connection with AWS gives regular updates, which is manual otherwise and a nightmare."
"I like MySQL because of its community."
"This product is a good teaching tool for students who want to learn about networked databases."
 

Cons

"The ALM features can be improved, but the database by itself is reliable."
"It is only for a small amount of data. Local DB is made for the purpose of small-volume optics."
"The internal connection features of LocalDB could improve."
"The initial setup is complex and requires a skilled person."
"The solution needs to create a management tool. Right now, the solution has tools for creating a local installation, but it's too simplistic. We need something that's a bit more complex so that we can extend the tools with our scripts."
"MySQL lacks a feature akin to Oracle's Real Application Clusters, which ensures continuous database availability within the same data center or nearby data centers."
"I would like to see more integrations of the solution with other platforms and improve the support on different data types."
"Integration is a key feature in need of improvement."
"The solution could have better integration and security features."
"When I run into issues, I really have to research how to fix them."
"When working with a cluster wide, I have to use the MySQL cluster version."
"The solution could improve the monitoring. At the present time, you need to use third-party monitoring solutions."
"The performance, stability, and security are areas with shortcomings in MySQL, where improvements are required."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The fees are fair."
"The licensing cost is too high for LocalDB."
"MySQL is free."
"When you know the setup will continue to grow, make sure you have the paid support."
"Can range from free to quite expensive, depending on the environments and requirements, so better to really set goals ahead of setting it up."
"We do have a couple of clients who choose to use the paid, enterprise version of the solution and who take full advantage of it."
"MySQL is a free and open-source solution."
"MySQL is a cheap solution."
"The pricing falls within the moderate range."
"MySQL is a cheap solution."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business74
Midsize Enterprise32
Large Enterprise62
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with LocalDB?
Technically speaking, you don't need to get any updates because it's not online. It's on-premise. So once it is installed, then you get a desktop-grade version. But the purpose of LocalDB is not th...
What is your primary use case for LocalDB?
There were multiple systems, some planned, like the mainframe, the gold database, a website, and a manual Excel spreadsheet. These were the various data sources, and we wanted to bring everything i...
Why are MySQL connections encrypted and what is the biggest benefit of this?
MySQL encrypts connections to protect your data and the biggest benefit from this is that nobody can corrupt it. If you move information over a network without encryption, you are endangering it, m...
Considering that there is a free version of MySQL, would you invest in one of the paid editions?
I may be considered a MySQL veteran since I have been using it since before Oracle bought it and created paid versions. So back in my day, it was all free, it was open-source and the best among sim...
What is one thing you would improve with MySQL?
One thing I would improve related to MySQL is not within the product itself, but with the guides to it. Before, when it was free, everyone was on their own, seeking tutorials and how-to videos onli...
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

AstraZeneca, Kienzle Automotive GmbH, Kodak Alaris, Unilever, Floatel International and Kongsberg Maritime, MyHero
Facebook, Tumblr, Scholastic, MTV Networks, Wikipedia, Verizon Wireless, Sage Group, Glassfish Open Message Queue, and RightNow Technologies.
Find out what your peers are saying about LocalDB vs. MySQL and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.