Softwr

Databases · head to head

Amazon Aurora vs Dragonfly

Amazon Aurora logo

Amazon Aurora

Databases

MySQL and PostgreSQL-compatible relational database built for the cloud

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Dragonfly logo

Dragonfly

Databases

High-performance Redis-compatible in-memory datastore with 25x better throughput

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Amazon Aurora aurora requires AWS ecosystem knowledge and integration with other AWS services; Dragonfly flex tier starting at $36/month may be underpriced, requiring careful usage monitoring
  • They diverge on capability: Amazon Aurora covers MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible, Dragonfly covers Redis API compatibility.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amazon Aurora and Dragonfly actually diverge.

Attributes where Amazon Aurora and Dragonfly differ
AttributeAmazon AuroraDragonfly
Pricing modelusage-basedUsage-based cloud pricing with flexible tiers
PlatformsAWS CloudCloud, AWS, GCP, Azure
Founded2006Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Databases).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Amazon Aurora

  • MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible
  • 5x MySQL Performance
  • Auto-scaling Storage
  • Global Database
  • Serverless v2
  • Multi-master
  • Fault Tolerant
  • AWS Lambda

Only in Dragonfly

  • Redis API compatibility
  • Thread-per-core architecture
  • High-performance caching
  • Memory efficiency
  • Real-time leaderboards
  • Message queue support
  • ML feature serving
  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Amazon Aurora

  • Transaction processingnot Dragonfly
  • Data storagenot Dragonfly
  • Application backendnot Dragonfly
  • Reportingnot Dragonfly
  • Data analyticsnot Dragonfly

Dragonfly

  • High-throughput caching for web applicationsnot Amazon Aurora
  • Real-time leaderboards and rankingsnot Amazon Aurora
  • Message queue and event processingnot Amazon Aurora
  • ML model feature serving at millisecond latenciesnot Amazon Aurora
  • Gaming session state and player data storagenot Amazon Aurora

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Amazon Aurora

  • Aurora requires AWS ecosystem knowledge and integration with other AWS services
  • Pricing can become expensive with high-traffic applications using many read replicas
  • Limited support for non-relational data types compared to NoSQL alternatives

Dragonfly

  • Flex tier starting at $36/month may be underpriced, requiring careful usage monitoring
  • Business tier $2,000/month represents significant jump in cost
  • Limited to in-memory storage, not suitable for cold data or archival
  • Bring-your-own-cloud requirement on Business tier adds operational complexity
  • Cloud availability dependent on AWS/GCP/Azure uptime

Pricing, plan by plan

Amazon Aurora

Free
  • Serverless v2$0.12/hour
    • Auto-scaling
    • Pay per ACU
    • Instant scaling
  • Provisioned$29/month
    • Dedicated instances
    • Predictable performance
    • Reserved capacity

Dragonfly

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • 100 cloud credits for new signups
    • Equivalent to free trial
  • Business$2000/month
    • Starting price for enterprise offering
    • Bring-your-own-cloud deployment
    • Auto-scaling with custom SLAs
  • Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • Custom pricing
    • Any-cloud deployment
    • Custom instances and sizing

Which should you pick?

Choose Amazon Aurora if

  • You need mysql/postgresql compatible.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on AWS Cloud.
  • You also want 5x mysql performance.
Amazon Aurora review

Choose Dragonfly if

  • You need redis api compatibility.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Cloud, AWS, GCP, Azure.
  • You also want thread-per-core architecture.
Dragonfly review

Questions people ask

Is Amazon Aurora or Dragonfly better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon Aurora starts at Free and Dragonfly at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon Aurora or Dragonfly?
Amazon Aurora starts at Free and Dragonfly at Free.
Does Amazon Aurora or Dragonfly run on more platforms?
Amazon Aurora runs on AWS Cloud. Dragonfly runs on Cloud, AWS, GCP, Azure.
Can I use Amazon Aurora for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Amazon Aurora best used for?
Amazon Aurora is most often used for transaction processing, data storage, application backend, reporting. Of those, transaction processing and data storage are not what Dragonfly is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon Aurora do that Dragonfly cannot?
Amazon Aurora covers MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible, 5x MySQL Performance, Auto-scaling Storage, Global Database. Dragonfly covers Redis API compatibility, Thread-per-core architecture, High-performance caching, Memory efficiency.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon Aurora: Is Amazon Aurora compatible with MySQL and PostgreSQL?

Yes, Amazon Aurora offers MySQL and PostgreSQL compatibility with full compatibility to their open-source counterparts, allowing you to migrate existing databases with standard tools.

Source
Dragonfly: How much faster is Dragonfly than Redis?

Dragonfly achieves 3.97M queries per second compared to Redis's 718K QPS, representing a 25x improvement. Memory efficiency is also 30% better.

Source
Amazon Aurora: What uptime SLA does Amazon Aurora provide?

Aurora is designed for up to 99.99% single-region uptime and 99.999% multi-region uptime with automatic failover.

Source
Dragonfly: Can I migrate from Redis to Dragonfly without code changes?

Yes. Dragonfly maintains full API compatibility with Redis and Memcached, allowing drop-in replacement with minimal to no code modifications.

Source
Amazon Aurora: How much does Amazon Aurora cost?

Aurora uses serverless, usage-based pricing where you pay only for consumed capacity. Typical pricing ranges from $50-70 per month for minimal setups to $400-600 per month for small production clusters.

Source
Amazon Aurora: Can Amazon Aurora scale automatically?

Yes, Aurora automatically scales to match workload demands without performance degradation, supporting both read and write scaling.

Source
Amazon Aurora: How many read replicas does Aurora support?

Aurora supports up to 15 low-latency read replicas for distributing read traffic across your application.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Amazon Aurora

More on Dragonfly

Keep looking

Other head to heads