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Software · head to head

Amazon Aurora vs FaunaDB

Amazon Aurora logo

Amazon Aurora

Software

MySQL and PostgreSQL-compatible relational database built for the cloud

From
Free
Rated
-
FaunaDB logo

FaunaDB

Software

The distributed serverless database for modern applications

From
Free
Rated
-

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Amazon Aurora aurora requires AWS ecosystem knowledge and integration with other AWS services; FaunaDB the Internet Archive's capture of FaunaDB's homepage on 5 January 2019 confirmed a free 'Try Cloud' tier alongside a self-hosted download, with a separate Pricing page linked but not itself retrievable from the archive within two attempts.
  • They diverge on capability: Amazon Aurora covers MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible, FaunaDB covers ACID Transactions.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Amazon Aurora and FaunaDB differ
AttributeAmazon AuroraFaunaDB
Pricing modelusage-basedfreemium
PlatformsAWS CloudWeb
Founded20062012

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

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 FaunaDB

  • ACID Transactions
  • Document-relational Model
  • GraphQL API
  • Global Distribution
  • Temporal Queries
  • Multi-tenancy
  • Serverless
  • GraphQL

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Amazon Aurora

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

FaunaDB

  • Serverless applicationsnot Amazon Aurora
  • Rapid prototypingnot Amazon Aurora
  • Mobile backendsnot Amazon Aurora
  • JAMstacknot Amazon Aurora
  • Microservicesnot 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

FaunaDB

  • The Internet Archive's capture of FaunaDB's homepage on 5 January 2019 confirmed a free 'Try Cloud' tier alongside a self-hosted download, with a separate Pricing page linked but not itself retrievable from the archive within two attempts.

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

FaunaDB

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 100K read ops
    • 50K write ops
    • 1GB storage
  • Pro$25/month
    • Pay per use
    • Priority support
    • Advanced features

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.

Choose FaunaDB if

  • You need acid transactions.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want document-relational model.

Questions people ask

Is Amazon Aurora or FaunaDB better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon Aurora starts at Free and FaunaDB at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon Aurora or FaunaDB?
Amazon Aurora starts at Free and FaunaDB at Free.
Does Amazon Aurora or FaunaDB run on more platforms?
Amazon Aurora runs on AWS Cloud. FaunaDB runs on Web.
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 FaunaDB is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon Aurora do that FaunaDB cannot?
Amazon Aurora covers MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible, 5x MySQL Performance, Auto-scaling Storage, Global Database. FaunaDB covers ACID Transactions, Document-relational Model, GraphQL API, Global Distribution. Both handle Web support.

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
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
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

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