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Spreadsheets · head to head

Apache Superset vs Timeplus

Apache Superset logo

Apache Superset

Spreadsheets

Modern data exploration and visualization platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Timeplus logo

Timeplus

Databases

Streaming SQL engine built on ClickHouse internals, shipping as one small binary

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Apache Superset no commercial pricing; open-source project; Timeplus proton, the free version, is single-node by design, so any requirement for high availability or horizontal scale forces the commercial licence; the open source edition is a trial in practical terms.
  • They diverge on capability: Apache Superset covers 40+ Visualizations, Timeplus covers Streaming SQL.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Apache Superset and Timeplus actually diverge.

Attributes where Apache Superset and Timeplus differ
AttributeApache SupersetTimeplus
Pricing modelopen-sourcePer month for cloud, quoted for self-hosted
PlatformsWeb, Self-hosted, DockerLinux, macOS, Docker, Kubernetes, Web
CategorySpreadsheetsDatabases
Founded1999Unknown

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

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 Apache Superset

  • 40+ Visualizations
  • SQL IDE
  • Semantic Layer
  • Caching
  • Security
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • Presto

Only in Timeplus

  • Streaming SQL
  • Unified streaming and historical
  • ClickHouse-based engine
  • Single binary deployment
  • External streams
  • Materialised views

What people use each for

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

Apache Superset

  • Self-service analyticsnot Timeplus
  • Data explorationnot Timeplus
  • Ad-hoc reportingnot Timeplus
  • Collaborative analysisnot Timeplus
  • Embedded analyticsnot Timeplus

Timeplus

  • Real-time alerting on Kafka topics where standing up a Flink cluster is more work than the use case justifiesnot Apache Superset
  • Fraud or anomaly detection that must join a live event stream against recent history in one querynot Apache Superset
  • Streaming ETL from Kafka or MySQL change data capture into ClickHouse without writing Javanot Apache Superset
  • A small data team that needs continuous aggregation but has no platform engineers to operate JVM infrastructurenot Apache Superset

Where each one falls short

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

Apache Superset

  • No commercial pricing; open-source project
  • Commercial hosting available via Preset.io (separate vendor)

Timeplus

  • Proton, the free version, is single-node by design, so any requirement for high availability or horizontal scale forces the commercial licence; the open source edition is a trial in practical terms.
  • It is a young project against Apache Flink’s decade of production history, so the hiring pool, the connector library and the body of known failure modes are all much smaller.
  • Inheriting ClickHouse internals also inherits ClickHouse constraints: memory-hungry queries, awkward updates and a SQL dialect that is not portable to other engines.
  • Exactly-once semantics and state recovery guarantees are less battle-tested than Flink checkpointing, which matters if the pipeline moves money.
  • Cloud pricing is by provisioned instance size rather than usage, so a bursty workload pays for peak capacity around the clock or has to be resized by hand.

Pricing, plan by plan

Apache Superset

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Full Features
    • Self-hosted
    • Community Support

Timeplus

Free
  • Timeplus ProtonFree
    • Apache 2.0 licence
    • Single node only
    • Full streaming SQL engine
  • Timeplus Cloud$199/month
    • One to thirty-two CPUs
    • 4 GB to 128 GB memory
    • From 250 GB SSD storage
  • Self-hosted or BYOC$undefined/year
    • Multi-node clustering
    • Kubernetes or bare metal
    • Customisable compute and storage

Which should you pick?

Choose Apache Superset if

  • You need 40+ visualizations.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted, Docker.
  • You also want sql ide.
Apache Superset review

Choose Timeplus if

  • You need streaming sql.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Docker, Kubernetes, Web.
  • You also want unified streaming and historical.
Timeplus review

Questions people ask

Is Apache Superset or Timeplus better?
Neither clearly leads. Apache Superset starts at Free and Timeplus at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Apache Superset or Timeplus?
Apache Superset starts at Free and Timeplus at Free.
Does Apache Superset or Timeplus run on more platforms?
Apache Superset runs on Web, Self-hosted, Docker. Timeplus runs on Linux, macOS, Docker, Kubernetes, Web.
Can I use Apache Superset for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Apache Superset best used for?
Apache Superset is most often used for self-service analytics, data exploration, ad-hoc reporting, collaborative analysis. Of those, self-service analytics and data exploration are not what Timeplus is typically brought in for.
What can Apache Superset do that Timeplus cannot?
Apache Superset covers 40+ Visualizations, SQL IDE, Semantic Layer, Caching. Timeplus covers Streaming SQL, Unified streaming and historical, ClickHouse-based engine, Single binary deployment.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Apache Superset: What does Apache Superset cost?

Apache Superset is open-source software available free under the Apache 2.0 license. There are no licensing costs, subscription fees, or per-seat charges for using Superset itself.

Source
Timeplus: Is Timeplus open source?

The core engine, Timeplus Proton, is Apache 2.0. Timeplus Enterprise and Cloud are commercial.

Apache Superset: Is there a paid version of Apache Superset?

Apache Superset itself is free and open-source. Preset.io offers commercial Superset hosting with premium support, but this is a separate vendor service, not an official paid tier of Superset.

Source
Timeplus: What is the difference from Flink?

Timeplus is one binary with SQL as the only interface; Flink is a JVM cluster with a Java and SQL API and far more operational surface.

Timeplus: Can Proton run in production?

It can, but it is single-node only, so there is no high availability without the commercial edition.

Timeplus: How much is the cloud?

From 199 US dollars a month, sized by CPU and memory, with a fourteen day trial.

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