Software · head to head
BigQuery vs Firebolt
BigQuery
Software
Serverless, highly scalable enterprise data warehouse
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Firebolt
Software
Sub-second analytics at cloud data warehouse scale
- From
- $1.84/hour
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only BigQuery has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: BigQuery query costs can become substantial for organizations with high query volumes; Firebolt compute billed per second on Arm-based processors; small instances still incur measurable costs during idle periods despite auto-stop
- They diverge on capability: BigQuery covers Serverless Architecture, Firebolt covers Sub-second Queries.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which BigQuery and Firebolt actually diverge.
Identical on both: pricing model (usage-based), 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 BigQuery
- Serverless Architecture
- Petabyte Scale
- Real-time Analytics
- Machine Learning
- Geospatial Analysis
- Streaming Ingestion
- Standard SQL
- Data Studio
Only in Firebolt
- Sub-second Queries
- Sparse Indexes
- Data Pruning
- Decoupled Storage/Compute
- SQL Support
- Semi-structured Data
- Workload Isolation
- Airflow
Both cover
- Looker
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
BigQuery
- Business intelligencenot Firebolt
- Data warehousingnot Firebolt
- Real-time analyticsnot Firebolt
- Reportingnot Firebolt
- Machine learningnot Firebolt
Firebolt
- Data analytics teams running gigabyte-to-petabyte datasets with sub-second query requirementsnot BigQuery
- Real-time business intelligence platforms requiring ACID transactions and snapshot isolationnot BigQuery
- Applications needing vector search on analytical data for similarity queriesnot BigQuery
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
BigQuery
- Query costs can become substantial for organizations with high query volumes
- Data egress from Google Cloud incurs additional charges
Firebolt
- Compute billed per second on Arm-based processors; small instances still incur measurable costs during idle periods despite auto-stop
- Storage pass-through charged at $0.0264/GB monthly on compressed data; uncompressed storage could exceed this
- Azure deployment currently in Preview status; production recommendations unclear
- Vector indexes limited to float arrays; other data types require alternative indexing strategies
- Free tier credits ($200) limited; no perpetual free tier for production use
Pricing, plan by plan
BigQuery
Free- Free TierFree
- 1TB queries/month
- 10GB storage/month
- Standard support
- On-demand$6.25/TB
- Pay per query
- Pay per storage
- All features
Firebolt
$1.84/hourNo published plan breakdown. See the Firebolt review.
Which should you pick?
Choose BigQuery if
- You need serverless architecture.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Cloud API.
- You also want petabyte scale.
Choose Firebolt if
- You need sub-second queries.
- You work on Cloud (AWS, GCP, Azure preview), Docker, Kubernetes.
- You also want sparse indexes.
Questions people ask
- Is BigQuery or Firebolt better?
- Neither clearly leads. BigQuery starts at Free and Firebolt at $1.84/hour, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, BigQuery or Firebolt?
- BigQuery has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for BigQuery and $1.84/hour for Firebolt.
- Does BigQuery or Firebolt run on more platforms?
- BigQuery runs on Web, Cloud API. Firebolt runs on Cloud (AWS, GCP, Azure preview), Docker, Kubernetes.
- Can I use BigQuery for free?
- Yes. BigQuery has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Firebolt starts at $1.84/hour.
- What is BigQuery best used for?
- BigQuery is most often used for business intelligence, data warehousing, real-time analytics, reporting. Of those, business intelligence and data warehousing are not what Firebolt is typically brought in for.
- What can BigQuery do that Firebolt cannot?
- BigQuery covers Serverless Architecture, Petabyte Scale, Real-time Analytics, Machine Learning. Firebolt covers Sub-second Queries, Sparse Indexes, Data Pruning, Decoupled Storage/Compute. Both handle Looker, Web support.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
BigQuery: How is BigQuery priced?
BigQuery charges $5 per terabyte of data processed in on-demand queries. Storage is billed separately: active storage is charged per GB, and data inactive for 90+ days moves to long-term storage at reduced rates.
SourceBigQuery: What is BigQuery's architecture?
BigQuery separates compute and storage, using Google's Colossus for distributed storage and Borg for computation, allowing independent scaling of each.
Source