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Databases · head to head

Cassandra vs Dragonfly

Cassandra logo

Cassandra

Databases

Manage massive amounts of data with linear scalability

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: Cassandra no support for joins across tables; Dragonfly flex tier starting at $36/month may be underpriced, requiring careful usage monitoring
  • They diverge on capability: Cassandra covers Linear Scalability, Dragonfly covers Redis API compatibility.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cassandra and Dragonfly actually diverge.

Attributes where Cassandra and Dragonfly differ
AttributeCassandraDragonfly
Pricing modelUnknownUsage-based cloud pricing with flexible tiers
PlatformsLinux, macOS, Windows, Docker, KubernetesCloud, AWS, GCP, Azure
Founded2008Unknown

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 Cassandra

  • Linear Scalability
  • Fault Tolerance
  • Multi-datacenter Replication
  • Tunable Consistency
  • CQL Query Language
  • Distributed Architecture
  • No Single Point of Failure
  • DataStax

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.

Cassandra

  • Real-time applicationsnot Dragonfly
  • Content managementnot Dragonfly
  • User profilesnot Dragonfly
  • Mobile backendsnot Dragonfly
  • Cachingnot Dragonfly

Dragonfly

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

Where each one falls short

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

Cassandra

  • No support for joins across tables
  • No ACID transactions across multiple rows
  • Data model must be designed around query patterns upfront, making schema evolution difficult
  • Partition key misconfigurations can cause uneven data distribution and hotspots that degrade performance

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

Cassandra

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Cassandra review.

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 Cassandra if

  • You need linear scalability.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes.
  • You also want fault tolerance.
Cassandra 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 Cassandra or Dragonfly better?
Neither clearly leads. Cassandra 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, Cassandra or Dragonfly?
Cassandra starts at Free and Dragonfly at Free.
Does Cassandra or Dragonfly run on more platforms?
Cassandra runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes. Dragonfly runs on Cloud, AWS, GCP, Azure.
Can I use Cassandra for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Cassandra best used for?
Cassandra is most often used for real-time applications, content management, user profiles, mobile backends. Of those, real-time applications and content management are not what Dragonfly is typically brought in for.
What can Cassandra do that Dragonfly cannot?
Cassandra covers Linear Scalability, Fault Tolerance, Multi-datacenter Replication, Tunable Consistency. Dragonfly covers Redis API compatibility, Thread-per-core architecture, High-performance caching, Memory efficiency.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cassandra: Does Cassandra support joins between tables?

No. Cassandra does not support joins or foreign keys. The data model requires denormalization, meaning data must be duplicated across tables to support different query patterns.

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
Cassandra: Does Cassandra offer ACID transactions?

No. Cassandra provides only row-level atomicity and isolation, not full ACID transactions across multiple rows or tables. It uses lightweight transactions via Paxos for per-row compare-and-set operations.

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
Cassandra: What programming languages can connect to Cassandra?

Cassandra supports official drivers for multiple languages including Python, Java, Node.js, and Go, allowing applications to communicate via the native Cassandra protocol.

Source
Cassandra: Can I deploy Cassandra in the cloud?

Yes. Cassandra can run on any cloud platform (AWS, Google Cloud, Azure) via Docker, virtual machines, or managed services like DataStax Astra DB, which provides a fully managed DBaaS option.

Source
Cassandra: Does Cassandra have a free option?

The open source Apache Cassandra is free. DataStax also offers Astra DB with a free tier providing up to 25GB storage and 25 million read/write operations per month.

Source
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