Software · head to head
Cassandra vs Firebase Realtime Database
Cassandra
Software
Manage massive amounts of data with linear scalability
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Firebase Realtime Database
Software
Store and sync data in real-time across all clients
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Cassandra no support for joins across tables; Firebase Realtime Database the no-cost Spark plan caps storage at 1 GB, downloads at 10 GB per month and simultaneous connections at 100
- They diverge on capability: Cassandra covers Linear Scalability, Firebase Realtime Database covers Real-time Sync.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Cassandra and Firebase Realtime Database actually diverge.
| Attribute | Cassandra | Firebase Realtime Database |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Unknown | freemium |
| Platforms | Linux, macOS, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes | Web, Ios, Android |
| Founded | 2008 | 2011 |
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 Cassandra
- Linear Scalability
- Fault Tolerance
- Multi-datacenter Replication
- Tunable Consistency
- CQL Query Language
- Distributed Architecture
- No Single Point of Failure
- DataStax
Only in Firebase Realtime Database
- Real-time Sync
- Offline Support
- JSON Storage
- Security Rules
- Data Validation
- Multi-platform SDKs
- Scalable
- Firebase Auth
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Cassandra
- Real-time applicationsnot Firebase Realtime Database
- Content managementnot Firebase Realtime Database
- User profilesnot Firebase Realtime Database
- Mobile backendsnot Firebase Realtime Database
- Cachingnot Firebase Realtime Database
Firebase Realtime Database
- Syncing JSON application state between clients in real timenot Cassandra
- Backing mobile and web apps with offline capable data storagenot Cassandra
- Prototyping realtime features such as presence and chatnot 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
Firebase Realtime Database
- The no-cost Spark plan caps storage at 1 GB, downloads at 10 GB per month and simultaneous connections at 100
- The Spark plan does not support multiple databases in a project
- Even on the paid Blaze plan simultaneous connections are capped at 200,000 per database
- Billing is by data transferred out at $1 per GB plus $5 per GB stored, so chatty clients cost more than the data volume suggests
Pricing, plan by plan
Cassandra
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Cassandra review.
Firebase Realtime Database
Free- SparkFree
- 1GB storage
- 10GB/month download
- 100 simultaneous connections
- BlazeFree
- Pay as you go
- Unlimited storage
- Unlimited connections
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.
Choose Firebase Realtime Database if
- You need real-time sync.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want offline support.
Questions people ask
- Is Cassandra or Firebase Realtime Database better?
- Neither clearly leads. Cassandra starts at Free and Firebase Realtime Database at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Cassandra or Firebase Realtime Database?
- Cassandra starts at Free and Firebase Realtime Database at Free.
- Does Cassandra or Firebase Realtime Database run on more platforms?
- Cassandra runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, Docker, Kubernetes. Firebase Realtime Database runs on Web, Ios, Android.
- 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 Firebase Realtime Database is typically brought in for.
- What can Cassandra do that Firebase Realtime Database cannot?
- Cassandra covers Linear Scalability, Fault Tolerance, Multi-datacenter Replication, Tunable Consistency. Firebase Realtime Database covers Real-time Sync, Offline Support, JSON Storage, Security Rules.
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.
SourceCassandra: 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.
SourceCassandra: 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.
SourceCassandra: 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.
SourceCassandra: 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