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ClickHouse vs FaunaDB

ClickHouse logo

ClickHouse

Software

Fast open-source column-oriented database for real-time analytics

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
FaunaDB logo

FaunaDB

Software

The distributed serverless database for modern applications

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: ClickHouse limited multi-row atomic transactions and expensive UPDATE/DELETE operations unsuitable for transactional systems; 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: ClickHouse covers Column-oriented Storage, FaunaDB covers ACID Transactions.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ClickHouse and FaunaDB actually diverge.

Attributes where ClickHouse and FaunaDB differ
AttributeClickHouseFaunaDB
Pricing modelUnknownfreemium
PlatformsLinux, macOS, Windows (via Docker)Web
Founded20212012

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 ClickHouse

  • Column-oriented Storage
  • Real-time Analytics
  • SQL Support
  • Linear Scalability
  • Data Compression
  • Vectorized Query Execution
  • Approximate Calculations
  • Kafka

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.

ClickHouse

  • Business intelligencenot FaunaDB
  • Data warehousingnot FaunaDB
  • Real-time analyticsnot FaunaDB
  • Reportingnot FaunaDB
  • Machine learningnot FaunaDB

FaunaDB

  • Serverless applicationsnot ClickHouse
  • Rapid prototypingnot ClickHouse
  • Mobile backendsnot ClickHouse
  • JAMstacknot ClickHouse
  • Microservicesnot ClickHouse

Where each one falls short

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

ClickHouse

  • Limited multi-row atomic transactions and expensive UPDATE/DELETE operations unsuitable for transactional systems
  • Requires upfront schema design discipline with MergeTree engine choices and sort/partition keys
  • Experimental vector search support, not production-ready for vector operations
  • Different query syntax from standard SQL requiring migration planning
  • Limited JOIN capabilities compared to traditional relational databases
  • Migration complexity with 2-4 weeks estimated for data type mapping and query translation

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

ClickHouse

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the ClickHouse review.

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 ClickHouse if

  • You need column-oriented storage.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows (via Docker).
  • You also want real-time analytics.
ClickHouse review

Choose FaunaDB if

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

Questions people ask

Is ClickHouse or FaunaDB better?
Neither clearly leads. ClickHouse 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, ClickHouse or FaunaDB?
ClickHouse starts at Free and FaunaDB at Free.
Does ClickHouse or FaunaDB run on more platforms?
ClickHouse runs on Linux, macOS, Windows (via Docker). FaunaDB runs on Web.
Can I use ClickHouse for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is ClickHouse best used for?
ClickHouse is most often used for business intelligence, data warehousing, real-time analytics, reporting. Of those, business intelligence and data warehousing are not what FaunaDB is typically brought in for.
What can ClickHouse do that FaunaDB cannot?
ClickHouse covers Column-oriented Storage, Real-time Analytics, SQL Support, Linear Scalability. FaunaDB covers ACID Transactions, Document-relational Model, GraphQL API, Global Distribution. Both handle Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ClickHouse: What is ClickHouse best used for?

ClickHouse is optimized for analytical workloads on large datasets. It excels at fast aggregations and queries, being 10-100x faster than PostgreSQL on large aggregations.

Source
ClickHouse: Does ClickHouse support transactions?

ClickHouse has limited transaction support and expensive UPDATE/DELETE operations. It is not suitable for transactional workloads requiring strict ACID guarantees.

Source
ClickHouse: How does ClickHouse compare to PostgreSQL?

ClickHouse is 10-100x faster for analytics but PostgreSQL is better for transactional workloads. Many teams use both: PostgreSQL for writes via MaterializedPostgreSQL replication to ClickHouse for analytics.

Source
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Related pages

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