Softwr

Software · head to head

Cockroach Labs vs Qdrant

Cockroach Labs logo

Cockroach Labs

Software

The cloud-native distributed SQL database

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Qdrant logo

Qdrant

Software

High-performance vector database for similarity search and embedding-based retrieval

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Cockroach Labs basic and Standard tiers limited to AWS and GCP (select regions only); Qdrant free tier extremely limited (0.5 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 4GB disk); suitable only for experiments

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cockroach Labs and Qdrant actually diverge.

Attributes where Cockroach Labs and Qdrant differ
AttributeCockroach LabsQdrant
PlatformsAWS, GCP, AzureCloud (AWS, GCP, Azure), Kubernetes, Self-hosted, Edge (beta), Serverless (coming)
Founded2015Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), 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 Cockroach Labs

  • Distributed SQL
  • Automatic Sharding
  • Multi-region Replication
  • Geo-partitioning
  • ACID Transactions
  • Horizontal Scaling
  • Survivability
  • PostgreSQL Compatibility

Only in Qdrant

Nothing recorded that Cockroach Labs does not also cover.

What people use each for

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

Cockroach Labs

  • Distributed SQL database for scalable applicationsnot Qdrant
  • Multi-region deployment and failovernot Qdrant

Qdrant

  • Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) backends for LLM applicationsnot Cockroach Labs
  • Semantic search across large document corporanot Cockroach Labs
  • Multimodal retrieval (text, images, video) for recommendation systemsnot Cockroach Labs
  • Similarity-based product or content recommendationsnot Cockroach Labs
  • Real-time vector indexing for streaming embedding datanot Cockroach Labs

Where each one falls short

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

Cockroach Labs

  • Basic and Standard tiers limited to AWS and GCP (select regions only)
  • Azure support restricted to Advanced tier only
  • Basic tier limited to 50 million RUs and 10 GiB storage per month
  • Advanced tier starts at $0.60/hour for 4 vCPUs minimum
  • 3 TiB maximum storage on Basic and Standard tiers, 10 TiB per node on Advanced

Qdrant

  • Free tier extremely limited (0.5 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 4GB disk); suitable only for experiments
  • Standard and Premium pricing usage-based; specific costs not published; requires calculator or quote
  • Requires understanding of embeddings and vector search concepts; not suitable for SQL-only teams
  • Early-stage serverless offering (coming soon) suggests maturity gaps in that deployment model

Pricing, plan by plan

Cockroach Labs

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Cockroach Labs review.

Qdrant

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Single-node cluster
    • 0.5 vCPU
    • 1GB RAM
  • Standard$null/usage-based
    • Dedicated resources
    • Flexible scaling
    • High availability
  • Premium$null/minimum spend
    • SSO and SAML
    • Private VPC links
    • 99.9% uptime SLA

Which should you pick?

Choose Cockroach Labs if

  • You need distributed sql.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on AWS, GCP, Azure.
  • You also want automatic sharding.
Cockroach Labs review

Choose Qdrant if

  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Cloud (AWS, GCP, Azure), Kubernetes, Self-hosted, Edge (beta), Serverless (coming).
Qdrant review

Questions people ask

Is Cockroach Labs or Qdrant better?
Neither clearly leads. Cockroach Labs starts at Free and Qdrant at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cockroach Labs or Qdrant?
Cockroach Labs starts at Free and Qdrant at Free.
Does Cockroach Labs or Qdrant run on more platforms?
Cockroach Labs runs on AWS, GCP, Azure. Qdrant runs on Cloud (AWS, GCP, Azure), Kubernetes, Self-hosted, Edge (beta), Serverless (coming).
Can I use Cockroach Labs for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Cockroach Labs best used for?
Cockroach Labs is most often used for distributed sql database for scalable applications, multi-region deployment and failover. Of those, distributed sql database for scalable applications and multi-region deployment and failover are not what Qdrant is typically brought in for.
What can Cockroach Labs do that Qdrant cannot?
Cockroach Labs covers Distributed SQL, Automatic Sharding, Multi-region Replication, Geo-partitioning.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Cockroach Labs

More on Qdrant

Keep looking

Other head to heads