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Developer Tools · head to head

ConfigCat vs MySQL

ConfigCat logo

ConfigCat

Developer Tools

Feature flag service priced per flag and environment with unlimited seats and unlimited monthly active users

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
MySQL logo

MySQL

Web Development

The world's most popular open source database

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: ConfigCat there is no experimentation or statistical analysis engine, so teams wanting real A/B tests with significance testing must buy and integrate a separate analytics or experimentation product.; MySQL hot online backup is not in the free Community Server; MySQL Enterprise Backup is a paid Enterprise Edition component
  • They diverge on capability: ConfigCat covers Feature flags and configuration, MySQL covers ACID compliance.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ConfigCat and MySQL actually diverge.

Attributes where ConfigCat and MySQL differ
AttributeConfigCatMySQL
Pricing modelPer month by feature flag and environment countfreemium
PlatformsWeb, API, iOS, Android, Node.js, .NET, Java, Python, GoWindows, Macos, Linux, Unix
CategoryDeveloper ToolsWeb Development
FoundedUnknown1995

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 ConfigCat

  • Feature flags and configuration
  • Percentage rollouts
  • Targeting rules and segments
  • Unlimited seats
  • Global CDN delivery
  • Audit log
  • Public API and webhooks
  • SDKs across languages

Only in MySQL

  • ACID compliance
  • SQL support
  • Multi-version concurrency control
  • Replication
  • Partitioning
  • Stored procedures
  • Triggers
  • Views

What people use each for

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

ConfigCat

  • A consumer or mobile app with millions of users where per-MAU flag pricing would cost more than the flags are worthnot MySQL
  • A team that wants every engineer, product manager and support agent to have a login without paying per seatnot MySQL
  • Decoupling deployment from release with percentage rollouts and a kill switch, without buying an experimentation platformnot MySQL
  • A small team that needs ten flags permanently and can run indefinitely on the free tiernot MySQL

MySQL

  • Web application backendnot ConfigCat
  • E-commerce platformsnot ConfigCat
  • Content management systemsnot ConfigCat
  • Data warehousingnot ConfigCat
  • Business applicationsnot ConfigCat

Where each one falls short

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

ConfigCat

  • There is no experimentation or statistical analysis engine, so teams wanting real A/B tests with significance testing must buy and integrate a separate analytics or experimentation product.
  • Pricing by flag count punishes exactly the hygiene you want: the Pro tier caps at 100 flags, so teams that do not aggressively retire stale flags are pushed to the 325 dollar Smart tier for housekeeping reasons rather than growth.
  • The free tier allows only 2 environments, which does not cover the common development, staging and production split, so almost any real deployment starts on a paid plan.
  • It is a smaller vendor than the category incumbents, so enterprise procurement teams will find less depth in compliance attestations, contractual terms and reference architecture than LaunchDarkly offers.
  • Flag evaluation relies on SDK-side caching of a CDN-delivered config, which is fast but means propagation of a change is eventually consistent rather than instant, something to understand before relying on it as an emergency kill switch.

MySQL

  • Hot online backup is not in the free Community Server; MySQL Enterprise Backup is a paid Enterprise Edition component
  • Transparent Data Encryption, data masking and de-identification are Enterprise Edition only
  • MySQL Enterprise Firewall, which guards against SQL injection, and MySQL Enterprise Audit are both paid components
  • External authentication against PAM or Windows Active Directory requires MySQL Enterprise Authentication
  • The thread pool ships as MySQL Enterprise Scalability rather than in the community build

Pricing, plan by plan

ConfigCat

Free
  • Forever FreeFree
    • 10 feature flags
    • 2 environments and 2 products
    • 2 segments
  • Pro$110/month
    • 100 feature flags
    • 3 environments and 3 products
    • Unlimited seats and MAUs
  • Smart$325/month
    • Unlimited feature flags
    • Unlimited environments, products and segments
    • Unlimited seats and MAUs
  • Enterprise$900/month
    • Everything in Smart
    • Enterprise support and controls
    • Unlimited everything on flag counts

MySQL

Free
  • Community EditionFree
    • Open source license
    • Full SQL support
    • InnoDB storage engine
  • Standard Edition$2000/year
    • Commercial license
    • Oracle Premier Support
    • MySQL Enterprise backup
  • Enterprise Edition$5000/year
    • Advanced security
    • MySQL Enterprise Monitor
    • High Availability

Which should you pick?

Choose ConfigCat if

  • You need feature flags and configuration.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, API, iOS, Android, Node.js, .NET, Java, Python, Go.
  • You also want percentage rollouts.
ConfigCat review

Choose MySQL if

  • You need acid compliance.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, Macos, Linux, Unix.
  • You also want sql support.
MySQL review

Questions people ask

Is ConfigCat or MySQL better?
Neither clearly leads. ConfigCat starts at Free and MySQL at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ConfigCat or MySQL?
ConfigCat starts at Free and MySQL at Free.
Does ConfigCat or MySQL run on more platforms?
ConfigCat runs on Web, API, iOS, Android, Node.js, .NET, Java, Python, Go. MySQL runs on Windows, Macos, Linux, Unix.
Can I use ConfigCat for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is ConfigCat best used for?
ConfigCat is most often used for a consumer or mobile app with millions of users where per-mau flag pricing would cost more than the flags are worth, a team that wants every engineer, product manager and support agent to have a login without paying per seat, decoupling deployment from release with percentage rollouts and a kill switch, without buying an experimentation platform, a small team that needs ten flags permanently and can run indefinitely on the free tier. Of those, a consumer or mobile app with millions of users where per-mau flag pricing would cost more than the flags are worth and a team that wants every engineer, product manager and support agent to have a login without paying per seat are not what MySQL is typically brought in for.
What can ConfigCat do that MySQL cannot?
ConfigCat covers Feature flags and configuration, Percentage rollouts, Targeting rules and segments, Unlimited seats. MySQL covers ACID compliance, SQL support, Multi-version concurrency control, Replication.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ConfigCat: How is ConfigCat priced?

By feature flag, environment and product count. Seats, monthly active users and flag reads are unlimited on every plan.

MySQL: Does MySQL cost money?

MySQL is primarily open-source and free to use. Commercial editions and support services are available but pricing is not published on the main website.

Source
ConfigCat: Is the free tier usable?

For small projects yes, but at 10 flags and 2 environments it will not cover a dev, staging and production setup.

MySQL: How do I get MySQL pricing information?

For MySQL commercial editions and support pricing, customers can contact MySQL sales directly at +1-866-221-0634 or navigate to individual product pages.

Source
ConfigCat: Can it run A/B tests?

It can split traffic, but there is no statistics engine. You need a separate analytics tool to decide a winner.

ConfigCat: How fast does a flag change take effect?

SDKs poll and cache, so changes propagate on the polling interval rather than instantly.

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