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Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head

Heroku vs MariaDB

Heroku logo

Heroku

Cloud & Infrastructure

Cloud Application Platform

From
$7/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
MariaDB logo

MariaDB

Database & Data Management

The open source relational database for the enterprise

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only MariaDB has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Heroku there is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month; MariaDB jSON support using text fields rather than native binary type; lacks MySQL's JSON syntax and functions
  • They diverge on capability: Heroku covers Git-based deployment, MariaDB covers MySQL Compatibility.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Heroku and MariaDB actually diverge.

Attributes where Heroku and MariaDB differ
AttributeHerokuMariaDB
Starting price$7/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Api, WorkersLinux, Unix, Windows, macOS
CategoryCloud & InfrastructureDatabase & Data Management
Founded20072009

Identical on both: 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 Heroku

  • Git-based deployment
  • Buildpacks
  • Dynos (containers)
  • Add-ons marketplace
  • Postgres database
  • Environment variables
  • Logging
  • API

Only in MariaDB

  • MySQL Compatibility
  • Aria Storage Engine
  • ColumnStore
  • Galera Cluster
  • MaxScale
  • Spider Engine
  • Temporal Tables
  • phpMyAdmin

What people use each for

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

Heroku

  • Deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administrationnot MariaDB
  • Running managed Postgres, Redis and Kafka as attached data servicesnot MariaDB
  • Isolated production environments in a Private Space for regulated workloadsnot MariaDB

MariaDB

  • Transaction processingnot Heroku
  • Data storagenot Heroku
  • Application backendnot Heroku
  • Reportingnot Heroku
  • Data analyticsnot Heroku

Where each one falls short

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

Heroku

  • There is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month
  • Eco dynos sleep after 30 minutes of inactivity, are restricted to personal accounts and allow only 2 process types
  • Free SSL and 10 process types start at the Basic dyno at $7 per month
  • Private and Shield dyno types require a Private Space, which is billed on top of the dynos
  • Private Space dynos start at $250 per month for Private-M and $500 per month for Private-L
  • Dyno prices are per dyno per month, so an app with several process types multiplies the bill

MariaDB

  • JSON support using text fields rather than native binary type; lacks MySQL's JSON syntax and functions
  • Galera Cluster maximum performance limited to the slowest node in cluster
  • InnoDB tables limited to 1,017 columns and 64 secondary indexes
  • Transaction size limits in Galera (128K rows and 2GB by default)
  • Less strict SQL type checking than PostgreSQL; allows implicit conversions

Pricing, plan by plan

Heroku

$7/month
  • Hobby$7/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • Shared CPU
    • 1 web dyno
  • Standard$50/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • Dedicated CPU
    • Automatic scaling

MariaDB

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the MariaDB review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Heroku if

  • You need git-based deployment.
  • You work on Web, Api, Workers.
  • You also want buildpacks.
Heroku review

Choose MariaDB if

  • You need mysql compatibility.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Unix, Windows, macOS.
  • You also want aria storage engine.
MariaDB review

Questions people ask

Is Heroku or MariaDB better?
Neither clearly leads. Heroku starts at $7/month and MariaDB at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Heroku or MariaDB?
MariaDB has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $7/month for Heroku and Free for MariaDB.
Does Heroku or MariaDB run on more platforms?
Heroku runs on Web, Api, Workers. MariaDB runs on Linux, Unix, Windows, macOS.
Can I use MariaDB for free?
Yes. MariaDB has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Heroku starts at $7/month.
What is Heroku best used for?
Heroku is most often used for deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administration, running managed postgres, redis and kafka as attached data services, isolated production environments in a private space for regulated workloads. Of those, deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administration and running managed postgres, redis and kafka as attached data services are not what MariaDB is typically brought in for.
What can Heroku do that MariaDB cannot?
Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Buildpacks, Dynos (containers), Add-ons marketplace. MariaDB covers MySQL Compatibility, Aria Storage Engine, ColumnStore, Galera Cluster.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

MariaDB: Is MariaDB completely free and open source?

Yes. MariaDB Server is licensed under GPLv2 and guaranteed to remain perpetually free and open source, independent of any commercial entities.

Source
MariaDB: Is MariaDB backward compatible with MySQL?

Yes. MariaDB was designed as a drop-in replacement for MySQL. Every application, driver, and configuration that worked with MySQL works with MariaDB without code changes.

Source
MariaDB: What are the storage engine options in MariaDB?

MariaDB supports multiple storage engines including InnoDB (transactional, default), Aria (crash-safe, good for read-heavy workloads), and MyISAM. The Aria engine is faster than InnoDB for certain read-heavy queries and full table scans.

Source
MariaDB: How much does MariaDB cost?

MariaDB Community Server is completely free to download and use. MariaDB offers paid enterprise support and managed cloud services for organizations needing professional support.

Source
MariaDB: Does MariaDB support native JSON storage?

MariaDB stores JSON using text fields (the JSON type is an alias for LONGTEXT), not as a native binary type like MySQL does. JSON support exists but is less sophisticated than MySQL's JSON functions and syntax.

Source
MariaDB: What scaling options does MariaDB provide?

MariaDB supports both scaling up (more cores, memory, storage) and scaling out (read replication, Galera Cluster with multi-node replication). However, Galera Cluster performance cannot exceed the slowest node in the cluster.

Source
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