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InfluxDB vs PlanetScale

InfluxDB logo

InfluxDB

Software

Purpose-built time series database for metrics and events

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
PlanetScale logo

PlanetScale

Software

The MySQL-compatible serverless database

From
$15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only InfluxDB has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: InfluxDB high-cardinality data causes memory pressure and performance degradation; PlanetScale eBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • They diverge on capability: InfluxDB covers Time-series Storage, PlanetScale covers Database Branching.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which InfluxDB and PlanetScale actually diverge.

Attributes where InfluxDB and PlanetScale differ
AttributeInfluxDBPlanetScale
Starting priceFree$15/month
Pricing modelUnknownsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsCloud, Docker, Linux, macOS, Windows, AWS, Google Cloud, AzureCloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure)
Founded20122018

Identical on both: 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 InfluxDB

  • Time-series Storage
  • Flux Query Language
  • High Write Throughput
  • Data Compression
  • Retention Policies
  • Continuous Queries
  • Built-in Dashboards
  • Telegraf

Only in PlanetScale

  • Database Branching
  • Non-blocking Schema Changes
  • Insights
  • Horizontal Scaling
  • Connection Pooling
  • Query Caching
  • Automatic Backups
  • Global Replication

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

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

InfluxDB

  • Monitoringnot PlanetScale
  • IoT datanot PlanetScale
  • Financial datanot PlanetScale
  • Log analyticsnot PlanetScale
  • Observabilitynot PlanetScale

PlanetScale

  • MySQL database hosting with automatic failover and replicationnot InfluxDB
  • Vitess-based sharding for horizontal scaling across large datasetsnot InfluxDB
  • Cloud provider flexibility across AWS, GCP, Azure with 60+ regionsnot InfluxDB
  • Cost-effective database clusters using ARM64 architecture optionsnot InfluxDB

Where each one falls short

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

InfluxDB

  • High-cardinality data causes memory pressure and performance degradation
  • No support for joins or transactions like relational databases
  • Queries limited to 72-hour window in InfluxDB 3 OSS Core
  • Clustering and authentication features absent from community version

PlanetScale

  • EBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead
  • EBS Non-HA single-node option lacks redundancy and automatic failover
  • Pricing varies by cloud provider and region, requiring queries for specific rates
  • ARM64 architecture only available on EBS tier, not Metal deployments

Pricing, plan by plan

InfluxDB

Free
  • Cloud Serverless FreeFree
    • 5 MB writes per 5 minutes
    • 300 MB queries per 5 minutes
    • 30 day retention
  • Cloud Serverless Usage-Based$null/mo
    • 0.0025 USD per MB ingested
    • 0.012 USD per 100 queries
    • 0.002 USD per GB-hour storage

PlanetScale

$15/month

No published plan breakdown. See the PlanetScale review.

Which should you pick?

Choose InfluxDB if

  • You need time-series storage.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Cloud, Docker, Linux, macOS, Windows, AWS, Google Cloud, Azure.
  • You also want flux query language.
InfluxDB review

Choose PlanetScale if

  • You need database branching.
  • You work on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
  • You also want non-blocking schema changes.
PlanetScale review

Questions people ask

Is InfluxDB or PlanetScale better?
Neither clearly leads. InfluxDB starts at Free and PlanetScale at $15/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, InfluxDB or PlanetScale?
InfluxDB has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for InfluxDB and $15/month for PlanetScale.
Does InfluxDB or PlanetScale run on more platforms?
InfluxDB runs on Cloud, Docker, Linux, macOS, Windows, AWS, Google Cloud, Azure. PlanetScale runs on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure).
Can I use InfluxDB for free?
Yes. InfluxDB has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. PlanetScale starts at $15/month.
What is InfluxDB best used for?
InfluxDB is most often used for monitoring, iot data, financial data, log analytics. Of those, monitoring and iot data are not what PlanetScale is typically brought in for.
What can InfluxDB do that PlanetScale cannot?
InfluxDB covers Time-series Storage, Flux Query Language, High Write Throughput, Data Compression. PlanetScale covers Database Branching, Non-blocking Schema Changes, Insights, Horizontal Scaling. Both handle Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

InfluxDB: Is there a free tier and what are the limits?

InfluxDB 3 Core OSS is free forever for local development and prototyping. Cloud Serverless free tier includes 5 MB writes per 5 minutes, 300 MB queries per 5 minutes, 30 day retention, and 2 databases.

Source
InfluxDB: Can I self-host InfluxDB?

Yes, InfluxDB 3 Core is fully open source and can be self-hosted with no license required. InfluxDB 3 Enterprise is self-managed and includes a 30-day free trial.

Source
InfluxDB: What are the series cardinality limitations?

InfluxDB is sensitive to high-cardinality data. High cardinality increases RAM usage and can trigger out-of-memory errors, making it unsuitable for some workloads with many unique tag combinations.

Source
InfluxDB: Does InfluxDB support SQL queries?

InfluxDB has limited SQL support. Full SQL is available in InfluxDB 3, but earlier versions support only specific SQL commands and use InfluxQL as the primary query language.

Source
InfluxDB: Can I export my data from InfluxDB?

Yes, data can be exported from InfluxDB using query results. However, the process and supported formats depend on the version and deployment type you are using.

Source
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