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Databases · head to head

MariaDB vs Spring Cloud Gateway

MariaDB logo

MariaDB

Databases

The open source relational database for the enterprise

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Spring Cloud Gateway logo

Spring Cloud Gateway

APIs

API gateway built on Project Reactor for building microservices

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: MariaDB jSON support using text fields rather than native binary type; lacks MySQL's JSON syntax and functions; Spring Cloud Gateway released under the Apache 2.0 license, free and open source with no commercial tier
  • They diverge on capability: MariaDB covers MySQL Compatibility, Spring Cloud Gateway covers Routing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which MariaDB and Spring Cloud Gateway actually diverge.

Attributes where MariaDB and Spring Cloud Gateway differ
AttributeMariaDBSpring Cloud Gateway
Pricing modelUnknownopen-source
PlatformsLinux, Unix, Windows, macOSJava, Spring Boot
CategoryDatabasesAPIs
Founded20091998

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 MariaDB

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

Only in Spring Cloud Gateway

  • Routing
  • Path Rewriting
  • Circuit Breaker
  • Spring Boot
  • Spring Security
  • Spring Cloud
  • Java support
  • Spring Boot support

What people use each for

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

MariaDB

  • Transaction processingnot Spring Cloud Gateway
  • Data storagenot Spring Cloud Gateway
  • Application backendnot Spring Cloud Gateway
  • Reportingnot Spring Cloud Gateway
  • Data analyticsnot Spring Cloud Gateway

Spring Cloud Gateway

  • API Developmentnot MariaDB
  • API Gatewaynot MariaDB
  • API Testingnot MariaDB
  • API Documentationnot MariaDB
  • Microservicesnot MariaDB

Where each one falls short

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

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

Spring Cloud Gateway

  • Released under the Apache 2.0 license, free and open source with no commercial tier

Pricing, plan by plan

MariaDB

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the MariaDB review.

Spring Cloud Gateway

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Core Spring Cloud Gateway
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Spring Cloud Gateway if

  • You need routing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Java, Spring Boot.
  • You also want path rewriting.
Spring Cloud Gateway review

Questions people ask

Is MariaDB or Spring Cloud Gateway better?
Neither clearly leads. MariaDB starts at Free and Spring Cloud Gateway at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, MariaDB or Spring Cloud Gateway?
MariaDB starts at Free and Spring Cloud Gateway at Free.
Does MariaDB or Spring Cloud Gateway run on more platforms?
MariaDB runs on Linux, Unix, Windows, macOS. Spring Cloud Gateway runs on Java, Spring Boot.
Can I use MariaDB for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is MariaDB best used for?
MariaDB is most often used for transaction processing, data storage, application backend, reporting. Of those, transaction processing and data storage are not what Spring Cloud Gateway is typically brought in for.
What can MariaDB do that Spring Cloud Gateway cannot?
MariaDB covers MySQL Compatibility, Aria Storage Engine, ColumnStore, Galera Cluster. Spring Cloud Gateway covers Routing, Path Rewriting, Circuit Breaker, Spring Boot.

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
Spring Cloud Gateway: Is Spring Cloud Gateway free?

Yes, Spring Cloud Gateway is free and open-source software. It is part of the Spring ecosystem and available through GitHub repositories with open-source dependencies like spring-cloud-starter-gateway-server-webflux and spring-cloud-starter-gateway-server-webmvc.

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
Spring Cloud Gateway: What enterprise support is available for Spring Cloud Gateway?

Tanzu Spring provides optional enterprise support including Day 0 access to security patches for organizations requiring guaranteed support, but specific pricing is not published on the Spring Cloud Gateway project page.

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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