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PlanetScale vs QuestDB

PlanetScale logo

PlanetScale

Software

The MySQL-compatible serverless database

From
$15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
QuestDB logo

QuestDB

Software

Fast open source time-series database for high throughput ingestion

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only QuestDB has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: PlanetScale eBS High Availability requires 3-node configuration with replication overhead; QuestDB open-source edition lacks high-availability, distributed architecture, and enterprise security features
  • They diverge on capability: PlanetScale covers Database Branching, QuestDB covers High Throughput Ingestion.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which PlanetScale and QuestDB actually diverge.

Attributes where PlanetScale and QuestDB differ
AttributePlanetScaleQuestDB
Starting price$15/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionopen-source
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsCloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure)Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP)
Founded20182014

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 PlanetScale

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

Only in QuestDB

  • High Throughput Ingestion
  • SQL Support
  • Time-series Optimization
  • SIMD Vectorization
  • Column-oriented Storage
  • Built-in Web Console
  • InfluxDB Line Protocol
  • PostgreSQL

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

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

PlanetScale

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

QuestDB

  • Time-series analytics ingesting up to 20M rows/second from IoT sensors or financial data feedsnot PlanetScale
  • Real-time dashboarding with 32ms time-to-first-row latency for minute-level analyticsnot PlanetScale
  • Applications requiring multi-tier storage (hot ingest, real-time SQL, cold Parquet archive)not PlanetScale

Where each one falls short

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

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

QuestDB

  • Open-source edition lacks high-availability, distributed architecture, and enterprise security features
  • Enterprise edition pricing not published; requires contacting sales for custom quote
  • Ingestion limit of 20M rows/sec platform-dependent; may not scale to extreme throughput requirements

Pricing, plan by plan

PlanetScale

$15/month

No published plan breakdown. See the PlanetScale review.

QuestDB

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the QuestDB review.

Which should you pick?

Choose PlanetScale if

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

Choose QuestDB if

  • You need high throughput ingestion.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP).
  • You also want sql support.
QuestDB review

Questions people ask

Is PlanetScale or QuestDB better?
Neither clearly leads. PlanetScale starts at $15/month and QuestDB at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, PlanetScale or QuestDB?
QuestDB has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $15/month for PlanetScale and Free for QuestDB.
Does PlanetScale or QuestDB run on more platforms?
PlanetScale runs on Cloud-hosted (AWS, GCP, Azure). QuestDB runs on Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP).
Can I use QuestDB for free?
Yes. QuestDB has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. PlanetScale starts at $15/month.
What is PlanetScale best used for?
PlanetScale is most often used for mysql database hosting with automatic failover and replication, vitess-based sharding for horizontal scaling across large datasets, cloud provider flexibility across aws, gcp, azure with 60+ regions, cost-effective database clusters using arm64 architecture options. Of those, mysql database hosting with automatic failover and replication and vitess-based sharding for horizontal scaling across large datasets are not what QuestDB is typically brought in for.
What can PlanetScale do that QuestDB cannot?
PlanetScale covers Database Branching, Non-blocking Schema Changes, Insights, Horizontal Scaling. QuestDB covers High Throughput Ingestion, SQL Support, Time-series Optimization, SIMD Vectorization. Both handle Web support.
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