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Databases · head to head

QuestDB vs Seeq

QuestDB logo

QuestDB

Databases

Fast open source time-series database for high throughput ingestion

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Seeq logo

Seeq

Manufacturing

Self-service analytics for process manufacturing time-series data sitting on top of existing historians

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only QuestDB has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: QuestDB open-source edition lacks high-availability, distributed architecture, and enterprise security features; Seeq named-user pricing suits a small core team but scales badly: a site wanting a hundred engineers with occasional access pays for a hundred licences that mostly sit idle, which is why deployments often stay artificially narrow.
  • They diverge on capability: QuestDB covers High Throughput Ingestion, Seeq covers Query in place.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which QuestDB and Seeq actually diverge.

Attributes where QuestDB and Seeq differ
AttributeQuestDBSeeq
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelopen-sourcequote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsDocker, Kubernetes, Cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP)Web, Cloud, On-premise, Windows, Linux
CategoryDatabasesManufacturing
Founded2014Unknown

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 QuestDB

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

Only in Seeq

  • Query in place
  • Capsules
  • Asset trees
  • Seeq Data Lab
  • Organizer
  • Multi-source joins

What people use each for

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

QuestDB

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

Seeq

  • A pharmaceutical plant comparing hundreds of batches against a golden batch profile without exporting historian data into spreadsheetsnot QuestDB
  • A reliability engineer investigating why a compressor trips, needing to overlay vibration, process and maintenance data across two years of historynot QuestDB
  • Refinery process engineers building a recurring shift report that pulls live values rather than being rebuilt by hand each weeknot QuestDB
  • A site whose data lake project has stalled and that needs engineers analysing plant history now, without waiting for an ingestion pipelinenot QuestDB

Where each one falls short

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

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

Seeq

  • Named-user pricing suits a small core team but scales badly: a site wanting a hundred engineers with occasional access pays for a hundred licences that mostly sit idle, which is why deployments often stay artificially narrow.
  • Seeq inherits whatever quality exists in the historian, so plants with unstructured tag names and no asset model spend real effort building asset trees in Seeq that should have been fixed upstream.
  • Certain historian connectors are charged separately, so the licence quote and the actual cost of connecting your specific data sources are two different numbers.
  • It is analysis, not control or action; findings still have to be carried into a CMMS or a control change by hand, so value depends on a workflow Seeq does not provide.
  • The product assumes competent process engineers. Organisations without that skill in-house get little from it, because Seeq deliberately does not ship prebuilt failure models the way condition monitoring vendors do.

Pricing, plan by plan

QuestDB

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the QuestDB review.

Seeq

On request
  • Seeq$undefined/year
    • Licensed per named user, not per tag
    • Separate charges for certain historian connectors
    • Cloud-hosted and self-hosted deployments quoted differently

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Seeq if

  • You need query in place.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, On-premise, Windows, Linux.
  • You also want capsules.
Seeq review

Questions people ask

Is QuestDB or Seeq better?
Neither clearly leads. QuestDB starts at Free and Seeq at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, QuestDB or Seeq?
QuestDB has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for QuestDB and On request for Seeq.
Does QuestDB or Seeq run on more platforms?
QuestDB runs on Docker, Kubernetes, Cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP). Seeq runs on Web, Cloud, On-premise, Windows, Linux.
Can I use QuestDB for free?
Yes. QuestDB has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Seeq starts at On request.
What is QuestDB best used for?
QuestDB is most often used for time-series analytics ingesting up to 20m rows/second from iot sensors or financial data feeds, real-time dashboarding with 32ms time-to-first-row latency for minute-level analytics, applications requiring multi-tier storage (hot ingest, real-time sql, cold parquet archive). Of those, time-series analytics ingesting up to 20m rows/second from iot sensors or financial data feeds and real-time dashboarding with 32ms time-to-first-row latency for minute-level analytics are not what Seeq is typically brought in for.
What can QuestDB do that Seeq cannot?
QuestDB covers High Throughput Ingestion, SQL Support, Time-series Optimization, SIMD Vectorization. Seeq covers Query in place, Capsules, Asset trees, Seeq Data Lab.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

QuestDB: How much does QuestDB Enterprise cost?

QuestDB does not publish specific pricing for the Enterprise tier. Customers must contact QuestDB via their enterprise contact form to receive a custom quote.

Source
Seeq: Does Seeq store my data?

No. It queries connected historians and databases in place. Removing Seeq leaves your data exactly where it was.

QuestDB: Does QuestDB offer a free version?

Yes, QuestDB Open Source is completely free and recommended for evaluation, prototyping, and pilot projects. Enterprise features, high availability, security, and dedicated support require the paid Enterprise tier.

Source
Seeq: Who owns Seeq?

It is an independent private company in Seattle, most recently funded by a 2024 growth round led by Sixth Street. It has not been taken over by a private equity buyer.

QuestDB: What deployment options does QuestDB offer?

QuestDB offers open source deployment, Enterprise deployment, and Bring Your Own Cloud (BYOC) deployment. Pricing details for BYOC and Enterprise tiers are not published and require direct contact with sales.

Source
Seeq: How is it licensed?

Per named user, with some historian connectors charged separately. Nothing is published; every number comes from a quote.

Seeq: Do I need a data scientist?

No, and that is the point. Workbench is aimed at process engineers. Data Lab exists for the minority who want Python.

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