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RavenDB vs Couchbase

RavenDB logo

RavenDB

Software

The fully transactional NoSQL document database

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Couchbase logo

Couchbase

Software

The modern database for enterprise applications

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: RavenDB the free Developer licence bars commercial use and expires every 6 months, requiring renewal; Couchbase the free tier is a single node with 8 GB of storage and forum support only
  • They diverge on capability: RavenDB covers ACID Transactions, Couchbase covers JSON Document Model.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which RavenDB and Couchbase actually diverge.

Attributes where RavenDB and Couchbase differ
AttributeRavenDBCouchbase
Founded20102011

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), platforms (Linux, Windows, Mac, Docker, Web), 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 RavenDB

  • ACID Transactions
  • Auto-indexing
  • Graph Queries
  • Distributed Counters
  • Time Series
  • Document Compression
  • .NET
  • Node.js

Only in Couchbase

  • JSON Document Model
  • SQL++ Query
  • Eventing
  • Analytics
  • Mobile Sync
  • Multi-dimensional Scaling
  • Kafka
  • Spark

Both cover

  • Full-text Search
  • Linux support
  • Windows support
  • Mac support
  • Docker support
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

RavenDB

  • Running a distributed document database with ACID transactionsnot Couchbase
  • Self hosting a multi node database cluster on your own hardwarenot Couchbase
  • Replicating operational data out to analytics systems through ETLnot Couchbase

Couchbase

  • Running a distributed NoSQL document database as a managed servicenot RavenDB
  • Mobile sync and offline first applications backed by a cloud databasenot RavenDB

Where each one falls short

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

RavenDB

  • The free Developer licence bars commercial use and expires every 6 months, requiring renewal
  • The free Community licence caps a customer at 60 cores and forces you to stay on the latest major version
  • The Professional licence is limited to a single database, a 5 node cluster, 40 cores and 240 GB RAM
  • Sharding across nodes, ETL to OLAP, Elasticsearch and Kafka, and data archival are Enterprise only
  • Enterprise and AI licence pricing is contact us only with no published rate

Couchbase

  • The free tier is a single node with 8 GB of storage and forum support only
  • Node rates are hourly and quoted as starting figures, from $0.15 an hour on Basic to $0.49 on Enterprise
  • The Developer Pro and Enterprise plans require 3 nodes, so the hourly rate multiplies before any usage
  • Backup storage is billed separately at $0.07 per GB a month, and analytics backups at $0.14
  • Support response time is a plan feature, at 8 hours on Developer Pro against 30 minutes on Enterprise
  • AI and analytics run as separately priced planes at up to $0.86 an hour per node

Pricing, plan by plan

RavenDB

Free
  • CommunityFree
    • 3 cores
    • 6GB RAM
    • Community support
  • Professional$499/year
    • Production use
    • Professional support
    • Advanced features

Couchbase

Free
  • CommunityFree
    • Full features
    • Community support
    • Self-managed
  • Capella FreeFree
    • Managed service
    • Limited resources
    • Cloud hosted

Which should you pick?

Choose RavenDB if

  • You need acid transactions.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Docker, Web.
  • You also want auto-indexing.
RavenDB review

Choose Couchbase if

  • You need json document model.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Docker, Web.
  • You also want sql++ query.
Couchbase review

Questions people ask

Is RavenDB or Couchbase better?
Neither clearly leads. RavenDB starts at Free and Couchbase at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, RavenDB or Couchbase?
RavenDB starts at Free and Couchbase at Free.
Does RavenDB or Couchbase run on more platforms?
Both run on Linux, Windows, Mac, Docker, Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use RavenDB for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is RavenDB best used for?
RavenDB is most often used for running a distributed document database with acid transactions, self hosting a multi node database cluster on your own hardware, replicating operational data out to analytics systems through etl. Of those, running a distributed document database with acid transactions and self hosting a multi node database cluster on your own hardware are not what Couchbase is typically brought in for.
What can RavenDB do that Couchbase cannot?
RavenDB covers ACID Transactions, Auto-indexing, Graph Queries, Distributed Counters. Couchbase covers JSON Document Model, SQL++ Query, Eventing, Analytics. Both handle Full-text Search, Linux support, Windows support, Mac support.
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