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Developer Tools · head to head

Sourcegraph vs TiDB

Sourcegraph logo

Sourcegraph

Developer Tools

Code search and intelligence platform for large codebases with Cody AI assistant

From
$16000/year
Free plan
No
Visit SourcegraphFull review
TiDB logo

TiDB

Databases

Apache 2.0 distributed SQL database with MySQL wire compatibility and a separate columnar replica for analytical queries.

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit TiDBFull review

The short version

  • Sourcegraph is an enterprise code intelligence platform.
  • TiDB has a free plan, then $250/mo; Sourcegraph starts at $16000/yr.
  • Where Sourcegraph falls short: enterprise pricing starting at $16k annually creates significant barrier for small teams.
  • Prices and features on this page were last checked on 13 November 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Sourcegraph and TiDB actually diverge.

Attributes where Sourcegraph and TiDB differ
AttributeSourcegraphTiDB
Starting price$16000/yearFree
Pricing modelSubscriptionFreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Self-hostedWeb, AWS, Azure, Self-managed
CategoryDeveloper ToolsDatabases

Not yet recorded: founded for Sourcegraph.

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 Sourcegraph

Nothing recorded that TiDB does not also cover.

Only in TiDB

  • MySQL wire compatibility
  • Horizontal write scaling
  • Distributed ACID transactions
  • TiFlash columnar replica
  • Automatic rebalancing
  • Raft replication
  • Apache 2.0 licence
  • Online schema change

What people use each for

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

Sourcegraph

  • Large-scale code migrations across hundreds of repositoriesnot TiDB
  • Enterprise governance and code ownership trackingnot TiDB
  • AI-assisted bug hunting and security pattern detectionnot TiDB
  • Onboarding engineers into large unfamiliar codebasesnot TiDB
  • Regulatory compliance and code audit trailsnot TiDB

TiDB

  • A MySQL workload that has hit the write ceiling of a single primary and would otherwise need an application-level sharding layernot Sourcegraph
  • Reporting that must run against current transactional data, where the columnar replica removes the delay and the cost of an ETL pipelinenot Sourcegraph
  • Multi-region deployments needing a single logical database with automatic failover rather than manual primary promotionnot Sourcegraph
  • Migrating off a sharded MySQL estate where the sharding logic in the application has become the main source of bugs and operational toilnot Sourcegraph

Where each one falls short

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

Sourcegraph

  • Enterprise pricing starting at $16k annually creates significant barrier for small teams
  • No free tier or standard plan published; all options require custom sales engagement
  • Complex enterprise-only positioning limits adoption compared to GitHub Copilot's pervasiveness
  • Requires indexing entire codebase; not suitable for small or ephemeral projects

TiDB

  • A production cluster needs several placement driver, storage and SQL nodes before it is fault tolerant, so the minimum viable footprint is far larger than a MySQL server and TiDB is never the economical choice for a small database
  • Every transaction takes a timestamp from the placement driver and crosses the network to storage nodes, so simple point queries are slower than on single-node MySQL and latency-sensitive paths need to be measured, not assumed
  • MySQL compatibility is at the wire and dialect level but not complete; stored procedures, triggers and events are not supported, so an application that pushed logic into the database cannot simply be repointed
  • The columnar replica is an extra full copy of the data on its own nodes, so hybrid analytics roughly doubles storage and adds hardware that must be sized and paid for separately
  • Operating it well requires cluster-specific expertise in TiUP or the Kubernetes operator, region hot spots, and rebalancing behaviour, so the licence is free but the running cost includes an engineer who understands distributed storage

Pricing, plan by plan

Sourcegraph

$16000/year
  • Enterprise$16,000/yr
    • Scales with team size
    • Credits for AI features per user
    • Deep Search

TiDB

Free
  • ServerlessFree
    • 5GB storage
    • 50M request units
    • Free forever tier
  • Dedicated$250/mo
    • Dedicated resources
    • SLA guarantees
    • Enterprise support

Which should you pick?

Choose Sourcegraph if

  • You work on Web, Self-hosted.
Sourcegraph review

Choose TiDB if

  • You need mysql wire compatibility.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, AWS, Azure, Self-managed.
  • You also want horizontal write scaling.
TiDB review

Questions people ask

Is Sourcegraph or TiDB better?
Neither clearly leads. Sourcegraph starts at $16000/year and TiDB at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Sourcegraph or TiDB?
TiDB has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $16000/year for Sourcegraph and Free for TiDB.
Does Sourcegraph or TiDB run on more platforms?
Sourcegraph runs on Web, Self-hosted. TiDB runs on Web, AWS, Azure, Self-managed.
Can I use TiDB for free?
Yes. TiDB has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Sourcegraph starts at $16000/year.
What is Sourcegraph best used for?
Sourcegraph is most often used for large-scale code migrations across hundreds of repositories, enterprise governance and code ownership tracking, ai-assisted bug hunting and security pattern detection, onboarding engineers into large unfamiliar codebases. Of those, large-scale code migrations across hundreds of repositories and enterprise governance and code ownership tracking are not what TiDB is typically brought in for.
What can Sourcegraph do that TiDB cannot?
TiDB covers MySQL wire compatibility, Horizontal write scaling, Distributed ACID transactions, TiFlash columnar replica.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

TiDB: Is TiDB a drop-in replacement for MySQL?

At the protocol and dialect level it is close, and most applications connect unchanged. Stored procedures, triggers and events are not supported, and latency characteristics differ, so it needs testing rather than assumption.

TiDB: What licence is it under?

Apache 2.0, for both TiDB and the underlying TiKV storage engine. TiKV is a graduated CNCF project, which is a meaningful governance signal in a market where several competitors moved to source-available licences.

TiDB: Do I need TiFlash?

Only for analytical queries. It is an optional columnar replica; without it TiDB is a distributed transactional database. With it you get analytics on live data at the cost of an additional full copy.

TiDB: Is the managed cloud the same software?

TiDB Cloud runs the same engine, with the control plane, scaling and operational tooling provided as a service. The entry tier is metered differently from a dedicated cluster, so the cost model rather than the engine is what changes.

TiDB: When is TiDB the wrong choice?

When the database is small enough for one server, when latency on single-row lookups is the primary constraint, or when the application depends on MySQL stored procedures and triggers.

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