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Databases · head to head

SurrealDB vs Xata

SurrealDB logo

SurrealDB

Databases

Multi-model database combining documents, graphs, vectors and time-series

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Xata logo

Xata

Databases

Apache 2.0 platform for running many Postgres instances on Kubernetes, with copy-on-write branching and scale-to-zero.

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: SurrealDB the listed $0.192/node/hr Scale pricing lacks transparent higher-tier rates, requiring a sales conversation for full production sizing.; Xata self-hosting means operating Kubernetes and CloudNativePG, so the Apache 2.0 licence removes the vendor bill but replaces it with a platform team, and a database platform is not something a part-time operator maintains safely.
  • They diverge on capability: SurrealDB covers Multi-model engine, Xata covers Copy-on-write branching.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which SurrealDB and Xata actually diverge.

Attributes where SurrealDB and Xata differ
AttributeSurrealDBXata
Platformsweb, api, windows, mac, linuxWeb
Founded2022Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Databases).

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 SurrealDB

  • Multi-model engine
  • ACID transactions
  • Hybrid retrieval
  • Horizontal scaling
  • Multi-region disaster recovery
  • FIPS-compliant cryptography

Only in Xata

  • Copy-on-write branching
  • Scale-to-zero compute
  • Compute autoscaling and bin-packing
  • High availability with failover
  • Point-in-time recovery
  • Serverless driver
  • pgroll migrations
  • pgstream replication

What people use each for

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

SurrealDB

  • AI agent memory and retrieval-augmented generationnot Xata
  • Applications needing documents, graphs and vectors in one databasenot Xata
  • Knowledge graph construction from unstructured datanot Xata
  • Regulated workloads requiring SOC2/ISO27001/HIPAA-eligible hostingnot Xata

Xata

  • Giving every pull request or coding agent its own branch of the production database, with real data volumes rather than a seeded fixturenot SurrealDB
  • Running managed-Postgres economics in your own cloud account where data residency or compliance rules out a third-party control planenot SurrealDB
  • Consolidating many small, mostly idle Postgres databases onto shared infrastructure where scale-to-zero and bin-packing recover the idle costnot SurrealDB
  • Testing a destructive migration against a copy of production without waiting for a full restore or paying for a duplicate of the storagenot SurrealDB

Where each one falls short

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

SurrealDB

  • The listed $0.192/node/hr Scale pricing lacks transparent higher-tier rates, requiring a sales conversation for full production sizing.
  • As a newer multi-model database, it has a smaller ecosystem of drivers, ORMs and community tooling than established single-model databases.
  • HIPAA compliance is only available as an Enterprise add-on rather than included in standard paid tiers.
  • Combining multiple data models in one engine can add query-planning complexity compared to purpose-built single-model databases.

Xata

  • Self-hosting means operating Kubernetes and CloudNativePG, so the Apache 2.0 licence removes the vendor bill but replaces it with a platform team, and a database platform is not something a part-time operator maintains safely.
  • Copy-on-write branches are cheap to create but diverge as they are written to, so a long-lived branch carrying a heavy backfill quietly accumulates real storage and the cost arrives later than the decision that caused it.
  • Scale-to-zero means the first connection after an idle period pays a cold start, which is invisible in a busy production database and very visible in a demo, a staging environment or a cron job that runs once an hour.
  • The Xata sold before 2025 was a different product, a proprietary API and SDK layered over Postgres, so tutorials, blog posts and SDK examples from that era describe something that no longer exists and existing users had to migrate.
  • As a managed service it competes with RDS, Aurora and Cloud SQL, and it is a much smaller company, so procurement, certification coverage and the depth of the support bench behind a 3am corruption incident are all weaker than the incumbent even though the underlying Postgres is the same.

Pricing, plan by plan

SurrealDB

Free
  • StartFree
    • 1 free instance, then from $0.021/hr
    • 1GB storage free forever
    • Vertical scaling to terabytes
  • Scale$0.192/month
    • $0.192/node/hr
    • Production-grade fault tolerance
    • Horizontal scaling to petabytes
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Self-hosted, custom pricing
    • Clustered fault-tolerant deployments
    • FIPS-compliant cryptography

Xata

Free
  • Free TrialFree
    • 14 days free
    • No credit card required
  • Usage-Based$1/per 1000 branches
    • 1,000 branches for $1
    • Scale-to-zero compute model
    • Branches hibernate when idle

Which should you pick?

Choose SurrealDB if

  • You need multi-model engine.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api, windows, mac, linux.
  • You also want acid transactions.
SurrealDB review

Choose Xata if

  • You need copy-on-write branching.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want scale-to-zero compute.
Xata review

Questions people ask

Is SurrealDB or Xata better?
Neither clearly leads. SurrealDB starts at Free and Xata at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, SurrealDB or Xata?
SurrealDB starts at Free and Xata at Free.
Does SurrealDB or Xata run on more platforms?
SurrealDB runs on web, api, windows, mac, linux. Xata runs on Web.
Can I use SurrealDB for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is SurrealDB best used for?
SurrealDB is most often used for ai agent memory and retrieval-augmented generation, applications needing documents, graphs and vectors in one database, knowledge graph construction from unstructured data, regulated workloads requiring soc2/iso27001/hipaa-eligible hosting. Of those, ai agent memory and retrieval-augmented generation and applications needing documents, graphs and vectors in one database are not what Xata is typically brought in for.
What can SurrealDB do that Xata cannot?
SurrealDB covers Multi-model engine, ACID transactions, Hybrid retrieval, Horizontal scaling. Xata covers Copy-on-write branching, Scale-to-zero compute, Compute autoscaling and bin-packing, High availability with failover.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

SurrealDB: What does SurrealDB cost?

SurrealDB Cloud's Start plan is free with one free instance (then from $0.021/hr), the Scale plan runs $0.192/node/hr for production workloads, and Enterprise self-hosted deployments use custom pricing.

Source
Xata: Is it real Postgres or a compatible reimplementation?

Real Postgres. It runs upstream Postgres instances on Kubernetes via CloudNativePG, so extensions, the wire protocol and version upgrades behave as they do anywhere else.

SurrealDB: Is there a free plan and what are its limits?

Yes, the Start plan includes one free instance with 1GB of storage free forever and 1GB of outbound data transfer per month, aimed at prototypes and development.

Source
Xata: Can I self-host the whole thing?

Yes. The platform is Apache 2.0 and designed for self-hosting a large number of Postgres instances on your own Kubernetes. Xata Cloud is the same platform run as a service.

SurrealDB: How is billing handled?

Customers are invoiced monthly based on actual usage in a pay-as-you-go model with no long-term commitments, though commitment-based discounts are available.

Source
Xata: Does branching copy my data?

No. Branches are copy-on-write at the storage layer, so creating one is near-instant regardless of database size and storage is only consumed as the branch diverges from its parent.

Xata: Is this the same Xata I used a couple of years ago?

No. The earlier product was a proprietary database API with its own SDK and search layer. The current product is a Postgres platform, and material written for the old one does not apply.

Xata: What happens to a branch when the parent changes?

A branch is a point-in-time fork. Later changes on the parent are not propagated, so long-lived branches drift and need to be recreated rather than refreshed if you want current data.

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