Actian PSQL vs Firebird SQL comparison

Actian and Firebird are both solutions in the Embedded Database category. Actian is ranked #12, while Firebird is ranked #3 with an average rating of 7.5. Actian holds a 2.2% mindshare in EDS, compared to Firebird’s 15.9% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Actian users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 86% of Firebird users who would recommend it.

Actian PSQL

Read 2 Actian PSQL reviews

185 Views
185 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Firebird SQL

Read 15 Firebird SQL reviews

6,336 Views
1,077 Comparison Views

86% willing to recommend

Actian PSQL

Firebird SQL

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

Actian PSQL and Firebird SQL compete in the database management software market. Firebird SQL appears more advantageous due to its comprehensive feature set and better cost justification.

Features: Actian PSQL offers stability, scalability, and a robust database engine ideal for embedded systems. Firebird SQL provides flexibility, platform support, and strong transaction processing capabilities.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Actian PSQL has seamless deployment with reliable customer service for smooth integration. Firebird SQL offers straightforward deployment with extensive documentation and community support for troubleshooting and guidance.

Pricing and ROI: Actian PSQL has higher initial costs but may offer significant ROI with added support and functionality. Firebird SQL is cost-effective with lower upfront expenses and good long-term value, attracting cost-sensitive businesses.

To learn more, read our detailed Actian PSQL vs. Firebird SQL Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Actian PSQL vs. Firebird SQL

March 2026

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Actian PSQL

Ranking in Embedded Database

12th

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Firebird SQL

Ranking in Embedded Database

3rd

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Open Source Databases (4th)

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Embedded Database category, the mindshare of Actian PSQL is 2.2%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Firebird SQL is 15.9%, down from 24.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Embedded Database Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Firebird SQL	15.9%
Actian PSQL	2.2%
Other	81.9%

Embedded Database

Featured Reviews

辺琢也渡

Solution Architect at Dropbox

Easy configuration, with affordable pricing, and reliable

We use Actian PSQL for analytics purposes Actian PSQL is easy to configure and the performance is affordable. It would be great to have some sizing guides to configure the on-premise software to make it easier. We need to improve the security options for the on-premise option. I would like to…

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Stéphane Slusarek

Research and Development Project Manager at Sixense Monitoring

Efficient data storage with reliable and easy management

We are working on monitoring software that involves making a lot of measurements with sensors. We store all the data in Firebird, which is why we use It primarily for data storage It's difficult to describe how it has improved our organization because we have been using Firebird for a very long…

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"MySQL is too poor in functionality, Oracle is too big slow and the price is not quite good."

"Actian PSQL is easy to configure and the performance is affordable."

"We are happy with the event capabilities of Firebird SQL database. We can raise events from it and display them in our application."

"I like that we don't have to pay external fees to migrate this data. So, we are looking to relocate from Postgres or EDB."

"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution."

"I can deploy it on Linux, Mac OS, and Windows — it's very easy."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is reliable, offers good performance, and is easy to use."

"I find the ease of deployment to be the most valuable aspect of this solution."

"I appreciate the fact that, once the database is embedded, it doesn't need to be administered, and removes the requirement for a specific server."

"Robustness is the absolutely main feature."

More Firebird SQL pros

Cons

"MySQL is too poor in functionality, Oracle is too big slow and the price is not quite good."

"We need to improve the security options for the on-premise option."

"Technical support and performance could be better. We have some problems with this solution, but we don't know if the problem is with the database or the configuration. For example, sometimes, the users can't access the database."

"The security of the users could improve in Firebird SQL."

"I'd rate the solution five or six out of ten for the possibilities it has currently."

"It would be nice to have a graphical user interface to handle the product."

"It would be interesting if they added functionality with redundancy, reputation, and variability."

"I don't think the solution is very scalable because the scalability of the performance when using more than one process is not very good."

"The solution could improve by providing partitioning and encryption."

"The main feature I expect is to be able to work with different databases at the same time because that's a wishlist item for me."

More Firebird SQL cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We have found Actian PSQL to be affordable."

"We are using the free solution, so there is no cost involved."

"It's open-source and free."

"It is a public domain system as every customer can install it on their system without paying any license fee."

"There is a yearly maintenance fee for the use of the solution."

"I was using the free version of Firebird SQL."

"There is no licensing cost for this solution, as it is open-source."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is freely available."

"It is okay."

More Firebird SQL pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Computer Software Company

13%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	3

Questions from the Community

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How does Firebird SQL compare with PostgreSQL?

PostgreSQL was designed in a way that provides you with not only a high degree of flexibility but also offers you a cheap and easy-to-use solution. It gives you the ability to redesign and audit yo...

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What do you like most about Firebird SQL?

Firebird SQL is an open-source solution.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Firebird SQL?

We would like to improve the management of very large databases. We have databases up to three or four terabytes, and it's not so easy to manage such large databases.

See all answers

Comparisons

SAP HANA vs Actian PSQL

Compared 58% of the time

Progress OpenEdge RDBMS vs Actian PSQL

Compared 42% of the time

More Actian PSQL Competitors

MySQL vs Firebird SQL

Compared 31% of the time

PostgreSQL vs Firebird SQL

Compared 29% of the time

MariaDB vs Firebird SQL

Compared 14% of the time

SQLite vs Firebird SQL

Compared 12% of the time

DuckDB vs Firebird SQL

Compared 4% of the time

More Firebird SQL Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Embedded Database

March 2026

Download Actian PSQL product report

Buyer's Guide

Embedded Database

March 2026

Download Firebird SQL product report

Also Known As

PSQL, Pervasive PSQL

No data available

Overview

Actian PSQL is the perfect solution for packaged business applications. It is one of the most reliable, low maintenance, high-performance database management systems in the world.

Actian

Firebird SQL is an open-source, cross-platform relational database management system that offers an enterprise-level database solution. The solution is designed to be highly secure, efficient, and compatible with various platforms and programming languages. Firebird can operate in both embedded and server modes.

Firebird is an open-source project with an active community of developers and users. It is released under the Initial Developer's Public License (IDPL) and the InterBase Public License, allowing for free use, modification, and distribution.

The Firebird solution requires minimal configuration and its architecture allows it to efficiently handle databases ranging from a few KB to multiple terabytes. It is available for various operating systems, including Windows, Linux, macOS, and several Unix-like platforms.

What are the key features of Firebird SQL?

ACID Compliance: Firebird provides full support for ACID (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability) transactions, ensuring data integrity and consistency, even in the event of system failures or concurrent access.
SQL Language Support: Firebird SQL provides extensive support for ANSI SQL, which is the standard SQL language, making it compatible with a wide range of applications and tools.
Multi-Generational Architecture: Firebird employs a multi-generational architecture, which allows multiple versions of the same data to coexist within the database.
Concurrency and Performance: Firebird offers efficient concurrency control mechanisms, including multi-version concurrency control (MVCC), which allows multiple transactions to access and modify data simultaneously without locking or blocking each other, improving overall performance.
Embedded mode: In the embedded mode, the database engine is integrated directly into the application.
Security Features: Firebird provides user authentication, role-based access control, and encryption capabilities. It supports various authentication methods, such as native Firebird user accounts, external authentication sources (e.g., Windows domains), and single sign-on (SSO) mechanisms.
Backup and Restore: Firebird offers built-in backup and restore utilities, allowing users to create full or incremental backups of the database, as well as restore from these backups when needed.

As part of being a commonly used open-sourced solution, Firebird boasts a vibrant community of developers and users. The community provides extensive documentation, third-party tools, and active forums for support. Businesses can also opt for professional support services offered by third-party vendors for added assurance.

To summarize, Firebird SQL is a robust, scalable, and cost-effective database solution suitable for a wide range of applications and business sizes. Its comprehensive SQL support, security features, and cross-platform compatibility, combined with the active community support, make it a compelling choice for businesses looking to leverage the power of open-source software without compromising on performance or security.

Firebird

Sample Customers

Datamatics, Medical Data Vision, Inferenda, Sheetz, SecureAlert, Zilliant

Elekt Labs, Streamsoft, wobe-systems GmbH, DRB Systems, Moscow City Hospital #31

Buyer's Guide

Actian PSQL vs. Firebird SQL

March 2026

Free Report: Actian PSQL vs. Firebird SQL

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