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Citus Data vs MySQL comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

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

Citus Data
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
28th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
MySQL
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
152
Ranking in other categories
Open Source Databases (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of Citus Data is 2.3%, down from 2.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MySQL is 5.9%, down from 8.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Relational Databases Tools Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
MySQL5.9%
Citus Data2.3%
Other91.8%
Relational Databases Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Arucy Lionel - PeerSpot reviewer
Co-Founder at Afriziki
Efficiently handles high-traffic scenarios and compatible with PostgreSQL extensions, offering flexibility in database management
There are many areas of improvement , especially in terms of DDL query routing. Even though it's masterless, DDL queries need to be sent to the coordinator node. Also, setting up a multi-node environment could be more straightforward. Currently, setting up a multi-node environment is challenging. It's a bit tricky. Installation on each PostgreSQL node can lead to communication issues between nodes. An automatic rebalancing feature would be a significant improvement. Currently, I have to manually command the rebalance. It would be more convenient if it was rebalanced automatically. The dashboard and monitoring capabilities are good, but it would be helpful to have an integrated availability dashboard.
Prabir Kumar Kundu - PeerSpot reviewer
SR AVP–Presales Cloud & Platform Management Services at Path Infotech ltd
Offers robust security and availability with impressive replication capabilities
Regarding their documentation and interface, there is room for improvement. Documentation is definitely required when running multiple databases on a cluster system. The load balancer, MySQL LB, which is used to connect to the application, lacks clear documentation. When there are multiple application servers connecting to the MySQL cluster and going through the MySQL load balancer, the documentation is not user-friendly. It's there, but only technical persons with deep knowledge of the MySQL database can implement it. Most of the community users or ISVs who use MySQL don't have many technical persons or DBA experts, so they face some challenges for the high availability of connecting high available databases from high available applications. That documentation should be simplified.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It's very straightforward to implement the solution. It took us two days to set up everything."
"Its distributed processing capabilities are a standout feature. It requires minimal changes to get up and running if you already have a system on PostgreSQL. Citus can run in its natural state."
"The solution is competitive with Mongo, MySQL, and maybe even Oracle."
"You can use Citus Data to write complex scripts. I like its version upgrades and disaster recovery as well."
"It is easy to use."
"Configuration was easy and with much support material."
"It's a good tool, a good database platform."
"As long as your application supports it well, and you are familiar with the scaling options and its limitations, you can’t go very wrong with MySQL, as it is a very mature product by now."
"MySQL is a good database; we are using it, and we'll continue to use it."
"MySQL is the best option for the Laravel PHP framework."
"The relations in the database, the dynamic workflow, and the ability to connect with all columns. It's useful for e-commerce."
"The solution is very simple. It's easy to use. That's the most important feature."
 

Cons

"Citus Data needs to improve its stability. Do not consider this product if you have the budget. It is still developing and has a lot of issues."
"More features in monitoring and the reporting could make it better."
"There are many areas of improvement , especially in terms of DDL query routing. Even though it's masterless, DDL queries need to be sent to the coordinator node. Also, setting up a multi-node environment could be more straightforward."
"More features in monitoring and the reporting could make it better."
"Multi-master replication could be a bit more reliable."
"Yes, the many index restrictions in case of partitioning the tables."
"I would rate the technical support as a five out of 10."
"In terms of what I'd like to see in the next release, one thing that's always missing is dash boarding. There's no real BI tool for MySQL, like there is in Yellowfin and all the different tools that you get. They all have MySQL connectors, but there's no specific BI tool for MySQL. These open source projects have sprung up, but they're more general purpose."
"Stability needs improvement and the backup needs to be enhanced."
"While utilizing a comparable algorithm, is noted to be sensitive, especially when configuring the inner device."
"MySQL could introduce more indexing strategies."
"According to our experience, it's not really an enterprise tool that you can easily expand and scale the way you can with, for example, Oracle."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Citus Data is an open-source product."
"It is open source. We prefer it for POCs because it saves the license cost."
"MySQL is a cheap solution."
"There is not a license required for this solution."
"The solution does not come with a licensing fee."
"It's cheaper than other solutions."
"There is no licensing fee."
"For the on-premise version, no license is required."
"I use a free version at present."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Construction Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business75
Midsize Enterprise33
Large Enterprise61
 

Questions from the Community

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Why are MySQL connections encrypted and what is the biggest benefit of this?
MySQL encrypts connections to protect your data and the biggest benefit from this is that nobody can corrupt it. If you move information over a network without encryption, you are endangering it, m...
Considering that there is a free version of MySQL, would you invest in one of the paid editions?
I may be considered a MySQL veteran since I have been using it since before Oracle bought it and created paid versions. So back in my day, it was all free, it was open-source and the best among sim...
What is one thing you would improve with MySQL?
One thing I would improve related to MySQL is not within the product itself, but with the guides to it. Before, when it was free, everyone was on their own, seeking tutorials and how-to videos onli...
 

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Find out what your peers are saying about Citus Data vs. MySQL and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,221 professionals have used our research since 2012.