Firebird SQL vs MariaDB comparison

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Firebird SQL

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 2, 2025

Firebird SQL and MariaDB compete as database management systems. MariaDB often has the upper hand thanks to its comprehensive feature set, performance, and scalability.

Features: Firebird SQL is appreciated for its advanced architecture, efficient resource utilization, and effective deployment across platforms like Linux and Windows. MariaDB stands out with its multiple storage engines, real-time analytics capabilities, and high performance for large-scale applications.

Room for Improvement: Firebird could improve in ease of setup and handling very large datasets. Better integration and optimization tools would enhance its usability further. MariaDB users may seek enhancements in performance for complex queries, better concurrency handling, and more resource-efficient operations.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: MariaDB's straightforward setup and strong community support make it user-friendly and accessible, reducing deployment time and complexity. Firebird's deployment requires specialized knowledge, which can be a hurdle, but it benefits from dedicated support channels providing in-depth assistance.

Pricing and ROI: Firebird is known for its low initial costs and attractive long-term ROI, ideal for budget-sensitive projects. MariaDB, while often implying higher initial costs due to its advanced capabilities, offers significant ROI benefits with superior scalability and performance, positioning it as a valuable investment for large enterprises.

To learn more, read our detailed Firebird SQL vs. MariaDB Report (Updated: December 2025).

Firebird SQL vs. MariaDB

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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

Firebird SQL

Ranking in Open Source Databases

3rd

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Embedded Database (3rd)

MariaDB

Ranking in Open Source Databases

7th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Relational Databases Tools (7th)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Open Source Databases category, the mindshare of Firebird SQL is 13.3%, down from 19.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MariaDB is 6.5%, down from 6.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Open Source Databases Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Firebird SQL	13.3%
MariaDB	6.5%
Other	80.2%

Open Source Databases

Featured Reviews

reviewer1991775

Chapter Lead at a financial services firm with 201-500 employees

An open-source database to hold customer data, but its performance should be improved

Firebird SQL significantly improved our data management in many parts of our self-developed ERP system. I rate the solution's performance and speed a six out of ten. Two or three database administrators are needed to maintain the solution. A few years ago, migrating data to or from Firebird SQL was a little bit difficult because the identifier names for tables or stored procedures were limited to 20 to 30 characters. Transferring the structure to Firebird SQL was difficult, but they fixed it in version 3, which was much easier. We are developing software with Delphi, and Delphi is also by Embarcadero. Using InterBase or Firebird SQL databases is very common, and you have some good tools for developing with Firebird SQL. Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.

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Anand Bandi

Co-Founder at Vsigma IT Labs Pvt Ltd

Has supported web application data needs but requires design adjustments to manage complex queries efficiently

Complex queries in MariaDB where the query needs to parse thousands of lines or data values face some performance issues. For small and medium-size volume, it is pretty good. If it goes beyond certain data and complex queries, we see performance issues. We tried the advanced replication feature between different regions, replicating data specifically residing on MariaDB to two different regions of MariaDB data, and there were some technical snags in terms of slowness and longer processing time. Point-in-time recovery in MariaDB is good for small databases. When data volume increases beyond 5 GB or 10 GB per day or runs into double-digit GBs, we found some performance issues. For data below 10 GB, it works fine. Performance is the primary focus area for MariaDB, particularly during transactions or complex query jobs where slow performance is observed. MariaDB is scalable and easy to scale.

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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

"The documentation is very well written."

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

"The reliability and ease of management are very valuable."

"Robustness is the absolutely main feature."

"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."

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

"It helps us in detecting all kinds of problems in the code, such as bad quality, unclear code, or any violation in the code or best practices."

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

More Firebird SQL pros

"MariaDB performs well as the backend database for our cloud-based telephony solution."

"It is very simple to install, and the commands are exactly the same as MySQL."

"I am editing."

"The solution's high availability is its most valuable aspect."

"What I like best about MariaDB is that it is open-source and reliable."

"MariaDB has a straightforward initial setup with easy-to-understand documentation."

"MariaDB is a fast and flexible tool."

"This solution is user-friendly."

More MariaDB pros

Cons

"Database sharing is a capability that Firebird SQL lacks."

"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."

"On large databases, we have some difficulties."

"Firebird SQL's performance has slowed since Firebird SQL 3 or 3.5 versions, where they developed over-the-wire 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."

"In the next release, it should support JSON, XML, and replication with third-party tools."

"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."

"It would be good to have more automation and integration with the tools from other vendors."

More Firebird SQL cons

"It would be good if they can maybe improve the mass import in the database. Currently, for importing a large number of data, we create a CSV file and upload all the things in the system. The system does not activate them by default. We have to do this manually. This may be due to the version we are using, but this is something we would like to see improved."

"The GUI could be improved a bit. The user interface needs to be improved."

"The license should be cheaper and closer to that offered by MySQL, Oracle and other products."

"The solution can improve by having support for more integration. However, at this time it is working well for us."

"MariaDB could be improved by adding more automation."

"I am editing."

"An improvement would be scaling it up to the levels of Oracle, especially when it comes to resilience, so that we can do higher transactions for two databases or power our operation."

"Replication could be better, and it's not so simple. It would be better if they had a replication server. It would make things a lot easier. You need to have that replication server, but not in the same server farm. Then there will be a bit of latency between both because you should have one in one city and another one in a different city. That kind of solution should be more baked into every single database today. Mirroring the database in a live environment where any record written on the production server replicates instantly across the fiber on the other server wasn't easy. Many people don't even bother with that, and they just run one server."

More MariaDB cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

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

"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution, which means it is a free product."

"It is okay."

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

"It's open-source and free."

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

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

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

More Firebird SQL pricing and cost advice

"The cost is quite good. You can have the open source, free version, which has adequate capacity."

"I used the open-source version, which is available free of charge."

"It's an open-source solution."

"The licensing cost is approximately $4000.00 per year and the licensing is based on the software and the number of posts that you make."

"We use the solution's free version."

"It is an open-source solution."

"There is a monthly subscription to use MariaDB."

"The product is not expensive."

More MariaDB pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Open Source Databases solutions are best for your needs.

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

14%

Financial Services Firm

11%

University

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	3

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	27
Midsize Enterprise	12
Large Enterprise	25

Questions from the Community

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...

What do you like most about Firebird SQL?

Firebird SQL is an open-source solution.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Firebird SQL?

It's open-source and free.

What do you like most about MariaDB?

The integration with other products is seamless.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for MariaDB?

MariaDB is in the pricey range, especially for huge databases handling terabytes of data. The cost depends on the volume of data and different features enabled during configuration, such as backup ...

What needs improvement with MariaDB?

PostgreSQL vs Firebird SQL

Comparisons

Compared 36% of the time

MySQL vs Firebird SQL

Compared 27% of the time

SQLite vs Firebird SQL

Compared 15% of the time

DuckDB vs Firebird SQL

Compared 4% of the time

InterBase vs Firebird SQL

Compared 1% of the time

More Firebird SQL Competitors

SQL Server vs MariaDB

Compared 17% of the time

PostgreSQL vs MariaDB

Compared 12% of the time

MySQL vs MariaDB

Compared 9% of the time

Oracle Database vs MariaDB

Compared 5% of the time

Percona Server vs MariaDB

Compared 5% of the time

More MariaDB Competitors

Product Reports

Embedded Database

Download Firebird SQL product report

Download MariaDB product report

Overview

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

MariaDB is an open source relational database created by the original founders of MySQL. It is considered one of the most popular and trusted database servers throughout the world. MariaDB is a valued component found in most cloud offerings and is the default in many Linux tools. It is also widely used by Wikipedia, WordPress, and Google, among other well-known sites. Maria DB easily melds data into concise information from a vast array of applications, such as banking, online shopping, websites, and more.

MariaDB was originally created to improve MySQL performance. It is the most widely chosen database server due to the solution being super fast, robust, user-friendly, and easily scalable. MariaDB also offers a substantial ecosystem of plugins, storage engines, and numerous other valuable tools that make it very attractive for a significant offering of use cases.

The solution’s newest functionalities include compatibility with Oracle Database and Temporal Data Tables, and advanced clustering with Galera Cluster 4, which make it easier for users to research data history from any point in the past. Additionally, the most recent versions include JSON and GIS features. MariaDB is committed to staying an open source solution.

MariaDB Features

More storage: MariaDB works with more storage engines than MySQL and most other database servers available. Some storage options include, but are not limited to ARCHIVE, MERGE, CSV, MEMORY, BLACKHOLE, MyISAM, ColumnStore, MyRocks, and Cassandra.
Super fast: MariaDB offers faster authentication checks. The FlushSSL permits SSL certificates to be reloaded without a server restart, resulting in huge time savings.
Improved testing: MariaDB offers an extending testing suite that runs faster and can test more than ever before. Bugs can be easily fixed and invalid tests removed.
Genuinely open source: Every code in MariaDB is GPL, LGPL, or BSD. Client libraries [for Windows (ODBC), Java (JDBC), or C] allow linking to closed source software. All fixed bug cases and development plans are completely public. MariaDB is a community-developed solution representing the true spirit of open source products.

Reviews from Real Users

Faustine C., Engineering Supervisor- Corporate Data Solutions and Services at TZ Telecoms Corporation, shares, “The software provides a lot of information on what is happening inside the database. For most performance parameters it is easy to know if something is not right in the configuration or optimization which helps engineers take remedial fine-tuning measures. For example, if the database is underperforming it is easy to know which performance parameter can be adjusted to handle the workload. It is difficult to troubleshoot database issues if many performance parameters can not be monitored or debugged which is the case with some database management systems. It provides great monitoring of data storage, processing, and performance stability which is really important for real-time data storage and processing. It's a user-friendly product.”

A PeerSpot user who is a Senior Engineer at a tech services company relates, “ The solution's high availability is its most valuable aspect. We have found the product to be stable and the initial setup is pretty simple. I'd rate the solution at a ten out of ten. I'm very happy with it overall. I would recommend the solution to others. It's easy to find details about the product online and to learn about it.”

Sample Customers

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

Google, Wikipedia, Tencent, Verizon, DBS Bank, Deutsche Bank, Telefónica, Huatai Securities

Firebird SQL vs. MariaDB