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Firebird SQL vs MySQL comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 20, 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

Firebird SQL
Ranking in Open Source Databases
3rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Embedded Database (1st)
MySQL
Ranking in Open Source Databases
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
148
Ranking in other categories
Relational Databases Tools (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Open Source Databases category, the mindshare of Firebird SQL is 18.0%, down from 20.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MySQL is 11.4%, down from 18.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Open Source Databases
 

Featured Reviews

Doug Meuross - PeerSpot reviewer
A reliable tool that offers good performance and is easy to use
I have had no issues with the stability of the product since it has always been a 100 percent reliable product and much better than the other databases available in the market. The multi-platform part is not good, especially when locked into things like Windows. You can judge your platform with Linux or Unix or whatever since they are good.
Muzzamil  Hussain - PeerSpot reviewer
Native encryption ensures secure data management with a simple deployment
The most valuable feature is the on-premises data encryption facilities. By default, we can provide encryption, and this feature in MySQL is why we prefer it over other databases. The native encryption in MySQL encourages us to use this database model more frequently compared to Oracle and other databases. With Oracle, we have to buy another solution for encryption and masking, but MySQL supports native encryption, which enhances our return on investment. It perfectly supports our ROI, and we have no issues with its functionality.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Firebird SQL is an open-source 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."
"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."
"The most valuable feature of Firebird SQL is the creation of databases."
"Robustness is the absolutely main feature."
"The solution is very useful for stock management."
"The product was easy to use."
"The most valuable feature of MySQL is auto-scaling."
"While MySQL offers strong basic functionality."
"It is a scalable solution."
"What I've been most pleased with is the cost point, performance, and ease of use."
"It is easy to use."
"Apart from the features that are in the enterprise part, we find the database to be valuable. The connectors and the backup features are valuable as well. We use the basic database. We don't really use the extra features. Our clients like the security features in the database."
"MySQL is easy and convenient for me. I don't need to rely on anyone. I can write the code and extract the information. It is fast if you know how to use it. The solution is not expensive, and most of the developers know how to use it. It is easy to create tables. The solution is stable and has good performance. The connection with AWS gives regular updates, which is manual otherwise and a nightmare."
"The solution is easy to use."
 

Cons

"The solution could improve by providing partitioning and encryption. It is not at the higher level of database solution but it could be with some upgrades."
"This solution isn't very user-friendly, or intuitive, which could be improved when it is developed."
"Database sharing is a capability that Firebird SQL lacks."
"On large databases, we have some difficulties."
"It is not easy to integrate the tool with Visual Studio."
"In the next release, it should support JSON, XML, and replication with third-party tools."
"We would like to improve the management of very large databases."
"It would be nice to have a graphical user interface to handle the product."
"Since we upgraded from 8.0.12 to 8.0.22, it has had some slowness-related issues. Some of the queries that were fast previously are quite slow now. I did some research, and I found many people complaining about it."
"Clusters are hard to perform so we use no SQL alternates like MongoDB."
"We want to continue using MySQL but it merged with Oracle and the scalage changed."
"I feel that some tools which make it easier to create queries or make it easier for other functions would be really interesting to see."
"We have encountered some performance issues, and the solution takes time for performing complex queries."
"On the database side, it should be really lightweight, and the data structure should be like MongoDB."
"Its performance should be better. When we use big data, it is slow in performance. We should be able to use mirroring for improved performance."
"The licensing of the solution is on the expensive side."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We are using the free solution, so there is no cost involved."
"I was using the free version of Firebird SQL."
"It is okay."
"It is a public domain system as every customer can install it on their system without paying any license fee."
"There is no licensing cost for this solution, as it is open-source."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution, which means it is a free product."
"The tool is open source."
"It's open-source and free."
"There is no licensing fee."
"It is open-source."
"There is a license for this solution. A lot of the time the solution gets bundled with other hardware or software purchases."
"MySQL is a cheap solution."
"It has a community version."
"MySQL is released under an open-source license, so you have nothing to pay to use it."
"The tool is open source."
"I don't pay for a license."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

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.
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...
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Elekt Labs, Streamsoft, wobe-systems GmbH, DRB Systems, Moscow City Hospital #31
Facebook, Tumblr, Scholastic, MTV Networks, Wikipedia, Verizon Wireless, Sage Group, Glassfish Open Message Queue, and RightNow Technologies.
Find out what your peers are saying about Firebird SQL vs. MySQL and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,600 professionals have used our research since 2012.