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Firebird SQL vs MySQL comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 8, 2026

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
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Embedded Database (4th)
MySQL
Ranking in Open Source Databases
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
152
Ranking in other categories
Relational Databases Tools (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Open Source Databases category, the mindshare of Firebird SQL is 9.6%, down from 16.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MySQL is 12.3%, up from 9.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Open Source Databases Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
MySQL12.3%
Firebird SQL9.6%
Other78.1%
Open Source Databases
 

Featured Reviews

SS
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…
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

"The product was easy to use."
"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."
"The documentation is very well written."
"The solution is very useful for stock management."
"The reliability and ease of management are very valuable."
"We are satisfied with Firebird SQL, and we will keep on using it."
"I can deploy it on Linux, Mac OS, and Windows — it's very easy."
"The solution has worked perfectly; I've never run into issues or had to reach out to technical support for troubleshooting."
"The ML modules in MySQL are advantageous since they make data handling easy and quick at MNQM."
"It is easy to use."
"MySQL is a very useful database which is used by a lot of companies, so it should be really good."
"A good traditional database that supports JSON."
"It’s been used as the main databases for a lot of the developments we have done."
"I am very satisfied with the performance."
"It is a stable solution."
"MySQL’s strength is in its fast connection, query and insert performance."
 

Cons

"I'd rate the solution five or six out of ten for the possibilities it has currently."
"There aren't a lot of people using this solution — it's not very popular in the marketplace."
"On large databases, we have some difficulties."
"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."
"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."
"Database sharing is a capability that Firebird SQL lacks."
"Firebird SQL's performance has slowed since Firebird SQL 3 or 3.5 versions, where they developed over-the-wire encryption."
"We would like to improve the management of very large databases."
"Yes, the many index restrictions in case of partitioning the tables."
"In MySQL, we need to define every table beforehand."
"MySQL is missing some RDBMS features like stored procedures, foreign keys, transaction, rollback, and subselect, and it also does not support triggers."
"The GUI could improve in MySQL."
"MySQL is good but it should be able to handle the large transaction levels that Oracle can."
"The solution is expensive."
"It should have some code analytical functions. It can also have a monitoring tool."
"The binary log replication process in a cluster environment has issues processing data as fast as it arrives."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We are using the free solution, so there is no cost involved."
"It's open-source and free."
"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."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is freely available."
"There is a yearly maintenance fee for the use of the solution."
"I was using the free version of Firebird SQL."
"There is a license needed for this solution."
"The solution is open source so is free."
"The price of the solution is good because we have a good partner."
"We are using the free version of MySQL. We prefer paying for a yearly license."
"The pricing is not much expensive, it's cheap."
"It is open source. We prefer it for POCs because it saves the license cost."
"I use the open-source free community version."
"I would rate the solution’s pricing a six out of ten. The solution is not cheap but it’s a fair value. The pricing depends on the use cases of our customers. Some of our customers use the community edition which is license free and a good fit for their use cases. However, we encourage our bigger customers to sign up because of the scalability issues. The paid versions get direct technical support from Oracle."
report
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909,948 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

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

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business74
Midsize Enterprise34
Large Enterprise64
 

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 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.
What is your primary use case for Firebird SQL?
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.
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: August 2026.
909,948 professionals have used our research since 2012.