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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

"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution and can run on most operating systems, such as Linux, Unix, and Windows."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution."
"I can deploy it on Linux, Mac OS, and Windows — it's very easy."
"I find the ease of deployment to be the most valuable aspect of this solution."
"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."
"Robustness is the absolutely main feature."
"I like Firebird because it's very lightweight; it's very light and powerful, and I can do everything that I can with MS SQL Server and Oracle with Firebird, with very easy deployment on Linux, Mac OS, and Windows and great integration capabilities."
"I like MySQL because of its community."
"I would use MySQL for a medium project, with around 1,00,000 hundred thousand users, because of the indexing and stored procedures."
"The fact that it is free is what appeals to me the most."
"I would absolutely recommend this solution to others."
"For MySQL, in terms of the usage or as the end user, I don't have much to recommend, as long as the query latency meets your requirements, it will be great."
"ACID attributes are the most valuable feature, as data reliability is a top concern."
"​We use MySQL for enterprise data storage as well as part of the back-end of websites and web applications.​"
"MySQL is a popular database platform for businesses because it is extremely easy to use."
 

Cons

"In the next release, it should support JSON, XML, and replication with third-party tools."
"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."
"They need to be more reactive and fast. Sometimes, they take too long to resolve some tickets."
"On large databases, we have some difficulties."
"It is not easy to integrate the tool with Visual Studio."
"It would be good to have more automation and integration with the tools from other vendors."
"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."
"If you want to scale it you will require more knowledge on the product and you will need more support for it."
"In MySQL, you can only have one master. The master's scalability was always a problem."
"It can have better monitoring. In addition, the enterprise manager should be able to cater to more than one virtual machine. Currently, you need one license per server. It seems a bit too much to get one license for one enterprise manager. I hope the enterprise manager for MySQL can accommodate more virtual machines for MySQL."
"Integration is a key feature in need of improvement."
"I would just say that it could be a little bit simpler to use."
"We require more ease of use, scalability, and high availability."
"There should be more tools to manage the on-premises version and more automation features."
"The integration with other systems can be improved as can the integration between other databases."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool is open source."
"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."
"We are using the free solution, so there is no cost involved."
"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."
"The tool is open source."
"There is no licensing fee."
"We're using the open-source version right now, which is free. I do see some value in some of the more enterprise functions. We're using the open-source version right now, and I was interested in the MySQL Enterprise version really for the tools that they provide, but we decided not to make the purchase."
"It is free. It is an open-source platform."
"It is an open source platform."
"My company uses MySQL's corporate licenses."
"For the on-premise version, no license is required."
"It is open-source."
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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
8%
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.
909,647 professionals have used our research since 2012.