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IBM Db2 Database vs MariaDB 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

IBM Db2 Database
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
75
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
MariaDB
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
Open Source Databases (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of IBM Db2 Database is 7.5%, up from 6.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MariaDB is 5.9%, down from 9.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Relational Databases Tools Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
MariaDB5.9%
IBM Db2 Database7.5%
Other86.6%
Relational Databases Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Michael Raz - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient access path optimization and performance excellence with helpful support
IBM Db2 for zOS serves as the central database for all the core business applications in the two banks I work with. All applications use Db2 as a data server. We fully implement and utilize most of Db2's functionalities and capabilities for core banking business applications IBM Db2 has…
KumarManish - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to deploy, cost-effective, and integrates seamlessly with other products
We had planned for an RDBMS version and not NoSQL. We use MariaDB Galera Cluster. It's a good product. It is cheap, scalable, performs well, and is efficient. We use GCP’s BigQuery for machine learning. We must follow the best practices of the tool. We missed some best practices like the storage engine and InnoDB. It was very difficult to identify why we were having performance issues. Then, we realized that some of our tables were still on MyISAM, the default storage engine. When we switched it back to the InnoDB, it was very smooth. InnoDB is the recommended one. We must follow the best practices given in the documentation during the initial setup. Overall, I rate the product a nine out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"IBM Db2 Database has good performance."
"The solution can scale."
"The setup process has become much easier recently."
"Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten."
"The IBM Db2 Database is trusted, and IT effort is less than any other product."
"The most valuable features of this solution are security and stability."
"The solution is stable."
"The solution has many beneficial features, such as security, support, and stability."
"From a customer perspective, MariaDB is a good choice for cluster configuration. It's also easy to operate and cheap."
"The most valuable feature is that it uses multiple cores, which is better than some of the other databases."
"I haven't faced any technical issues with the product, and it works fine."
"The solution is very stable. It was originally built under MySQL. It has a similar level of stability."
"The stability of MariaDB is good, it has high availability."
"The solution's high availability is its most valuable aspect."
"The speed and functionality are the most valuable features."
"There is the need for a robust IDE for MongoDB. The existing PHP admin console doesn't meet the client's requirements effectively."
 

Cons

"The GUI interface is not particularly friendly for those who do not have experience with the product."
"Some of the internal rearrangement in the administration is not as straightforward as it is in competing products."
"The only drawback that we see in Db2 Database is the crash recovery. When there is a crash and somebody has to do the recovery, Db2 Database first stops, and then it does any crash recovery. In Oracle Database, crash recovery happens within the database. The database is not shut down."
"We just want a bit more integration with Linux. That said, we are already seeing Linux more readily available on the mainframe environment."
"IBM Db2 Database could improve in the steps it takes for upgrades. It is not an easy process. The process of upgrading the version is lengthy and requires a lot of time. To make it more efficient, I suggest implementing some automation on the solution side. This will greatly reduce the time required for the upgrade."
"IBM Db2 Database could improve the user-defined functions. There are some user-defined functions that are missing, such as the spring functions. I used to have Teradata for my projects and I was used to working in the environment. They had a good set of user-defined functions."
"The capabilities of this solution could improve."
"The usage of Db2 could be simplified, as it is quite complex and requires substantial knowledge of Db2 and zOS."
"Maria DB has to improve from a management perspective."
"It does not have tools for debugging procedures and functions."
"Lacks time series data and additional driving support would be helpful."
"The dashboard and pricing need improvement."
"Integration with AWS could be improved."
"MariaDB doesn't handle long or complex SQL queries quite as well as Oracle Database."
"I'd like to see improved materialized views, like the ability to save select queries. This feature is missing in MariaDB compared to other relational databases like Oracle and SQL Server."
"Document caching is an area of concern in the product, where improvements are required to help MariaDB improve on the previous queries as they are retained, and you can roll back to them."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would rate the pricing a five out of ten. It's not super expensive, but also not cheap."
"If I consider the price of IBM Db2 Database, I would say there are cheaper products in the market."
"It's very expensive."
"The total cost of the solution depends upon the PVU licensing"
"I rate the product pricing a nine out of ten."
"We normally handle large size businesses and as far as I am aware, the license is negotiable based on the number of users and the quantitative data."
"Compared to Oracle, it is so much cheaper."
"Db2 is less expensive than Oracle."
"MariaDB is available for free."
"My company uses the free version of the solution."
"We use the solution's free version."
"MariaDB is a free-to-use solution."
"It is free of charge."
"There is a monthly subscription to use MariaDB."
"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."
"The cost is quite good. You can have the open source, free version, which has adequate capacity."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
20%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise48
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business26
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise25
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Db2 Database?
Db2 database scalability and performance capabilities match our database needs. It covers pretty much everything a database administrator or engineer might need.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Db2 Database?
IBM Db2 is an expensive solution. While I am not heavily involved with pricing, additional companies provide capabilities or products like those from BMC, which many installations might also purchase.
What needs improvement with IBM Db2 Database?
The IBM Db2 Database is a good solution, but now there is a high maintenance charge. The IBM Db2 Database needs improved support, and there are many difficulties in using it. We tend to use the clo...
What do you like most about MariaDB?
The integration with other products is seamless.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for MariaDB?
I have found the price of commercial MariaDB to be pretty steep, although not as high as Oracle. Customers often prefer the Community Edition because it's free.
What needs improvement with MariaDB?
The only potential area for improvement could be the pricing model, which might benefit from being more flexible or a bit cheaper.
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

DB2
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Knorr-Bremse, Mizuho Bank Ltd., Australian Government Department of Defence, SCHWENK Zement, Friedhelm Loh Group, YAZAKI Europe Limited, Ekornes ASA, Baldor Electric, VSN Systemen BV, Lion Brewery (Ceylon) PLC, PLANSEE Group, TE Connectivity, Hansgrohe SE, Openmatics, University of Toronto
Google, Wikipedia, Tencent, Verizon, DBS Bank, Deutsche Bank, Telefónica, Huatai Securities
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Db2 Database vs. MariaDB and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
867,349 professionals have used our research since 2012.