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Apache Kylin vs ClickHouse

Apache Kylin: OLAP engine that pre-computes cubes and aggregate indexes for sub-second SQL on huge datasets. ClickHouse: Open-source columnar OLAP database known for very fast aggregations over billions of rows.

key differences

  • Transactions: Apache Kylin offers none ACID; ClickHouse offers limited.
  • Only ClickHouse has secondary indexes, full-text search, vector search, geospatial, json.
  • ClickHouse has a serverless option; Apache Kylin does not.

choose apache-kylin for

  • +Enterprise BI dashboards with fixed dimensions
  • +Replacing legacy MOLAP cubes
  • +High-concurrency reporting

best at · OLAP, Warehouse

choose clickhouse for

  • +Product and web analytics
  • +Log and observability backends
  • +Real-time dashboards over event streams
  • +Time-series and IoT metrics at scale

best at · Real-time analytics, OLAP, Observability

Apache KylinOLAP engine that pre-computes cubes and aggregate indexes for sub-second SQL on huge datasets.
ClickHouseOpen-source columnar OLAP database known for very fast aggregations over billions of rows.
overview
Primary model
Columnar / OLAP
Columnar / OLAP
Also supports
Relational
Relational, Document, Vector, Time-Series
Type
Database engine
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
Apache Software Foundation
ClickHouse, Inc.
First release
2014
2016
Latest version
5.0.5 (Jul 13, 2026)
26.10.2.103 (Oct 24, 2026)
License
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
16.9
69.8
Rank
#196
#10
GitHub stars
3.8K
50.6K
Stack Overflow questions
154
2.2K
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Massive (Multi-PB)
Massive (Multi-PB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
Native
Multi-region
None
Read replicas
ACID
None
Limited
Consistency
Eventual
Eventual
Schema
Strict
Strict
Architecture
Distributed, Client server
Distributed, Shared storage, Single node, Client server
deployment
Self-hosted
✓
✓
Vendor-managed cloud
—
✓
Serverless
—
✓
Embedded
—
—
Edge
—
—
Clouds
–
AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Alibaba Cloud, Tencent Cloud, Aiven
capabilities
Transactions
—
—
Joins
✓
✓
Secondary indexes
—
✓
Full-text search
—
✓
Vector search
—
✓
Geospatial
—
✓
JSON
—
✓
Change data capture
—
—
Triggers
—
—
Stored procedures
—
—
Materialized views
✓
✓
TTL / expiry
—
✓
Pub/Sub
—
—
Columnar storage
✓
✓
In-memory
—
—
Durable persistence
✓
✓
Compression
✓
✓
Encryption at rest
—
✓
Role-based access
✓
✓
Time travel
—
—
Branching
—
—
Online schema changes
—
✓
Streaming ingest
—
✓
Offline sync
—
—
Runs in WebAssembly
—
—
interfaces
Query languages
SQL (ANSI)
SQL (ClickHouse dialect), PRQL, KQL (experimental)
Client languages
Java, Python
Python, Go, Java, JavaScript, Rust, C++, C#
Best for
OLAP, Warehouse
Real-time analytics, OLAP, Observability, Warehouse
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

Apache Kylin vs ClickHouse: FAQ

What is the difference between Apache Kylin and ClickHouse?

Apache Kylin: OLAP engine that pre-computes cubes and aggregate indexes for sub-second SQL on huge datasets. ClickHouse: Open-source columnar OLAP database known for very fast aggregations over billions of rows. Transactions: Apache Kylin offers none ACID; ClickHouse offers limited. Only ClickHouse has secondary indexes, full-text search, vector search, geospatial, json. ClickHouse has a serverless option; Apache Kylin does not.

When should I choose Apache Kylin over ClickHouse?

Choose Apache Kylin for enterprise BI dashboards with fixed dimensions, replacing legacy MOLAP cubes and high-concurrency reporting. Choose ClickHouse for product and web analytics; log and observability backends; and real-time dashboards over event streams.

Is Apache Kylin or ClickHouse more popular?

ClickHouse ranks #10 on the WhichDB Score (69.8/100) and Apache Kylin ranks #196 (16.9/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are Apache Kylin and ClickHouse open source?

Yes. Apache Kylin is open source. License: Apache License 2.0. Yes. ClickHouse is open source. License: Apache License 2.0.