vs

Badger vs bbolt

Badger: Pure-Go LSM key-value store that separates keys from values to cut write amplification. bbolt: etcd's maintained fork of BoltDB: a simple, pure-Go B+tree store in a single file.

key differences

  • Badger is built for larger datasets (≤ 10 TB) than bbolt (≤ 100 GB).
  • Only Badger has ttl / expiry, pub/sub, in-memory, compression, encryption at rest.

choose badger for

  • +Storage layer for Go databases and services
  • +Embedded state for Go daemons and CLIs
  • +Write-heavy local key-value workloads with medium-to-large values

best at · Embedded, OLTP, Metadata

choose bbolt for

  • +Embedded metadata stores in Go services
  • +Raft log and snapshot storage
  • +Local state for CLIs and agents

best at · Embedded, Metadata, Coordination

overview
Primary model
Key-Value
Key-Value
Also supports
–
–
Type
Embedded library
Embedded library
Status
Active
Active
Developer
Dgraph (Istari Digital)
etcd maintainers / CNCF
First release
2017
2017
Latest version
4.9.6 (Aug 5, 2026)
1.5.0 (Jun 21, 2026)
License
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0
Open source (permissive)MIT License
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
10.7
11.5
Rank
#294
#282
GitHub stars
15.8K
9.8K
Stack Overflow questions
10
41
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Small (≤ 100 GB)
Horizontal scaling
None
None
Multi-region
None
None
ACID
Full
Full
Consistency
Strong
Strong
Schema
Schemaless
Schemaless
Architecture
Embedded
Embedded
deployment
Self-hosted
✓
✓
Vendor-managed cloud
—
—
Serverless
—
—
Embedded
✓
✓
Edge
—
—
Clouds
–
–
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
Go API
Go API
Client languages
Go
Go
Best for
Embedded, OLTP, Metadata
Embedded, Metadata, Coordination

Badger vs bbolt: FAQ

What is the difference between Badger and bbolt?

Badger: Pure-Go LSM key-value store that separates keys from values to cut write amplification. bbolt: etcd's maintained fork of BoltDB: a simple, pure-Go B+tree store in a single file. Badger is built for larger datasets (≤ 10 TB) than bbolt (≤ 100 GB). Only Badger has ttl / expiry, pub/sub, in-memory, compression, encryption at rest.

When should I choose Badger over bbolt?

Choose Badger for storage layer for Go databases and services; embedded state for Go daemons and CLIs; and write-heavy local key-value workloads with medium-to-large values. Choose bbolt for embedded metadata stores in Go services; raft log and snapshot storage; and local state for CLIs and agents.

Is Badger or bbolt more popular?

bbolt ranks #282 on the WhichDB Score (11.5/100) and Badger ranks #294 (10.7/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are Badger and bbolt open source?

Yes. Badger is open source. License: Apache License 2.0. Yes. bbolt is open source. License: MIT License.