vs

c-treeACE vs SQLite

c-treeACE: FairCom's embeddable ISAM, SQL and JSON database engine, now sold as FairCom DB; roots in 1984's c-tree. SQLite: The in-process SQL engine that ships in every phone, browser and OS: one file, zero servers.

key differences

  • Licensing: c-treeACE is proprietary (Commercial license); SQLite is open source (permissive) (Public Domain).
  • c-treeACE is built for larger datasets (≤ 10 TB) than SQLite (≤ 100 GB).
  • Horizontal scaling is manual in c-treeACE and none in SQLite.
  • Only c-treeACE has stored procedures, role-based access.
  • Only SQLite has in-memory, runs in webassembly.

choose c-treeace for

  • +Embedded database inside commercial or industrial software
  • +Modernising Btrieve, ISAM or COBOL applications
  • +High-speed record access with SQL reporting on the same tables
  • +Edge and IIoT data collection with FairCom Edge

best at · OLTP, Embedded, IoT

choose sqlite for

  • +Mobile and desktop application storage
  • +Embedded devices and IoT
  • +Local-first apps and offline caches
  • +Test fixtures and data interchange files

best at · Embedded, Mobile/offline, Edge

overview
Primary model
Relational
Relational
Also supports
Key-Value, Document
Document
Type
Database engine
Embedded library
Status
Active
Active
Developer
FairCom Corporation
D. Richard Hipp / Hwaci (SQLite Consortium)
First release
1984
2000
Latest version
–
3.54.1 (Oct 16, 2026)
License
ProprietaryCommercial license
Open source (permissive)Public Domain
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
0.0
75.5
Rank
#699
#5
GitHub stars
–
10.8K
Stack Overflow questions
–
94.9K
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Small (≤ 100 GB)
Horizontal scaling
Manual
None
Multi-region
Active active
None
ACID
Full
Full
Consistency
Strong, Eventual
Strong
Schema
Flexible
Flexible
Architecture
Embedded, Client server, Primary replica
Embedded, Single node
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
SQL, JSON DB API
SQL
Client languages
C, C++, Java, C#, Python, JavaScript
C, Python, Java, JavaScript, Go, Rust, C#, Swift
Best for
OLTP, Embedded, IoT, Edge
Embedded, Mobile/offline, Edge, Local-first

c-treeACE vs SQLite: FAQ

What is the difference between c-treeACE and SQLite?

c-treeACE: FairCom's embeddable ISAM, SQL and JSON database engine, now sold as FairCom DB; roots in 1984's c-tree. SQLite: The in-process SQL engine that ships in every phone, browser and OS: one file, zero servers. Licensing: c-treeACE is proprietary (Commercial license); SQLite is open source (permissive) (Public Domain). c-treeACE is built for larger datasets (≤ 10 TB) than SQLite (≤ 100 GB). Horizontal scaling is manual in c-treeACE and none in SQLite.

When should I choose c-treeACE over SQLite?

Choose c-treeACE for embedded database inside commercial or industrial software; modernising Btrieve, ISAM or COBOL applications; and high-speed record access with SQL reporting on the same tables. Choose SQLite for mobile and desktop application storage; embedded devices and IoT; and local-first apps and offline caches.

Is c-treeACE or SQLite more popular?

SQLite ranks #5 on the WhichDB Score (75.5/100) and c-treeACE ranks #699 (0.0/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are c-treeACE and SQLite open source?

No. c-treeACE is proprietary, closed-source software. License: Commercial license. Yes. SQLite is open source. License: Public Domain.