vs

CockroachDB vs Google F1

CockroachDB: Postgres-wire distributed SQL built to survive node, zone and region failures with serializable transactions. Google F1: Google's internal distributed SQL database on Spanner that replaced sharded MySQL for AdWords.

key differences

  • Licensing: CockroachDB is source-available (CockroachDB Software License); Google F1 is proprietary (Internal Google software (not distributed)).
  • Only CockroachDB has full-text search, vector search, geospatial, json, triggers.
  • CockroachDB has a serverless option; Google F1 does not.

choose cockroachdb for

  • +Global payments and ledger systems of record
  • +Identity, account and session metadata across regions
  • +Inventory and order management with strict consistency
  • +Data-residency workloads that must pin rows to a country

best at · OLTP, Geo, Metadata

choose google-f1 for

  • +Reference design for distributed SQL on a strongly consistent store
  • +Studying online schema-change protocols
  • +Background for choosing Spanner, CockroachDB or YugabyteDB

best at · OLTP, OLAP, HTAP

overview
Primary model
Relational
Relational
Also supports
Document, Spatial, Vector
–
Type
Database engine
Research prototype
Status
Active
Active
Developer
Cockroach Labs
Google
First release
2015
2012
Latest version
26.3 (Aug 19, 2026)
–
License
Source-availableCockroachDB Software License
ProprietaryInternal Google software (not distributed)
Free tier
✓
—
popularity
WhichDB Score
47.1
0.0
Rank
#33
#745
GitHub stars
32.6K
–
Stack Overflow questions
467
–
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Large (≤ 1 PB)
Large (≤ 1 PB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
Native
Multi-region
Active active
Active active
ACID
Full
Full
Consistency
Strong
Strong
Schema
Strict
Strict
Architecture
Distributed, Multi primary, Client server, Serverless
Distributed, Multi primary
deployment
Self-hosted
✓
—
Vendor-managed cloud
✓
—
Serverless
✓
—
Embedded
—
—
Edge
—
—
Clouds
AWS, Google Cloud, Azure
–
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, PL/pgSQL
SQL
Client languages
Java, Go, Python, JavaScript, C#, Ruby, Rust, PHP
–
Best for
OLTP, Geo, Metadata, Ledger
OLTP, OLAP, HTAP

CockroachDB vs Google F1: FAQ

What is the difference between CockroachDB and Google F1?

CockroachDB: Postgres-wire distributed SQL built to survive node, zone and region failures with serializable transactions. Google F1: Google's internal distributed SQL database on Spanner that replaced sharded MySQL for AdWords. Licensing: CockroachDB is source-available (CockroachDB Software License); Google F1 is proprietary (Internal Google software (not distributed)). Only CockroachDB has full-text search, vector search, geospatial, json, triggers. CockroachDB has a serverless option; Google F1 does not.

When should I choose CockroachDB over Google F1?

Choose CockroachDB for global payments and ledger systems of record; identity, account and session metadata across regions; and inventory and order management with strict consistency. Choose Google F1 for reference design for distributed SQL on a strongly consistent store; studying online schema-change protocols; and background for choosing Spanner, CockroachDB or YugabyteDB.

Is CockroachDB or Google F1 more popular?

CockroachDB ranks #33 on the WhichDB Score (47.1/100) and Google F1 ranks #745 (0.0/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are CockroachDB and Google F1 open source?

Not in the OSI sense. CockroachDB is source-available: you can read the code, but the license restricts some uses, typically offering it as a competing managed service. License: CockroachDB Software License. No. Google F1 is proprietary, closed-source software. License: Internal Google software (not distributed).