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Galera Cluster vs MySQL NDB Cluster

Galera Cluster: Synchronous multi-primary replication for MySQL and MariaDB, now owned by MariaDB plc. MySQL NDB Cluster: Shared-nothing, auto-sharded in-memory MySQL engine built for telecom-grade availability.

key differences

  • Horizontal scaling is none in Galera Cluster and native in MySQL NDB Cluster.
  • Only MySQL NDB Cluster has change data capture, in-memory, compression, online schema changes.

choose galera-cluster for

  • +High-availability MySQL/MariaDB clusters
  • +Zero-RPO failover inside a region
  • +Geographically spread read replicas with consistent data
  • +Active-active setups behind a load balancer such as MaxScale or ProxySQL

best at · OLTP

choose mysql-ndb-cluster for

  • +Telecom subscriber databases (HLR, HSS, 5G UDM)
  • +Online gaming player state
  • +Session and user-profile stores needing five-nines uptime
  • +Payment authorization with strict availability SLAs

best at · OLTP, Sessions, Cache

Galera ClusterSynchronous multi-primary replication for MySQL and MariaDB, now owned by MariaDB plc.
MySQL NDB ClusterShared-nothing, auto-sharded in-memory MySQL engine built for telecom-grade availability.
overview
Primary model
Relational
Relational
Also supports
–
Key-Value
Type
Extension
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
Codership (MariaDB plc)
Oracle Corporation
First release
2009
2004
Latest version
26.4.27 (May 12, 2026)
26.10.0 (Oct 20, 2026)
License
Open source (copyleft)GPL-2.0
Open source (copyleft)GPL-2.0 (Community) / commercial (CGE)
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
10.0
11.4
Rank
#304
#283
GitHub stars
499
–
Stack Overflow questions
406
197
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Horizontal scaling
None
Native
Multi-region
Active active
Active active
ACID
Full
Full
Consistency
Strong
Strong
Schema
Strict
Strict
Architecture
Multi primary, Distributed
Distributed, In memory, Client server
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
SQL
Client languages
C, Java, Python, JavaScript, Go, PHP
C++, Java, JavaScript, C, Python, PHP
Best for
OLTP
OLTP, Sessions, Cache, Real-time analytics
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

Galera Cluster vs MySQL NDB Cluster: FAQ

What is the difference between Galera Cluster and MySQL NDB Cluster?

Galera Cluster: Synchronous multi-primary replication for MySQL and MariaDB, now owned by MariaDB plc. MySQL NDB Cluster: Shared-nothing, auto-sharded in-memory MySQL engine built for telecom-grade availability. Horizontal scaling is none in Galera Cluster and native in MySQL NDB Cluster. Only MySQL NDB Cluster has change data capture, in-memory, compression, online schema changes.

When should I choose Galera Cluster over MySQL NDB Cluster?

Choose Galera Cluster for high-availability MySQL/MariaDB clusters, zero-RPO failover inside a region and geographically spread read replicas with consistent data. Choose MySQL NDB Cluster for telecom subscriber databases (HLR, HSS, 5G UDM); online gaming player state; and session and user-profile stores needing five-nines uptime.

Is Galera Cluster or MySQL NDB Cluster more popular?

MySQL NDB Cluster ranks #283 on the WhichDB Score (11.4/100) and Galera Cluster ranks #304 (10.0/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are Galera Cluster and MySQL NDB Cluster open source?

Yes. Galera Cluster is open source. License: GPL-2.0. Yes. MySQL NDB Cluster is open source. License: GPL-2.0 (Community) / commercial (CGE).