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GraphBase vs Neo4j

GraphBase: FactNexus's commercial graph DBMS that treats whole graphs as transactional units for knowledge graphs. Neo4j: The default property-graph database, with Cypher, a big ecosystem and a managed cloud.

key differences

  • Licensing: GraphBase is proprietary (Proprietary); Neo4j is open source (copyleft) (GPL-3.0 (Community) / commercial (Enterprise)).
  • Horizontal scaling is native in GraphBase and addon in Neo4j.
  • Only Neo4j has secondary indexes, full-text search, vector search, geospatial, change data capture.

choose graphbase for

  • +Enterprise knowledge graphs
  • +Graph-backed retrieval for LLM applications
  • +Modelling complex interconnected reference data

best at · Knowledge graph, Traversal, RAG

choose neo4j for

  • +Fraud rings and entity resolution
  • +Real-time recommendations
  • +Knowledge graphs for GraphRAG
  • +Network and IT dependency mapping

best at · Traversal, Graph analytics, Knowledge graph

GraphBaseFactNexus's commercial graph DBMS that treats whole graphs as transactional units for knowledge graphs.
Neo4jThe default property-graph database, with Cypher, a big ecosystem and a managed cloud.
overview
Primary model
Graph
Graph
Also supports
RDF / Triple Store
Vector
Type
Database engine
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
FactNexus Pty Ltd
Neo4j, Inc.
First release
2017
2007
Latest version
–
2026.10.1 (Oct 2026)
License
ProprietaryProprietary
Open source (copyleft)GPL-3.0 (Community) / commercial (Enterprise)
Free tier
—
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
0.0
61.2
Rank
#747
#15
GitHub stars
–
17.4K
Stack Overflow questions
–
23K
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
Addon
Multi-region
None
Read replicas
ACID
Full
Full
Consistency
Strong
Strong, Causal
Schema
Flexible
Flexible
Architecture
Distributed, Client server
Single node, Primary replica, Client server
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
GraphBase bounding queries, Visual query builder
Cypher, GQL
Client languages
Java
Java, JavaScript, Python, Go, .NET, Rust (community)
Best for
Knowledge graph, Traversal, RAG
Traversal, Graph analytics, Knowledge graph, RAG
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

GraphBase vs Neo4j: FAQ

What is the difference between GraphBase and Neo4j?

GraphBase: FactNexus's commercial graph DBMS that treats whole graphs as transactional units for knowledge graphs. Neo4j: The default property-graph database, with Cypher, a big ecosystem and a managed cloud. Licensing: GraphBase is proprietary (Proprietary); Neo4j is open source (copyleft) (GPL-3.0 (Community) / commercial (Enterprise)). Horizontal scaling is native in GraphBase and addon in Neo4j. Only Neo4j has secondary indexes, full-text search, vector search, geospatial, change data capture.

When should I choose GraphBase over Neo4j?

Choose GraphBase for enterprise knowledge graphs, graph-backed retrieval for LLM applications and modelling complex interconnected reference data. Choose Neo4j for fraud rings and entity resolution; real-time recommendations; and knowledge graphs for GraphRAG.

Is GraphBase or Neo4j more popular?

Neo4j ranks #15 on the WhichDB Score (61.2/100) and GraphBase ranks #747 (0.0/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are GraphBase and Neo4j open source?

No. GraphBase is proprietary, closed-source software. Yes. Neo4j is open source. License: GPL-3.0 (Community) / commercial (Enterprise).