whichdb
vs

LMDB vs TidesDB

LMDB: Tiny memory-mapped B+tree with ACID transactions and lock-free readers; reached 1.0 in 2026. TidesDB: Young C storage-engine library: transactional LSM with MVCC, column families and TTL.

key differences

  • Licensing: LMDB is open source (permissive) (OpenLDAP Public License 2.8); TidesDB is open source (copyleft) (Mozilla Public License 2.0).
  • LMDB is built for larger datasets (≤ 10 TB) than TidesDB (≤ 100 GB).
  • Only TidesDB has ttl / expiry, compression.

choose lmdb for

  • +Read-heavy embedded indexes and caches
  • +Directory services (OpenLDAP back-mdb)
  • +Blockchain and wallet state
  • +ML dataset storage with fast random reads

best at · Embedded, Metadata, Local-first

choose tidesdb for

  • +Building custom database engines
  • +Embedded transactional storage in C/C++ systems
  • +Experimenting with alternatives to RocksDB

best at · Embedded, OLTP

LMDBTiny memory-mapped B+tree with ACID transactions and lock-free readers; reached 1.0 in 2026.
TidesDBYoung C storage-engine library: transactional LSM with MVCC, column families and TTL.
overview
Primary model
Key-Value
Key-Value
Also supports
–
Wide-Column
Type
Embedded library
Embedded library
Status
Active
Active
Developer
Symas Corporation / OpenLDAP Project
TidesDB (Alex Gaetano Padula)
First release
2011
2024
Latest version
1.0.2 (Sep 8, 2026)
10.2.1 (Oct 12, 2026)
License
Open source (permissive)OpenLDAP Public License 2.8
Open source (copyleft)Mozilla Public License 2.0
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
39.7
13.7
Rank
#47
#249
GitHub stars
3.1K
606
Stack Overflow questions
260
–
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
C API
C API
Client languages
C, C++, Python, Go, Rust, Java, JavaScript
C, C++, Go, Rust, Python, Java
Best for
Embedded, Metadata, Local-first
Embedded, OLTP
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

LMDB vs TidesDB: FAQ

What is the difference between LMDB and TidesDB?

LMDB: Tiny memory-mapped B+tree with ACID transactions and lock-free readers; reached 1.0 in 2026. TidesDB: Young C storage-engine library: transactional LSM with MVCC, column families and TTL. Licensing: LMDB is open source (permissive) (OpenLDAP Public License 2.8); TidesDB is open source (copyleft) (Mozilla Public License 2.0). LMDB is built for larger datasets (≤ 10 TB) than TidesDB (≤ 100 GB). Only TidesDB has ttl / expiry, compression.

When should I choose LMDB over TidesDB?

Choose LMDB for read-heavy embedded indexes and caches; directory services (OpenLDAP back-mdb); and blockchain and wallet state. Choose TidesDB for building custom database engines, embedded transactional storage in C/C++ systems and experimenting with alternatives to RocksDB.

Is LMDB or TidesDB more popular?

LMDB ranks #47 on the WhichDB Score (39.7/100) and TidesDB ranks #249 (13.7/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are LMDB and TidesDB open source?

Yes. LMDB is open source. License: OpenLDAP Public License 2.8. Yes. TidesDB is open source. License: Mozilla Public License 2.0.