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NebulaGraph vs Neo4j

NebulaGraph: Shared-nothing distributed graph database for trillion-edge graphs, with GQL in Enterprise v5. Neo4j: The default property-graph database, with Cypher, a big ecosystem and a managed cloud.

key differences

  • Licensing: NebulaGraph is open source (permissive) (Apache License 2.0 (open-source edition); Enterprise is commercial); Neo4j is open source (copyleft) (GPL-3.0 (Community) / commercial (Enterprise)).
  • NebulaGraph is built for larger datasets (≤ 1 PB) than Neo4j (≤ 10 TB).
  • Horizontal scaling is native in NebulaGraph and addon in Neo4j.
  • Transactions: NebulaGraph offers limited ACID; Neo4j offers full.
  • Only NebulaGraph has ttl / expiry, compression.
  • Only Neo4j has transactions, vector search, geospatial, change data capture, stored procedures.

choose nebulagraph for

  • +Social and relationship graphs at internet scale
  • +Risk control and anti-fraud in finance
  • +Knowledge graphs for search and recommendation
  • +Device and account linkage graphs

best at · Traversal, Graph analytics, Knowledge graph

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

NebulaGraphShared-nothing distributed graph database for trillion-edge graphs, with GQL in Enterprise v5.
Neo4jThe default property-graph database, with Cypher, a big ecosystem and a managed cloud.
overview
Primary model
Graph
Graph
Also supports
–
Vector
Type
Database engine
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
Vesoft Inc.
Neo4j, Inc.
First release
2019
2007
Latest version
3.8.0 (May 17, 2024)
2026.10.1 (Oct 2026)
License
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0 (open-source edition); Enterprise is commercial
Open source (copyleft)GPL-3.0 (Community) / commercial (Enterprise)
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
18.1
61.2
Rank
#183
#15
GitHub stars
12.5K
17.4K
Stack Overflow questions
119
23K
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Large (≤ 1 PB)
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
Addon
Multi-region
None
Read replicas
ACID
Limited
Full
Consistency
Strong
Strong, Causal
Schema
Strict
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
nGQL, openCypher (subset), GQL (Enterprise v5)
Cypher, GQL
Client languages
Java, Python, Go, C++, JavaScript (community)
Java, JavaScript, Python, Go, .NET, Rust (community)
Best for
Traversal, Graph analytics, Knowledge graph, OLTP
Traversal, Graph analytics, Knowledge graph, RAG
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

NebulaGraph vs Neo4j: FAQ

What is the difference between NebulaGraph and Neo4j?

NebulaGraph: Shared-nothing distributed graph database for trillion-edge graphs, with GQL in Enterprise v5. Neo4j: The default property-graph database, with Cypher, a big ecosystem and a managed cloud. Licensing: NebulaGraph is open source (permissive) (Apache License 2.0 (open-source edition); Enterprise is commercial); Neo4j is open source (copyleft) (GPL-3.0 (Community) / commercial (Enterprise)). NebulaGraph is built for larger datasets (≤ 1 PB) than Neo4j (≤ 10 TB). Horizontal scaling is native in NebulaGraph and addon in Neo4j.

When should I choose NebulaGraph over Neo4j?

Choose NebulaGraph for social and relationship graphs at internet scale; risk control and anti-fraud in finance; and knowledge graphs for search and recommendation. Choose Neo4j for fraud rings and entity resolution; real-time recommendations; and knowledge graphs for GraphRAG.

Is NebulaGraph or Neo4j more popular?

Neo4j ranks #15 on the WhichDB Score (61.2/100) and NebulaGraph ranks #183 (18.1/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are NebulaGraph and Neo4j open source?

Yes. NebulaGraph is open source. License: Apache License 2.0 (open-source edition); Enterprise is commercial. Yes. Neo4j is open source. License: GPL-3.0 (Community) / commercial (Enterprise).