whichdb
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SAP HANA vs Starcounter

SAP HANA: SAP's in-memory columnar HTAP database, the mandatory engine under S/4HANA. Starcounter: In-memory .NET application platform where C# classes are database tables, with no ORM in between.

key differences

  • SAP HANA is primarily a relational database; Starcounter is object.
  • SAP HANA is built for larger datasets (≤ 1 PB) than Starcounter (≤ 10 TB).
  • Horizontal scaling is native in SAP HANA and none in Starcounter.
  • Only SAP HANA has full-text search, vector search, geospatial, json, triggers.

choose sap-hana for

  • +Running SAP S/4HANA and BW/4HANA
  • +Real-time operational reporting on ERP data
  • +Embedding analytics and ML (PAL/APL) in SAP business processes
  • +Grounding SAP Joule/AI scenarios with the vector and knowledge-graph engines

best at · HTAP, OLTP, OLAP

choose starcounter for

  • +Line-of-business .NET applications needing very fast transactions
  • +Retail and supply-chain systems with heavy in-memory workloads

best at · OLTP

SAP HANASAP's in-memory columnar HTAP database, the mandatory engine under S/4HANA.
StarcounterIn-memory .NET application platform where C# classes are database tables, with no ORM in between.
overview
Primary model
Relational
Object
Also supports
Columnar / OLAP, Document, Graph, Spatial, Vector
Relational
Type
Database engine
Backend platform
Status
Active
Active
Developer
SAP SE
Starcounter AB
First release
2010
2009
Latest version
HANA Cloud QRC 2/2026 (Jun 2026)
3.0 (2020)
License
ProprietaryProprietary commercial license
ProprietaryStarcounter End User License Agreement
Free tier
✓
—
popularity
WhichDB Score
39.7
2.6
Rank
#48
#472
GitHub stars
–
–
Stack Overflow questions
2K
–
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Large (≤ 1 PB)
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
None
Multi-region
Read replicas
None
ACID
Full
Full
Consistency
Strong
Strong
Schema
Strict
Strict
Architecture
In memory, Distributed, Primary replica, Client server
In memory, Embedded
deployment
Self-hosted
✓
✓
Vendor-managed cloud
✓
—
Serverless
—
—
Embedded
—
—
Edge
—
—
Clouds
AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, Alibaba Cloud
–
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, SQLScript, openCypher
SQL
Client languages
Java, Python, JavaScript, C#, Go, C++, ABAP
C#
Best for
HTAP, OLTP, OLAP, Real-time analytics
OLTP
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

SAP HANA vs Starcounter: FAQ

What is the difference between SAP HANA and Starcounter?

SAP HANA: SAP's in-memory columnar HTAP database, the mandatory engine under S/4HANA. Starcounter: In-memory .NET application platform where C# classes are database tables, with no ORM in between. SAP HANA is primarily a relational database; Starcounter is object. SAP HANA is built for larger datasets (≤ 1 PB) than Starcounter (≤ 10 TB). Horizontal scaling is native in SAP HANA and none in Starcounter.

When should I choose SAP HANA over Starcounter?

Choose SAP HANA for running SAP S/4HANA and BW/4HANA; real-time operational reporting on ERP data; and embedding analytics and ML (PAL/APL) in SAP business processes. Choose Starcounter for line-of-business .NET applications needing very fast transactions; and retail and supply-chain systems with heavy in-memory workloads.

Is SAP HANA or Starcounter more popular?

SAP HANA ranks #48 on the WhichDB Score (39.7/100) and Starcounter ranks #472 (2.6/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are SAP HANA and Starcounter open source?

No. SAP HANA is proprietary, closed-source software. No. Starcounter is proprietary, closed-source software. License: Starcounter End User License Agreement.