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SequoiaDB vs TiDB

SequoiaDB: Chinese distributed document database with native ACID storage, SQL instances and S3 API, used in many banks. TiDB: MySQL-compatible distributed SQL with a row store for OLTP and a columnar replica for real-time analytics.

key differences

  • SequoiaDB is primarily a document database; TiDB is relational.
  • TiDB is built for larger datasets (Multi-PB) than SequoiaDB (≤ 1 PB).
  • Only TiDB has vector search, change data capture, ttl / expiry, columnar storage, encryption at rest.
  • TiDB has a serverless option; SequoiaDB does not.

choose sequoiadb for

  • +Historical and full-volume data platforms in banking
  • +Real-time data hubs combining JSON and SQL access
  • +Content and image management with an S3-compatible API
  • +Mainframe offload of read-heavy financial data

best at · OLTP, Content, OLAP

choose tidb for

  • +Replacing hand-sharded MySQL
  • +HTAP dashboards on live transactional data
  • +SaaS platforms with very large tenant counts
  • +Payment and order systems at internet scale

best at · OLTP, HTAP, Real-time analytics

SequoiaDBChinese distributed document database with native ACID storage, SQL instances and S3 API, used in many banks.
TiDBMySQL-compatible distributed SQL with a row store for OLTP and a columnar replica for real-time analytics.
overview
Primary model
Document
Relational
Also supports
Relational, Key-Value
Document, Columnar / OLAP, Vector
Type
Database engine
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
SequoiaDB Corporation
PingCAP
First release
2013
2017
Latest version
–
8.5.8 (Aug 27, 2026)
License
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0 (relicensed from AGPL-3.0 in 2025)
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
3.2
35.9
Rank
#444
#56
GitHub stars
10
40.7K
Stack Overflow questions
–
102
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Large (≤ 1 PB)
Massive (Multi-PB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
Native
Multi-region
Read replicas
Read replicas
ACID
Full
Full
Consistency
Strong
Strong
Schema
Flexible
Strict
Architecture
Distributed, Primary replica
Distributed, Client server, Serverless
deployment
Self-hosted
✓
✓
Vendor-managed cloud
—
✓
Serverless
—
✓
Embedded
—
—
Edge
—
—
Clouds
–
AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, 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
SequoiaDB shell (JavaScript), SQL via MySQL/PostgreSQL instances
SQL
Client languages
C, C++, Java, Python, PHP, C#
Java, Go, Python, JavaScript, C#, Ruby, PHP, Rust
Best for
OLTP, Content, OLAP
OLTP, HTAP, Real-time analytics, Vector search
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

SequoiaDB vs TiDB: FAQ

What is the difference between SequoiaDB and TiDB?

SequoiaDB: Chinese distributed document database with native ACID storage, SQL instances and S3 API, used in many banks. TiDB: MySQL-compatible distributed SQL with a row store for OLTP and a columnar replica for real-time analytics. SequoiaDB is primarily a document database; TiDB is relational. TiDB is built for larger datasets (Multi-PB) than SequoiaDB (≤ 1 PB). Only TiDB has vector search, change data capture, ttl / expiry, columnar storage, encryption at rest.

When should I choose SequoiaDB over TiDB?

Choose SequoiaDB for historical and full-volume data platforms in banking; real-time data hubs combining JSON and SQL access; and content and image management with an S3-compatible API. Choose TiDB for replacing hand-sharded MySQL, HTAP dashboards on live transactional data and SaaS platforms with very large tenant counts.

Is SequoiaDB or TiDB more popular?

TiDB ranks #56 on the WhichDB Score (35.9/100) and SequoiaDB ranks #444 (3.2/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are SequoiaDB and TiDB open source?

Yes. SequoiaDB is open source. License: Apache License 2.0 (relicensed from AGPL-3.0 in 2025). Yes. TiDB is open source. License: Apache License 2.0.