whichdb
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TiDB vs Vitess

TiDB: MySQL-compatible distributed SQL with a row store for OLTP and a columnar replica for real-time analytics. Vitess: CNCF-graduated sharding and clustering layer that makes a fleet of MySQL servers look like one database.

key differences

  • Transactions: TiDB offers full ACID; Vitess offers limited.
  • Only TiDB has vector search, ttl / expiry, columnar storage, encryption at rest, time travel.
  • Only Vitess has full-text search, materialized views.
  • TiDB has a serverless option; Vitess does not.

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

choose vitess for

  • +Scaling a large MySQL application beyond one primary
  • +Multi-tenant SaaS sharded by customer
  • +Consolidating many MySQL databases under one routing layer
  • +Zero-downtime schema migrations on huge tables

best at · OLTP, Metadata, Content

TiDBMySQL-compatible distributed SQL with a row store for OLTP and a columnar replica for real-time analytics.
VitessCNCF-graduated sharding and clustering layer that makes a fleet of MySQL servers look like one database.
overview
Primary model
Relational
Relational
Also supports
Document, Columnar / OLAP, Vector
Document
Type
Database engine
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
PingCAP
Vitess Authors (CNCF; maintained largely by PlanetScale)
First release
2017
2012
Latest version
8.5.8 (Aug 27, 2026)
24.0.5 (Oct 13, 2026)
License
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
35.9
21.2
Rank
#56
#142
GitHub stars
40.7K
21.4K
Stack Overflow questions
102
54
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Massive (Multi-PB)
Massive (Multi-PB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
Native
Multi-region
Read replicas
Read replicas
ACID
Full
Limited
Consistency
Strong
Strong, Eventual
Schema
Strict
Strict
Architecture
Distributed, Client server, Serverless
Distributed, Primary replica, Client server
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
SQL
SQL
Client languages
Java, Go, Python, JavaScript, C#, Ruby, PHP, Rust
Java, Go, Python, JavaScript, PHP, Ruby, C#
Best for
OLTP, HTAP, Real-time analytics, Vector search
OLTP, Metadata, Content
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

TiDB vs Vitess: FAQ

What is the difference between TiDB and Vitess?

TiDB: MySQL-compatible distributed SQL with a row store for OLTP and a columnar replica for real-time analytics. Vitess: CNCF-graduated sharding and clustering layer that makes a fleet of MySQL servers look like one database. Transactions: TiDB offers full ACID; Vitess offers limited. Only TiDB has vector search, ttl / expiry, columnar storage, encryption at rest, time travel. Only Vitess has full-text search, materialized views.

When should I choose TiDB over Vitess?

Choose TiDB for replacing hand-sharded MySQL, HTAP dashboards on live transactional data and SaaS platforms with very large tenant counts. Choose Vitess for scaling a large MySQL application beyond one primary, multi-tenant SaaS sharded by customer and consolidating many MySQL databases under one routing layer.

Is TiDB or Vitess more popular?

TiDB ranks #56 on the WhichDB Score (35.9/100) and Vitess ranks #142 (21.2/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are TiDB and Vitess open source?

Yes. TiDB is open source. License: Apache License 2.0. Yes. Vitess is open source. License: Apache License 2.0.