ClickHouse vs MariaDB vs PocketBase
ClickHouse, MariaDB, PocketBase compared on license, free-edition limits, deployment and project health. Change a project below to compare something else.
| ClickHouse | MariaDB | PocketBase | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Backend & Databases | Backend & Databases | Backend & Databases |
| License | Apache License 2.0Open source (OSI) | GNU General Public License v2.0Open source (OSI) | MIT LicenseOpen source (OSI) |
| Free edition | Some features paywalled | Not confirmed | Fully featured free edition |
| Deployment | Self-hosted · Cloud | Self-hosted · Cloud | Self-hosted |
| Self-hosting setup | Single container | Single container | Single container |
| SSO / SAML | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Role-based access control | Free | Free | Not confirmed |
| Audit logs | Not confirmed | Free | Not confirmed |
| Multi-user / teams | Free | Not confirmed | Free |
| Backups and restore | Free | Free | Free |
| API access | Free | Not confirmed | Free |
| Support SLA | Paid | Paid | Not confirmed |
| GitHub stars | 50k | 8.4k | 61k |
| Last release | Oct 12, 2026 | Sep 15, 2026 | Oct 8, 2026 |
| Alternative to | BigQuery, Snowflake | MySQL, Oracle Database | Firebase |
In short
- ClickHouse is licensed Apache License 2.0 (open source (osi)). Free edition: some features paywalled.
- MariaDB is licensed GNU General Public License v2.0 (open source (osi)). Free edition: not confirmed.
- PocketBase is licensed MIT License (open source (osi)). Free edition: fully featured free edition.
Each project page lists the official sources behind these answers. Where the official pages do not say, the table shows “Not confirmed”.