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Firebird SQL vs MySQL comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 27, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Firebird SQL
Ranking in Open Source Databases
3rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Embedded Database (4th)
MySQL
Ranking in Open Source Databases
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
150
Ranking in other categories
Relational Databases Tools (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Open Source Databases category, the mindshare of Firebird SQL is 15.2%, down from 20.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MySQL is 8.9%, down from 14.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Open Source Databases Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
MySQL8.9%
Firebird SQL15.2%
Other75.9%
Open Source Databases
 

Featured Reviews

Ruben Conti - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers good performance for up to a hundred end users, open source and easy to setup
Firebird can compete with well-known names like Oracle and SQL Server when you don't have more than a few hundred thousand users. It's a level below SQL Server, and the application of SQL is a kind of database you can rely on for situations where you don't have too much information to deal with. For example, you can use it for the internet or national projects, but when you have millions of users, then it's not possible for other services.
Prabir Kumar Kundu - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers robust security and availability with impressive replication capabilities
Regarding their documentation and interface, there is room for improvement. Documentation is definitely required when running multiple databases on a cluster system. The load balancer, MySQL LB, which is used to connect to the application, lacks clear documentation. When there are multiple application servers connecting to the MySQL cluster and going through the MySQL load balancer, the documentation is not user-friendly. It's there, but only technical persons with deep knowledge of the MySQL database can implement it. Most of the community users or ISVs who use MySQL don't have many technical persons or DBA experts, so they face some challenges for the high availability of connecting high available databases from high available applications. That documentation should be simplified.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"I appreciate the fact that, once the database is embedded, it doesn't need to be administered, and removes the requirement for a specific server."
"The reliability and ease of management are very valuable."
"The product was easy to use."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution."
"The solution is very useful for stock management."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is reliable, offers good performance, and is easy to use."
"I can deploy it on Linux, Mac OS, and Windows — it's very easy."
"Robustness is the absolutely main feature."
"The product is flexible and easy to use."
"MySQL is open-source. There are a lot of open-source communities trying to come up with their own patches, and to come up with their own features, which help MySQL develop faster than traditional databases like Oracle, which is closed source."
"It creates a unified view of the entire architecture and performance factor, helping to manage the network more easily."
"The solution is easy to use."
"MySQL gives us a very user-friendly workspace in which to query the database."
"The solution is very stable."
"The ML modules in MySQL are advantageous since they make data handling easy and quick at MNQM."
"The tool is open-source and there is no cost involved in its use."
 

Cons

"It is not easy to integrate the tool with Visual Studio."
"It would be nice to have a graphical user interface to handle the product."
"It would be interesting if they added functionality with redundancy, reputation, and variability."
"The security of the users could improve in Firebird SQL."
"We would like to improve the management of very large databases."
"Database sharing is a capability that Firebird SQL lacks."
"This solution isn't very user-friendly, or intuitive, which could be improved when it is developed."
"The main feature I expect is to be able to work with different databases at the same time because that's a wishlist item for me."
"As an open-source product, there isn't really any technical support available if you get into trouble or have issues."
"It can have better monitoring. In addition, the enterprise manager should be able to cater to more than one virtual machine. Currently, you need one license per server. It seems a bit too much to get one license for one enterprise manager. I hope the enterprise manager for MySQL can accommodate more virtual machines for MySQL."
"The solution could be more secure."
"Could use some additional JSON query support in the solution."
"The GUI could improve to make MySQL better."
"From a user perspective, the initial setup could be simplified a bit."
"The analytics features are in need of improvement."
"It isn't as reliable as an SQL Server."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool is open source."
"It is okay."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is freely available."
"It is a public domain system as every customer can install it on their system without paying any license fee."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution, which means it is a free product."
"It's open-source and free."
"There is no licensing cost for this solution, as it is open-source."
"There is a yearly maintenance fee for the use of the solution."
"The price of the solution is good because we have a good partner."
"We are using the licensed version of MySQL."
"It's free."
"We do have a couple of clients who choose to use the paid, enterprise version of the solution and who take full advantage of it."
"There is a license needed for this solution."
"It is open-source."
"It's an open-source database management system that can be used free of charge."
"The tool is open source."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business73
Midsize Enterprise31
Large Enterprise61
 

Questions from the Community

How does Firebird SQL compare with PostgreSQL?
PostgreSQL was designed in a way that provides you with not only a high degree of flexibility but also offers you a cheap and easy-to-use solution. It gives you the ability to redesign and audit yo...
What do you like most about Firebird SQL?
Firebird SQL is an open-source solution.
Why are MySQL connections encrypted and what is the biggest benefit of this?
MySQL encrypts connections to protect your data and the biggest benefit from this is that nobody can corrupt it. If you move information over a network without encryption, you are endangering it, m...
Considering that there is a free version of MySQL, would you invest in one of the paid editions?
I may be considered a MySQL veteran since I have been using it since before Oracle bought it and created paid versions. So back in my day, it was all free, it was open-source and the best among sim...
What is one thing you would improve with MySQL?
One thing I would improve related to MySQL is not within the product itself, but with the guides to it. Before, when it was free, everyone was on their own, seeking tutorials and how-to videos onli...
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Elekt Labs, Streamsoft, wobe-systems GmbH, DRB Systems, Moscow City Hospital #31
Facebook, Tumblr, Scholastic, MTV Networks, Wikipedia, Verizon Wireless, Sage Group, Glassfish Open Message Queue, and RightNow Technologies.
Find out what your peers are saying about Firebird SQL vs. MySQL and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
871,469 professionals have used our research since 2012.