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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 (3rd)
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 (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Open Source Databases category, the mindshare of Firebird SQL is 15.8%, down from 20.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MySQL is 9.2%, down from 15.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Open Source Databases Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
MySQL9.2%
Firebird SQL15.8%
Other75.0%
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

"The product was easy to use."
"I can deploy it on Linux, Mac OS, and Windows — it's very easy."
"The documentation is very well written."
"It helps us in detecting all kinds of problems in the code, such as bad quality, unclear code, or any violation in the code or best practices."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution."
"I find the ease of deployment to be the most valuable aspect of this solution."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution and can run on most operating systems, such as Linux, Unix, and Windows."
"The solution is very useful for stock management."
"It is pretty simple to use and I don't have anything really bad to say about it."
"We use it as a data store and from that perspective, we get everything we need."
"The most valuable feature of MySQL is its reliability and performance."
"MySQL is easy and convenient for me. I don't need to rely on anyone. I can write the code and extract the information. It is fast if you know how to use it. The solution is not expensive, and most of the developers know how to use it. It is easy to create tables. The solution is stable and has good performance. The connection with AWS gives regular updates, which is manual otherwise and a nightmare."
"My main reason for using MySQL for this small customer database company and for some kinds of scientific projects was that I had to do the installation myself. I didn't have a database administration team behind me. Therefore, I was looking for something very easy to handle. MySQL is easy to install, connect, and do all such things."
"It is a scalable solution."
"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."
"This is a lightweight product that is not demanding on the resources, which is what I think gives it the edge."
 

Cons

"It is not easy to integrate the tool with Visual Studio."
"The solution could improve by providing partitioning and encryption. It is not at the higher level of database solution but it could be with some upgrades."
"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."
"It would be nice to have a graphical user interface to handle the product."
"On large databases, we have some difficulties."
"Some problems with big table operations, and a struggle to keep the servers responding in peak situations."
"The auto-tuning and NDB cluster has some limitations regarding foreign keys."
"The tool needs to improve table visualization."
"The GUI could improve in MySQL."
"The documentation is pretty weak and should be improved."
"On the database side, it should be really lightweight, and the data structure should be like MongoDB."
"The manuals or documentation could be better."
"I find the Microsoft solution a bit better. But mostly in terms of the UI layout, I would say. I just find it a little bit more efficient."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is a public domain system as every customer can install it on their system without paying any license fee."
"We are using the free solution, so there is no cost involved."
"Firebird SQL is an open-source solution, which means it is a free product."
"The tool is open source."
"There is a yearly maintenance fee for the use of the solution."
"I was using the free version of Firebird SQL."
"It is okay."
"It's open-source and free."
"It is an open source platform."
"It has a community version."
"There is not a license required for this solution."
"This is an open-source product that can be used free of charge."
"The tool is open source."
"I don't pay for a license."
"Can range from free to quite expensive, depending on the environments and requirements, so better to really set goals ahead of setting it up."
"The solution’s pricing depends on customer requirements. A license is not required for the community edition."
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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
7%
Educational Organization
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.
867,497 professionals have used our research since 2012.