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Apache HBase vs Cassandra comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 7, 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

Apache HBase
Ranking in NoSQL Databases
11th
Average Rating
6.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cassandra
Ranking in NoSQL Databases
4th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
24
Ranking in other categories
Vector Databases (15th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the NoSQL Databases category, the mindshare of Apache HBase is 5.4%, up from 5.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cassandra is 10.8%, down from 12.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
NoSQL Databases
 

Featured Reviews

Sekhar Reddy B - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers real-time aggregations and easy for a beginner to learn to use this
We use it for real-time data grouping The most valuable part is the column family structure. We mainly use it for real-time aggregations. That's why we prefer it as a NoSQL database. We've seen performance issues when we have more regions. The product needs improvement in that area. So we…
Himanshu Amodwala - PeerSpot reviewer
Well-equipped to handle a massive influx of data and billions of requests
The use of Cassandra in real-time data analytics has been pivotal for our e-commerce platform. As our platform operates 24/7, providing services to sellers and customers alike, the need for real-time updates is paramount. For instance, when a customer leaves comments or feedback on an image, they anticipate an immediate reflection of these changes on the portal. Similarly, sellers altering product attributes or updating images expect instant visibility of these modifications. Handling large data volumes with Cassandra has been an excellent experience. Despite challenges related to the influx, these were not attributed to Cassandra itself but rather to middle-layer issues. Generally, it demonstrated scalability with workloads, thanks to its horizontal scaling capabilities. We could easily add new nodes to the system as needed, ensuring the platform coped well with increasing loads. The tool's most beneficial feature for scalability is its entire architecture. The absence of a single point of failure or a leader within the ecosystem contributes to its robust scalability. This key aspect influenced our decision to opt for the Cassandra ecosystem. In terms of performance, it demonstrated the ability to handle approximately 1.6 billion requests per day. This was achieved on AWS using EC2 instances, and it was during a period about four to five years ago.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable part is the column family structure."
"Apache HBase is a database used for data storage."
"Cassandra is good. It's better than CouchDB, and we are using it in parallel with CouchDB. Cassandra looks better and is more user-friendly."
"The time series data was one of the best features along with auto publishing."
"The most valuable features of Cassandra are the NoSQL database, high performance, and zero-copy streaming."
"The most valuable features of Cassandra are its scaling capabilities and its non-SQL nature capabilities."
"I am getting much better performance than relational databases."
"The most valuable feature of Cassandra is its fast retrieval. Additionally, the solution can handle large amounts of data. It is the quickest application we use."
"I'd rate the solution ten out of ten."
"Since I haven't had years of experience with it, it's still new to me. One valuable feature is its distribution, so I can run it partly in the cloud and part on-prem. That's a feature I'd like to use but haven't yet because we're trying to move to Azure. I don't know if or when that will happen. Ideally, we'd have it distributed over the cloud and on-prem simultaneously, so if something happens to our on-prem, we can keep going in the cloud, like a pay-as-you-go model with Azure."
 

Cons

"We've seen performance issues."
"I don't like using Apache HBase to store huge amounts of data because of many performance issues."
"Fine-tuning was a bit of a challenge."
"Maybe they can improve their performance in data fetching from a high volume of data sets."
"Doesn't support a solution that can give aggregation."
"While Cassandra can handle NoSQL, I think there should be more flexibility for whole schema design when data is stored in wide columns. Additionally, I believe that eventual consistency should be enhanced."
"There were challenges with the query language and the development interface. The query language, in particular, could be improved for better optimization. These challenges were encountered while using the Java SDK."
"We experience configuration issues when accommodating the volumes we require, which often necessitates consultation with the Cassandra development team."
"Cassandra could be more user-friendly like MongoDB."
"Depending upon our schema, we can't make ORDER BY or GROUP BY clauses in the product."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"Cassandra is a free open source solution, but there is a commercial version available called DataStax Enterprise."
"I use the tool's open-source version."
"There are licensing fees that must be paid, but I'm not sure if they are paid monthly or yearly."
"We pay for a license."
"I don't have the specific numbers on pricing, but it was fairly priced."
"We are using the open-source version of Cassandra, the solution is free."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
23%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
7%
Financial Services Firm
21%
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
5%
University
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Apache HBase?
Apache HBase is a database used for data storage.
What needs improvement with Apache HBase?
We've seen performance issues when we have more regions. The product needs improvement in that area. So we experience performance issues sometimes when the load increases.
What advice do you have for others considering Apache HBase?
It's better to use AWS DynamoDB or Cassandra. I would rate it an eight out of ten. It is easy for a beginner to learn.
What do you like most about Cassandra?
The use of Cassandra in real-time data analytics has been pivotal for our e-commerce platform. As our platform operates 24/7, providing services to sellers and customers alike, the need for real-ti...
What needs improvement with Cassandra?
While Cassandra can handle NoSQL, I think there should be more flexibility for whole schema design when data is stored in wide columns. Additionally, I believe that eventual consistency should be e...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

HBase
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bloomberg, Wells Fargo, Apple, Capital One, NVIDIA
1. Apple 2. Netflix 3. Facebook 4. Instagram 5. Twitter 6. eBay 7. Spotify 8. Uber 9. Airbnb 10. Adobe 11. Cisco 12. IBM 13. Microsoft 14. Yahoo 15. Reddit 16. Pinterest 17. Salesforce 18. LinkedIn 19. Hulu 20. Airbnb 21. Walmart 22. Target 23. Sony 24. Intel 25. Cisco 26. HP 27. Oracle 28. SAP 29. GE 30. Siemens 31. Volkswagen 32. Toyota
Find out what your peers are saying about Apache HBase vs. Cassandra and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,190 professionals have used our research since 2012.