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Cassandra vs Neo4j Graph Database 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

Cassandra
Ranking in NoSQL Databases
5th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
22
Ranking in other categories
Vector Databases (14th)
Neo4j Graph Database
Ranking in NoSQL Databases
9th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the NoSQL Databases category, the mindshare of Cassandra is 13.1%, up from 12.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Neo4j Graph Database is 4.0%, up from 3.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
NoSQL Databases
 

Featured Reviews

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.
AM
A flexible database with good documentation
If someone asks me whether to use Neo4j Graph Database, I'd want to know what they're building. I'd recommend it based on their use case. If it meets their needs, I'd suggest it. I recommend starting with the tool even for those exploring graph databases. It's been around since about 2010 and is better than other graph databases in many ways. Learning the tool depends on the programming language you're using. We had some challenges with Golang due to limited library support. However, Neo4j is easier to use with Node.js, JavaScript, or Python. Overall, I'd rate the tool eight to nine out of ten. It offers great features, scalability, and flexibility and has good documentation. It's easy to learn. However, every database has pros and cons, so the rating might change when comparing it to other graph databases.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We can add almost one million columns to the solution."
"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 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."
"The solution's database capabilities are very good."
"The most valuable features of this solution are its speed and distributed nature."
"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."
"The time series data was one of the best features along with auto publishing."
"For now, the tool doesn't break down or stop, so it is quite stable."
"Creates the ability to visualize outputs."
"It is good for search-based tasks, providing solid search results and aggregate results."
"As a graph database, I am surprised at their performance and response time."
"Enables people to understand what the business problem is and how the technology helps."
"The solution's best feature is how it differs from traditional SQL databases. It's hard to map people and find those near me in SQL, which requires long, complex queries. Neo4j Graph Database makes this easier with simpler queries. It also supports more data types, like JSON, which SQL doesn't."
 

Cons

"The solution doesn't have joins between tables so you need other tools for that."
"The solution is not easy to use because it is a big database and you have to learn the interface. This is the case though in most of these solutions."
"Cassandra could be more user-friendly like MongoDB."
"The disc space is lacking. You need to free it up as you are working."
"The initial setup of Cassandra can be difficult in the configuration. There might be a need to have assistance. The implementation process can six months for connecting to certain databases."
"It can be difficult to analyze what's going on inside of the database relative to other databases. It can also be difficult to troubleshoot sometimes."
"Interface is not user friendly."
"The secondary index in Cassandra was a bit problematic and could be improved."
"For me, when the tool was deployed on an on-premises model, it was a little bit difficult the first time."
"So far, we have not had any issues and are happy with the product in general."
"There are concerns about performance and whether the tool can necessarily scale to provide the solution."
"The tool could improve by having more resources, especially for Golang, which we use. It lacks good basic libraries and doesn't have an ORM (Object-Relational Mapping) tool, which many NoSQL databases have. We thought about building an ORM for the Neo4j Graph Database but are too busy."
"The only problem is that the community is quite small."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"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."
"We pay for a license."
"We are using the open-source version of Cassandra, the solution is free."
"I don't have the specific numbers on pricing, but it was fairly priced."
"There are licensing fees that must be paid, but I'm not sure if they are paid monthly or yearly."
"The solution is open source so that you can use it for free. They also offer an enterprise version with its billing. If your company is earning well, I suggest using the enterprise version. Otherwise, you can deploy it on your own cloud and pay based on usage."
"The tool is not expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
19%
Computer Software Company
15%
Healthcare Company
7%
University
5%
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
16%
Energy/Utilities Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cassandra?
I am not familiar with the experience of pricing, setup cost, and licensing.
What needs improvement with Cassandra?
We experience configuration issues when accommodating the volumes we require, which often necessitates consultation with the Cassandra development team. This aspect is room for improvement. Additio...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Neo4j?
The solution is open source so that you can use it for free. They also offer an enterprise version with its billing. If your company is earning well, I suggest using the enterprise version. Otherwi...
What needs improvement with Neo4j Graph Database?
The tool could improve by having more resources, especially for Golang, which we use. It lacks good basic libraries and doesn't have an ORM (Object-Relational Mapping) tool, which many NoSQL databa...
What is your primary use case for Neo4j Graph Database?
We're building a social media platform, which is a great use case for the product. It helps connect people. For example, if we're friends on Facebook, I can get suggestions for people near me or re...
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

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
Walmart, Telenor, Wazoku, Adidas, Cerved, GameSys, eBay, Schleich, ICIJ, die Bayerisch, Megree, InfoJobs, LinkedIn
Find out what your peers are saying about Cassandra vs. Neo4j Graph Database and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
831,997 professionals have used our research since 2012.