head to head · open source
DBeaver vs FerretDB
DBeaver has 52,273 GitHub stars, 4,442 forks, 3,334 open issues and last shipped yesterday. FerretDB has 11,111 stars, 493 forks, 448 open issues and last shipped 5 months ago. DBeaver leads on adoption by 370% (52,273 vs 11,111 stars). DBeaver is written in Java under Apache-2.0; FerretDB is written in Go under Apache-2.0. DBeaver has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, FerretDB 4%. DBeaver was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (database), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| DBeaver | FerretDB | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 52K | ★ 11K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Java | Go |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-06-05 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.4K | ⑂ 493 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick DBeaver if
- You weight community size — 52K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick FerretDB if
- You want the FerretDB feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and FerretDB fits your workflow better
About DBeaver
DBeaver Free multi platform database tool for developers, SQL programmers, database administrators and analysts. Has a lot of features including schema editor, SQL editor, data editor, AI chat, ER diagrams, data export/import/migration, SQL execution plans, database administration tools, database dashboards, Spatial data viewer, proxy and SSH tunnelling, custom database drivers editor, etc. Out of the box supports more than 100 database drivers . Supports any database which has JDBC or ODBC driver (basically almost all existing databases). Integrates AI tools for work with data, SQL and database structure…
read the full DBeaver overview →
About FerretDB
FerretDB [!TIP] Looking for FerretDB v1? It is there. FerretDB is an open source alternative to MongoDB. It is a proxy that converts MongoDB 5.0+ wire protocol queries to SQL and uses PostgreSQL with DocumentDB extension as a database engine. Why do we need FerretDB? MongoDB was originally an eye opening technology for many of us developers, empowering us to build applications faster than using relational databases. In its early days, its ease to use and well documented drivers made MongoDB one of the simplest database solutions available. However, as time passed, MongoDB abandoned its open source roots…
read the full FerretDB overview →
More in Infrastructure & Operations
Related comparisons
More Databases projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Databases field.
Frequently asked questions
Is DBeaver or FerretDB more popular?
DBeaver has 52,273 GitHub stars and FerretDB has 11,111. DBeaver has the larger community by that measure.
Are DBeaver and FerretDB free?
Both are open source. DBeaver is licensed under Apache-2.0 and FerretDB under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between DBeaver and FerretDB?
DBeaver is written in Java and FerretDB in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, DBeaver or FerretDB?
Choose DBeaver if you want the larger community (52,273 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose FerretDB if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.