head to head · open source
DBeaver vs rainfrog
DBeaver has 51,797 GitHub stars, 4,372 forks, 3,334 open issues and last shipped yesterday. rainfrog has 5,337 stars, 95 forks, 14 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. DBeaver leads on adoption by 871% (51,797 vs 5,337 stars). DBeaver is written in Java under Apache-2.0; rainfrog is written in Rust under MIT. DBeaver has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, rainfrog 2%. DBeaver was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (mysql), 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.
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Side by side
| DBeaver | rainfrog | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 52K | ★ 5.3K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Java | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.4K | ⑂ 95 |
| 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 rainfrog if
- You want the rainfrog feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and rainfrog fits your workflow better
About DBeaver
DBeaver is a free, multi platform database management tool built in Java, designed for developers, SQL programmers, database administrators, and analysts. It operates across Windows, macOS, and Linux and integrates with the Eclipse based plugin ecosystem via OSGi and Eclipse RCP frameworks.
read the full DBeaver overview →
About rainfrog
rainfrog is a lightweight, MIT licensed terminal database client written in Rust, built for developers and operators who want to browse schemas, run queries, and inspect tables against PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, and similar engines without leaving the shell.
read the full rainfrog overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is DBeaver or rainfrog more popular?
DBeaver has 51,797 GitHub stars and rainfrog has 5,337. DBeaver has the larger community by that measure.
Are DBeaver and rainfrog free?
Both are open source. DBeaver is licensed under Apache-2.0 and rainfrog under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between DBeaver and rainfrog?
DBeaver is written in Java and rainfrog in Rust. 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 rainfrog?
Choose DBeaver if you want the larger community (51,797 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose rainfrog if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.