head to head · open source
DBeaver vs spicedb
DBeaver has 52,273 GitHub stars, 4,442 forks, 3,334 open issues and last shipped yesterday. spicedb has 7,186 stars, 438 forks, 157 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. DBeaver leads on adoption by 627% (52,273 vs 7,186 stars). DBeaver is written in Java under Apache-2.0; spicedb is written in Go under Apache-2.0. DBeaver has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, spicedb 6%. 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.
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Side by side
| DBeaver | spicedb | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 52K | ★ 7.2K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Java | Go |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-01 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.4K | ⑂ 438 |
| 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 spicedb if
- You want the spicedb 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 spicedb 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 spicedb
SpiceDB sets the standard for authorization that scales . Scale with Traffic • Dev Velocity • Functionality • Geography What is SpiceDB? SpiceDB is the most mature open source project inspired by Google's internal authorization system: [Zanzibar]. As of 2021, [broken access control became the 1 threat to web security according to OWASP][owasp]. With SpiceDB, platform and product teams can be be protected by answering this question easily: "can subject X perform action Y on resource Z?" Similar to a relational database, developers define a schema , write data in the form of relationships , and then use SpiceDB's…
read the full spicedb overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is DBeaver or spicedb more popular?
DBeaver has 52,273 GitHub stars and spicedb has 7,186. DBeaver has the larger community by that measure.
Are DBeaver and spicedb free?
Both are open source. DBeaver is licensed under Apache-2.0 and spicedb under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between DBeaver and spicedb?
DBeaver is written in Java and spicedb 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 spicedb?
Choose DBeaver if you want the larger community (52,273 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose spicedb if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.