head to head · open source
nebula vs typedb
nebula has 12,398 GitHub stars, 1,329 forks, 678 open issues and last shipped 12 days ago. typedb has 4,458 stars, 375 forks, 310 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. nebula leads on adoption by 178% (12,398 vs 4,458 stars). nebula is written in C++ under Apache-2.0; typedb is written in Rust under MPL-2.0. nebula has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, typedb 8%. typedb was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (database, knowledge-base), 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
| nebula | typedb | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 12K | ★ 4.5K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MPL-2.0 |
| Written in | C++ | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-09-08 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.3K | ⑂ 375 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick nebula if
- You weight community size — 12K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches C++
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick typedb if
- You want the typedb feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MPL-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and typedb fits your workflow better
About nebula
NebulaGraph is an open source, distributed graph database written in C++ and released under the Apache 2.0 license. It lives in the graph database ecosystem and appears in the CNCF Database Landscape. The project describes itself as symmetrically distributed, with storage and computing separated into distinct layers, horizontal scalability across nodes, strong data consistency enforced through the RAFT protocol, an OpenCypher compatible query language, role based access control, and a set of graph analytics algorithms. It has been developed for roughly eight years and carries 12,387 stars, 1,330 forks, and 678 op…
read the full nebula overview →
About typedb
TypeDB is an open source database project written in Rust and licensed under MPL 2.0. It lives in the database and knowledge representation ecosystem, and its registry category covers content, documentation, and knowledge bases. The project introduces TypeQL as its query language and targets nested, interconnected data expressed through a strongly typed schema rather than only through tables, documents, or graph edges.
read the full typedb overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is nebula or typedb more popular?
nebula has 12,398 GitHub stars and typedb has 4,458. nebula has the larger community by that measure.
Are nebula and typedb free?
Both are open source. nebula is licensed under Apache-2.0 and typedb under MPL-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between nebula and typedb?
nebula is written in C++ and typedb 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, nebula or typedb?
Choose nebula if you want the larger community (12,398 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose typedb if its feature set, stack or MPL-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.