head to head · open source
orm vs usql
orm has 47,640 GitHub stars, 2,538 forks, 2,627 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. usql has 10,117 stars, 406 forks, 121 open issues and last shipped 7 days ago. orm leads on adoption by 371% (47,640 vs 10,117 stars). orm is written in TypeScript under Apache-2.0; usql is written in Go under MIT. orm has attracted 5% as many forks as stars, usql 4%. orm was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 4 topic tags (database, mariadb, mysql, postgres), 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
| orm | usql | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 48K | ★ 10K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-13 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.5K | ⑂ 406 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick orm if
- You weight community size — 48K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick usql if
- You want the usql feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and usql fits your workflow better
About orm
Prisma ORM is a next generation TypeScript ORM for Node.js and TypeScript applications, supporting PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQL Server, SQLite, MongoDB, and CockroachDB, and it is aimed at developers and teams building data backed applications in that ecosystem.
About usql
usql is a universal command line interface for PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle Database, SQLite3, Microsoft SQL Server and many other SQL and NoSQL databases, built for database administrators and developers who want the familiar psql experience when working against databases other than PostgreSQL.
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Frequently asked questions
Is orm or usql more popular?
orm has 47,640 GitHub stars and usql has 10,117. orm has the larger community by that measure.
Are orm and usql free?
Both are open source. orm is licensed under Apache-2.0 and usql under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between orm and usql?
orm is written in TypeScript and usql 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, orm or usql?
Choose orm if you want the larger community (47,640 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose usql if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.