DB-EnginesExtremeDB for everyone with an RTOSEnglish
Deutsch
Knowledge Base of Relational and NoSQL Database Management Systemsprovided by solid IT

DBMS > FoundationDB vs. Informix vs. NuoDB vs. PostgreSQL

System Properties Comparison FoundationDB vs. Informix vs. NuoDB vs. PostgreSQL

Please select another system to include it in the comparison.

Editorial information provided by DB-Engines
NameFoundationDB  Xexclude from comparisonInformix  Xexclude from comparisonNuoDB  Xexclude from comparisonPostgreSQL  Xexclude from comparison
Created as commercial project in 2013, FoundationDB has been acquired by Apple in March 2015 and was withdrawn from the market. As a consequence, the product was removed from the DB-Engines ranking. In April 2018, Apple open-sourced FoundationDB and it therefore reappears in the ranking.
DescriptionOrdered key-value store. Core features are complimented by layers.A secure embeddable database from IBM, positioned besides IBM Db2 as a relatively low-cost product optimized for OLTP and Internet of Things dataNuoDB is a webscale distributed database that supports SQL and ACID transactionsWidely used open source RDBMS infoDeveloped as objectoriented DBMS (Postgres), gradually enhanced with 'standards' like SQL
Primary database modelDocument store infosupported via specific layer
Key-value store
Relational DBMS infosupported via specific SQL-layer
Relational DBMS infoSince Version 12.10 support for JSON/BSON datatypes compatible with MongoDBRelational DBMSRelational DBMS infowith object oriented extensions, e.g.: user defined types/functions and inheritance. Handling of key/value pairs with hstore module.
Secondary database modelsDocument store
Spatial DBMS
Time Series DBMS infowith Informix TimeSeries Extension
Document store
Graph DBMS infowith Apache Age
Spatial DBMS
Vector DBMS infowith pgvector extension
DB-Engines Ranking infomeasures the popularity of database management systemsranking trend
Trend Chart
Score1.06
Rank#185  Overall
#31  Document stores
#28  Key-value stores
#85  Relational DBMS
Score17.12
Rank#34  Overall
#21  Relational DBMS
Score0.94
Rank#197  Overall
#92  Relational DBMS
Score636.25
Rank#4  Overall
#4  Relational DBMS
Websitegithub.com/­apple/­foundationdbwww.ibm.com/­products/­informixwww.3ds.com/­nuodb-distributed-sql-databasewww.postgresql.org
Technical documentationapple.github.io/­foundationdbinformix.hcldoc.com
www.ibm.com/­support/­knowledgecenter/­SSGU8G/­welcomeIfxServers.html
doc.nuodb.comwww.postgresql.org/­docs
DeveloperFoundationDBIBM, HCL Technologies infoEffective May 1st, 2017, HCL took on development, technical support, and product management teams, and works jointly with IBM on product strategy, marketing, and sales.Dassault Systèmes infooriginally NuoDB, Inc.PostgreSQL Global Development Group infowww.postgresql.org/­developer
Initial release2013198420131989 info1989: Postgres, 1996: PostgreSQL
Current release6.2.28, November 202014.10.FC5, November 202016.3, May 2024
License infoCommercial or Open SourceOpen Source infoApache 2.0commercial infofree developer edition availablecommercial infolimited edition freeOpen Source infoBSD
Cloud-based only infoOnly available as a cloud servicenononono
DBaaS offerings (sponsored links) infoDatabase as a Service

Providers of DBaaS offerings, please contact us to be listed.
  • Aiven for PostgreSQL: Fully managed PostgreSQL for developers with 70+ extensions and flexible orchestration tools.
  • PostgreSQL Flex @ STACKIT offers managed PostgreSQL Instances with adjustable CPU, RAM, storage amount and speed and several extensions available, in enterprise grade to perfectly match all application requirements. All 100% GDPR-compliant.
Implementation languageC++C, C++ and JavaC++C
Server operating systemsLinux
OS X
Windows
AIX
HP-UX
Linux
macOS
Solaris
Windows
hosted infoAmazon EC2, Windows Azure, SoftLayer
Linux
OS X
Windows
FreeBSD
HP-UX
Linux
NetBSD
OpenBSD
OS X
Solaris
Unix
Windows
Data schemeschema-free infosome layers support schemasyesyesyes
Typing infopredefined data types such as float or dateno infosome layers support typingyes infoSince Version 12.10 support for JSON/BSON datatypesyesyes
XML support infoSome form of processing data in XML format, e.g. support for XML data structures, and/or support for XPath, XQuery or XSLT.noyes infospecific XML-type available, but no XML query functionality.
Secondary indexesnoyesyesyes
SQL infoSupport of SQLsupported in specific SQL layer onlyyesyesyes infostandard with numerous extensions
APIs and other access methodsJDBC
JSON API infoMongoDB compatible
MQTT (Message Queue Telemetry Transport)
ODBC
RESTful HTTP API
ADO.NET
JDBC
ODBC
ADO.NET
JDBC
native C library
ODBC
streaming API for large objects
Supported programming languages.Net
C
C++
Go
Java
JavaScript infoNode.js
PHP
Python
Ruby
Swift
.Net
C
C++
Java
JavaScript (Node.js)
PHP
Python
Ruby
.Net
C
C++
Go
Java
JavaScript
JavaScript (Node.js)
PHP
Python
Ruby
.Net
C
C++
Delphi
Java infoJDBC
JavaScript (Node.js)
Perl
PHP
Python
Tcl
Server-side scripts infoStored proceduresin SQL-layer onlyyesJava, SQLuser defined functions inforealized in proprietary language PL/pgSQL or with common languages like Perl, Python, Tcl etc.
Triggersnoyesyesyes
Partitioning methods infoMethods for storing different data on different nodesShardingShardingdata is dynamically stored/cached on the nodes where it is read/writtenpartitioning by range, list and (since PostgreSQL 11) by hash
Replication methods infoMethods for redundantly storing data on multiple nodesyesMulti-source replication
Source-replica replication
yes infoManaged transparently by NuoDBSource-replica replication infoother methods possible by using 3rd party extensions
MapReduce infoOffers an API for user-defined Map/Reduce methodsnononono
Consistency concepts infoMethods to ensure consistency in a distributed systemLinearizable consistencyImmediate ConsistencyImmediate ConsistencyImmediate Consistency
Foreign keys infoReferential integrityin SQL-layer onlyyesyesyes
Transaction concepts infoSupport to ensure data integrity after non-atomic manipulations of dataACIDACIDACID infotunable commit protocolACID
Concurrency infoSupport for concurrent manipulation of datayesyesyes infoMVCCyes
Durability infoSupport for making data persistentyesyesyesyes
In-memory capabilities infoIs there an option to define some or all structures to be held in-memory only.yesyes infoTemporary tableno
User concepts infoAccess controlnoUsers with fine-grained authentication, authorization, and auditing controlsStandard SQL roles/ privileges, Administrative Usersfine grained access rights according to SQL-standard

More information provided by the system vendor

We invite representatives of system vendors to contact us for updating and extending the system information,
and for displaying vendor-provided information such as key customers, competitive advantages and market metrics.

Related products and services
3rd partiesRedgate webinars: A series of key topics for new PostgreSQL users.
» more

pgDash: In-Depth PostgreSQL Monitoring.
» more

Navicat for PostgreSQL is an easy-to-use graphical tool for PostgreSQL database development.
» more

SharePlex is the reliable and affordable data replication solution for PostgreSQL migrations, high availability and more.
» more

CYBERTEC is your professional partner in PostgreSQL topics for over 20 years. As our main aim is to be your single-source all-in-one IT service provider, we offer a wide range of products and services. Visit our website for more details.
» more

Instaclustr: Fully Hosted & Managed PostgreSQL
» more

Navicat Monitor is a safe, simple and agentless remote server monitoring tool for PostgreSQL and many other database management systems.
» more

Aiven for PostgreSQL: Fully managed PostgreSQL for developers with 70+ extensions and flexible orchestration tools.
» more

We invite representatives of vendors of related products to contact us for presenting information about their offerings here.

More resources
FoundationDBInformixNuoDBPostgreSQL
DB-Engines blog posts

Meet some database management systems you are likely to hear more about in the future
4 August 2014, Paul Andlinger

show all

PostgreSQL is the DBMS of the Year 2023
2 January 2024, Matthias Gelbmann, Paul Andlinger

Snowflake is the DBMS of the Year 2022, defending the title from last year
3 January 2023, Matthias Gelbmann, Paul Andlinger

Snowflake is the DBMS of the Year 2021
3 January 2022, Paul Andlinger, Matthias Gelbmann

show all

Recent citations in the news

FoundationDB team's new venture, Antithesis, raises $47M to enhance software testing
13 February 2024, SiliconANGLE News

Stonebraker Seeks to Invert the Computing Paradigm with DBOS
12 March 2024, Datanami

Antithesis raises $47M to launch an automated testing platform for software
13 February 2024, TechCrunch

FoundationDB, a very interesting NoSQL database owned by Apple, is now an open-source project
19 April 2018, GeekWire

Apple Open Sources FoundationDB
19 April 2018, MacRumors

provided by Google News

IBM Informix: A key part of IBM’s hybrid cloud and AI strategy
11 January 2024, ibm.com

IBM Buys Informix for $1 Billion
1 June 2024, ITPro Today

Unlock the value of your Informix data for advanced analytics and AI with watsonx.data
24 April 2024, ibm.com

IBM Informix review: What you need to know about the software
12 December 2022, TechRepublic

IBM Informix Database in the Cloud | AWS News Blog
1 May 2009, AWS Blog

provided by Google News

Dassault Systèmes Announces the Acquisition of NuoDB, a Cloud-Native Distributed SQL Database Leader
25 November 2020, Dassault Systèmes

Deploy the NuoDB Database in Docker Containers
16 October 2017, The New Stack

NuoDB set to improve distributed SQL performance
7 January 2020, TechTarget

Big Data Product Watch 1/31/17: No-Cost NuoDB, GPU Analytics, Cloud Object Storage, More -- ADTmag
31 January 2017, ADT Magazine

NuoDB Raises $14.2M Round Led By Dassault Systèmes For Its Distributed Database Management System
26 February 2014, TechCrunch

provided by Google News

PostgreSQL is Now Faster than Pinecone, 75% Cheaper, with New Open Source Extensions
11 June 2024, PR Newswire

Timescale unveils high-performance AI vector database extensions for PostgreSQL
11 June 2024, SiliconANGLE News

PostgreSQL Tutorial: Definition, Commands, & Features
4 June 2024, Simplilearn

Raise the bar on AI-powered app development with Azure Database for PostgreSQL
5 June 2024, Microsoft

How to implement a better like, views, comment counters in PostgreSQL?
28 May 2024, SitePoint

provided by Google News



Share this page

Featured Products

Milvus logo

Vector database designed for GenAI, fully equipped for enterprise implementation.
Try Managed Milvus for Free

Neo4j logo

See for yourself how a graph database can make your life easier.
Use Neo4j online for free.

Datastax Astra logo

Bring all your data to Generative AI applications with vector search enabled by the most scalable
vector database available.
Try for Free

Present your product here