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Dev tools · alternatives · 2026

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24 alternatives to Kùzu: An Embeddable GDBMS like DuckDB/SQLite from UWaterloo

Hello HN! Today, we are pleased to publicly release Kùzu: a new embeddable graph database management system under a permissible license. You can see our blog post in the above link that gives an overview of the system and our goals/vision. The system is in its early stages but please try it out and give us your feedback, tell us your feature requests, and please report bugs!

Kùzu is an embeddable graph database management system designed for developers who need to store and query connected data within applications. Similar to DuckDB and SQLite, it operates as a self-contained library… Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Kùzu: An Embeddable GDBMS like DuckDB/SQLite from UWaterloo launched in 2022; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

  1. 1IB

    We show the potential of modern, embedded graph databases in the browser by demonstrating a fully in-browser chatbot that can perform Graph RAG using Kuzu (the graph database we're building) and WebLLM, a popular in-browser inference engine for LLMs. The post retrieves from the graph via a Text-to-Cypher pipeline that translates a user question into a Cypher query, and the LLM uses the retrieved results to synthesize a response. As LLMs get better, and WebGPU and Wasm64 become more widely adopted, we expect to be able to do more and more in the browser in combination with LLMs, so a lot of…

    2025 · blog.kuzudb.com · its alternatives →

  2. 2
    Mitzu▲491

    Ask funnel, retention, and cohort questions in plain language. Mitzu auto-builds a governed semantic layer and answers with deterministic, reviewable SQL.

    2024 · mitzu.io · its alternatives →

  3. 3

    Hi HN, I have been making this Cozo database since half a year ago, and now it is ready for public release. My initial motivation is that I want a graph database. Lightweight and easy to use, like SQLite. Powerful and performant, like Postgres. I found none of the existing solutions good enough. Deciding to roll my own, I need to choose a query language. I am familiar with Cypher but consider it not much of an improvement over CTE in SQL (Cypher is sometimes notationally more convenient, but not more expressive). I like Gremlin but would prefer something more declarative. Experimentations…

    2022 · github.com · its alternatives →

  4. 4

    We have been using graph DBs more and more at work. I found them painful to work with locally and decided to try and build something better.

    Aug 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

  5. 5

    Hey HN! We are Jonathan & Guy, and we are happy to share a project we’ve been working on. ChartDB is a tool to help developers and data analysts quickly visualize database schemas by generating ER diagrams with just one query. A unique feature of our product is AI-Powered export for easy migration. You can give it a try at https://chartdb.io and find the source code on GitHub. Next steps ---> More AI. We’d love feedback :)

    2024 · github.com · its alternatives →

  6. 6

    Hey HN, we want to share HelixDB (https://github.com/HelixDB/helix-db/), a project a college friend and I are working on. It’s a new database that natively intertwines graph and vector types, without sacrificing performance. It’s written in Rust and our initial focus is on supporting RAG. Here’s a video runthrough: https://screen.studio/share/szgQu3yq. Why a hybrid? Vector databases are useful for similarity queries, while graph databases are useful for relationship queries. Each stores data in a way that’s best for its main type of query (e.g.…

    2025 · github.com · its alternatives →

  7. 7

    This is a simple graph database in SQLite, inspired by "SQLite as a document database" - dpapathanasiou/simple-graph

    2020 · github.com · its alternatives →

  8. 8

    Recently created a minimal persistent relational database in Go. Main focus was on implementing & understanding working the of database, storage management & transaction handling. Use of B+ Tree for storage engine(support for indexing), managing a Free List (for reusing nodes), Support for transactions, Concurrent Reads. Still have many things to add & fix like query processing being one of the main & fixing some bugs Repo link - https://github.com/Sahilb315/AtomixDB Would love to hear your thoughts

    2025 · github.com · its alternatives →

  9. 9

    A complete platform for integrating natural language to SQL

    2016 · its alternatives →

  10. 10
    Kumu▲151

    Beautifully organize complex data into relationship maps

    2021 · kumu.io · its alternatives →

  11. 11

    A Go SQL query builder and struct mapper. Contribute to samonzeweb/godb development by creating an account on GitHub.

    2016 · github.com · its alternatives →

  12. 12

    A distributed, fast open-source graph database featuring horizontal scalability and high availability - GitHub - vesoft-inc/nebula: A distributed, fast open-source graph database featuring horizontal scalability and high availability

    2020 · github.com · its alternatives →

  13. 13

    One year ago I open-sourced my very first 'real' project and shared it here. I was a college student in my senior year and desperately looking for a job. At the time of sharing it i couldn't even afford a domain and naively let someone buy the one i had my eyes on lol. It's been a hell of a year with this blowing up, me moving to another country, and switching 2 jobs. In a year we somehow managed to hit 26k stars, grow a 1000+ person discord community, and support 37 languages. I couldn't be more grateful for the community that helped this grow, but now i don't know what direction to take…

    2025 · drawdb.app · its alternatives →

  14. 14
    GraphCMS▲264

    The GraphQL CMS

    2017 · hygraph.com · its alternatives →

  15. 15

    The content delivery platform that truly hops.

    Feb 2026 · bunny.net · its alternatives →

  16. 16VO

    vizzu - Library for animated data visualizations and data stories

    2021 · lib.vizzuhq.com · its alternatives →

  17. 17

    A graph database that supports more than 100+ billion data, high performance and scalability (Include OLTP Engine & REST-API & Backends) - hugegraph/hugegraph

    2018 · github.com · its alternatives →

  18. 18
    Vizzu▲225

    Open-source JS library to build animated charts with ease

    2022 · vizzu.io · its alternatives →

  19. 19

    Portable, Serverless & Lightweight SQLite-based Graph Database in Arturo - drkameleon/grafito

    2021 · github.com · its alternatives →

  20. 20
    KubeDB▲72

    Run production-grade databases easily on Kubernetes

    2018 · kubedb.com · its alternatives →

  21. 21

    Hey HN, it’s been just over a year since we launched HelixDB (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43975423), a project a friend and I started in college. It’s an OLTP graph database built on object-storage, with native vector search and full-text search (FTS). Why graph, vector and FTS? Graph databases provide a natural cognitive model for data, vectors allow for a semantic understanding of the entities and relationships in the graph, and FTS provides more specific filtering. Many AI-driven applications attempt to combine all of these functionalities by stitching together…

    Jun 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

  22. 22CH

    Hi HN! We're thrilled to share CozoDB v0.6, a monumental update to our FOSS database, which already unifies relational and graph features. With the addition of vector search, CozoDB becomes an even better companion for LLMs like ChatGPT. This release introduces vector search using HNSW indices within Datalog, enabling seamless integration with powerful features such as ad-hoc joins, recursive Datalog, and classical whole-graph algorithms. This update significantly broadens CozoDB's capabilities. Check out the linked release note for an in-depth look at the new features, comparisons to other…

    2023 · docs.cozodb.org · its alternatives →

  23. 23WH
  24. 24KK

    KubeDB simplifies Provisioning, Upgrading, Scaling, Volume Expansion, Monitor, Backup, Restore for various Databases in Kubernetes on any Public & Private Cloud

    2018 · kubedb.com · its alternatives →

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