Azure Cosmos DB
Fully managed, globally distributed NoSQL database service offering multi-model support with low-latency access worldwide
RavenDB
High‑performance ACID‑compliant document database with developer‑first experience
RavenDB delivers ACID guarantees, full‑text search, and a rich web UI across Linux, Windows, macOS, containers and Raspberry Pi, with free developer licensing and cloud‑hosted options.
Overview
Overview
RavenDB is a modern document‑oriented database that guarantees full ACID transactions and security out of the box. It combines high performance with a developer‑first experience, offering a web‑based Management Studio for live queries, indexing, and monitoring. The engine includes built‑in full‑text, spatial, time‑series and vector search, making it suitable for a wide range of data‑intensive applications.
Deployment & Ecosystem
The database runs natively on Linux, Windows, macOS, Docker containers and even ARM devices such as Raspberry Pi. Installation is as simple as running a script, using a .deb package, or pulling the official Docker image. RavenDB Cloud provides a managed SaaS option with a free developer tier, while on‑premise deployments benefit from the same feature set. Official client libraries cover .NET, Java, Node.js, Python, Go, PHP, C++ and Ruby, and a community‑driven Elixir driver is also available.
Highlights
ACID transactions and security by default
Rich web-based Management Studio with live query and indexing
Multi‑platform support including Docker, .deb, and Raspberry Pi
Extensive official SDKs for .NET, Java, Node.js, Python, Go, and more
Pros
- Strong ACID guarantees for document workloads
- Developer‑centric tooling reduces operational overhead
- Scalable both on‑premise and as a managed cloud service
- Built‑in full‑text, spatial, time‑series and vector search
Considerations
- AGPLv3 license may restrict commercial redistribution without compliance
- Learning curve for advanced indexing and query tuning
- Limited native support for some niche languages (community‑only Elixir)
- Enterprise features may require paid cloud or support plans
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Fit guide
Great for
- Teams needing ACID‑compliant NoSQL with rich query capabilities
- Developers building microservices that require embedded document storage
- Organizations deploying on heterogeneous infrastructure (Linux, Windows, containers)
- Projects that benefit from a built‑in web UI for monitoring and debugging
Not ideal when
- Companies requiring a permissive license for proprietary redistribution
- Workloads that demand pure key‑value stores with minimal features
- Environments where only a single language SDK is needed and others are unnecessary
- Scenarios where ultra‑low latency in‑memory databases are the primary goal
How teams use it
E‑commerce platform order management
Ensures transactional consistency for orders, inventory, and payments while providing full‑text product search and real‑time analytics.
IoT telemetry storage and analysis
Handles high‑volume time‑series data with built‑in time‑series indexing and spatial queries for device location tracking.
Content management system with versioning
Leverages document versioning and optimistic concurrency to allow collaborative editing and rollback.
Microservice architecture data layer
Provides each service its own isolated RavenDB instance, simplifying deployment via Docker and enabling ACID guarantees across service boundaries.
Tech snapshot
C#82%
TypeScript11%
JavaScript3%
HTML2%
Less1%
SCSS1%
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free tier for RavenDB Cloud?
Yes, RavenDB Cloud offers a free developer instance that can be created from the website without credit‑card requirements.
What licensing model does RavenDB use?
RavenDB is released under the AGPLv3 license, which requires source distribution for modified versions.
Can RavenDB run on ARM devices like Raspberry Pi?
Official binaries and Docker images support ARM, allowing deployment on Raspberry Pi and other ARM‑based systems.
Which programming languages have official client libraries?
Official SDKs are available for .NET, Java, Node.js, Python, Go, PHP, C++, and Ruby.
How does RavenDB ensure data durability?
All writes are persisted to disk within ACID transactions and replicated across nodes for high availability.
Project at a glance
Active- Stars
- 3,916
- Watchers
- 3,916
- Forks
- 856
Repo age15 years old
Last commityesterday
Primary languageC#
Last synced 12 hours ago