MariaDB maintains a high degree of compatibility with the MySQL protocol and client interfaces, which has led to its adoption as the replacement for MySQL in several leading Linux distributions, including Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Red Hat Enterprise Linux/CentOS, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server/openSUSE and OpenBSD/FreeBSD.
However, the core difference lies in their architectural approach and strategic vision. MariaDB is committed to a pluggable storage engine architecture, which is critical for supporting a wide spectrum of modern use cases. By optimizing different engines for specific workloads, MariaDB provides the flexibility required by demanding enterprise requirements. MySQL has increasingly focused on InnoDB as its primary storage engine. Additionally, MariaDB’s commitment to community participation and contributions remains central to its development, ensuring an open and adaptable path forward for organizations building mission-critical applications
MariaDB’s product roadmap is continuously expanding to meet the demands of the modern data landscape. This commitment to growth is demonstrated through the rapid integration of MariaDB Cloud (fully managed DBaaS) and advanced capabilities such as MariaDB Exa for high-performance analytics, as well as native AI tools such as MariaDB AI RAG and MCP Server for accelerating agentic AI development. This continuous innovation ensures that MariaDB provides the strategic platform to consolidate disparate workloads, drive competitive advantage, and future-proof your data infrastructure.
Background
MariaDB and MySQL originated from the same roots, making them two of the most popular open-source relational databases used today. MariaDB was created as a fork of MySQL by its founder, Michael “Monty” Widenius, to ensure open and transparent development following Oracle’s acquisition of MySQL.
Since that pivotal split, MariaDB and MySQL have evolved into separate databases platforms with distinct architectural features and product strategies.
