Best Database Proxy Software in 2026
Updated
In short: MySQL is ranked #1 of 30 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of OceanBase Database and Amazon RDS. The best-ranked option with a free plan is OceanBase Database. The lowest first paid tier on this page is Google Cloud SQL at $0.04/mo.
Applications rely on database connections behaving well under changing workloads; proxy software offers one way to manage that layer. Compared on connection pooling, query routing, load balancing and automatic failover, these options can also be weighed by maximum connections and supported databases. Deployment model, free-plan availability and paid-from pricing add operational and cost context. MySQL, OceanBase Database and Amazon RDS appear among the named entries, alongside proxy-focused options such as PgDog and PgBouncer. Consider the databases and connection patterns in your environment, then compare the listed capacity and routing details with your needs.
30 database proxy software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
30ranked
14free plans on this page
$0.04/molowest paid tier
4 Oct 2026last checked
Input list Database Proxy Software 25 channels on this page · 131 of 200 spec lines stated by the makers
Ch Tool Free planPaid fromDeployment modelConnection poolingQuery routingLoad balancingAutomatic failoverSupported databases Spec sheet Score
01 MySQL Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelbothConnection poolingnot statedQuery routingnot statedLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failovernot statedSupported databasesnot stated 2/8spec lines stated 7.8
02 OceanBase Database Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelbothConnection poolingnot statedQuery routingnot statedLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failovernot statedSupported databasesnot stated 2/8spec lines stated 7.2
03 Amazon RDS Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelbothConnection poolingnot statedQuery routingnot statedLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failovernot statedSupported databasesnot stated 2/8spec lines stated 7.0
04 Google Cloud SQL Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingNoQuery routingnot statedLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server 4/8spec lines stated 7.0
05 PgDog Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelbothConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesPostgreSQL 7/8spec lines stated 7.0
06 TurbineProxy Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL, PostgreSQL 7/8spec lines stated 6.9
07 ShardingSphere-Proxy Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL, PostgreSQL, openGauss, Firebird 7/8spec lines stated 6.8
08 PgBouncer Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingNoLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverNoSupported databasesPostgreSQL 7/8spec lines stated 6.7
09 PgCat Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesPostgreSQL 7/8spec lines stated 6.7
10 Pgpool-II Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesPostgreSQL 7/8spec lines stated 6.7
11 ProxySQL Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL protocol, PostgreSQL protocol, MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB, Percona Server for MySQL, ClickHouse 7/8spec lines stated 6.7
12 TiCDC Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingnot statedQuery routingnot statedLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failovernot statedSupported databasesnot stated 1/8spec lines stated 6.7
13 DBLE Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL, ClickHouse 6/8spec lines stated 6.6
14 Supavisor Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelbothConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverNoSupported databasesPostgreSQL 6/8spec lines stated 6.5
15 Odyssey Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesPostgreSQL 6/8spec lines stated 6.4
16 Cloudflare Hyperdrive Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelmanagedConnection poolingYesQuery routingnot statedLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesPostgreSQL 9.0–17.x; MySQL 5.7–8.x; MariaDB; PostgreSQL- and MySQL-compatible providers 5/8spec lines stated 6.3
17 MariaDB Enterprise Analytics Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelbothConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMariaDB Server, MySQL-compatible servers, ColumnStore, Enterprise Cluster, MongoDB protocol 7/8spec lines stated 6.2
18 Oracle PeopleSoft Campus Solutions Financial Aid Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelnot statedConnection poolingnot statedQuery routingnot statedLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failovernot statedSupported databasesnot stated 1/8spec lines stated 6.1
19 kingshard Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL 6/8spec lines stated 5.9
20 PgDoorman Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingNoLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesPostgreSQL 10+ 6/8spec lines stated 5.9
21 pgagroal Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingnot statedLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failovernot statedSupported databasesPostgreSQL 4/8spec lines stated 5.7
22 Cetus Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingnot statedAutomatic failovernot statedSupported databasesMySQL 4/8spec lines stated 5.6
23 Heimdall Database Proxy Free planYesPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelbothConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL, PostgreSQL, Amazon RDS, Oracle, SQL Server, MariaDB, DB2, Greenplum, Redshift 7/8spec lines stated 5.6
24 TencentDB for MySQL Database Proxy Free planNoPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelmanagedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL 5.7 and MySQL 8.0; TencentDB for MySQL read-only analysis engine 7/8spec lines stated 5.6
25 Gaea Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedDeployment modelself-hostedConnection poolingYesQuery routingYesLoad balancingYesAutomatic failoverYesSupported databasesMySQL 6/8spec lines stated 5.5
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | Tool | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Deployment model | Connection pooling |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MySQL | 7.8 | Free plan | — | Yes | — | both | — |
| 2 | OceanBase Database | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | both | — |
| 3 | Amazon RDS | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | No | — | both | — |
| 4 | Google Cloud SQL | 7.0 | No | $0.04/mo | — | — | self-hosted | No |
| 5 | PgDog | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | both | Yes |
| 6 | TurbineProxy | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 7 | ShardingSphere-Proxy | 6.8 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 8 | PgBouncer | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 9 | PgCat | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 10 | Pgpool-II | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 11 | ProxySQL | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 12 | TiCDC | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | — | — | self-hosted | — |
| 13 | DBLE | 6.6 | Free plan | Free | — | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 14 | Supavisor | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | — | — | both | Yes |
| 15 | Odyssey | 6.4 | No | — | — | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 16 | Cloudflare Hyperdrive | 6.3 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | managed | Yes |
| 17 | MariaDB Enterprise Analytics | 6.2 | No | — | No | — | both | Yes |
| 18 | Oracle PeopleSoft Campus Solutions Financial Aid | 6.1 | No | — | No | — | — | — |
| 19 | kingshard | 5.9 | No | — | — | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 20 | PgDoorman | 5.9 | No | — | — | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 21 | pgagroal | 5.7 | No | — | Yes | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 22 | Cetus | 5.6 | No | — | — | — | self-hosted | Yes |
| 23 | Heimdall Database Proxy | 5.6 | No | — | Yes | — | both | Yes |
| 24 | TencentDB for MySQL Database Proxy | 5.6 | No | — | No | — | managed | Yes |
| 25 | Gaea | 5.5 | No | — | — | — | self-hosted | Yes |
Is your tool on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which database proxy software is ranked first on Specifiction?
MySQL is ranked #1 of 30 with a score of 7.8. OceanBase Database is second and Amazon RDS third.
How many of these have a free plan?
14 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, Google Cloud SQL has the lowest first paid tier we found: $0.04/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes, the fullest spec sheet first: how deeply the product is documented, the platforms it runs on, a free tier or trial to test it, and its standing. Paid placements never change a rank.
More in Developer Tools
All developer tools listsAccessibility Testing Software 168Log Management Software 107AI Coding Assistants 103Package Managers 93AI Agent Platforms 73Reverse Engineering Tools 73Software Composition Analysis Software 65Browser Automation Tools 63Integrated Development Environments 62Artifact repository software 60Code Playground Software 58Network Monitoring 56