Actian Zen vs ALTIBASE
Actian Zen
actian.comALTIBASE
altibase.comSide by side
| Figure | Actian Zen | ALTIBASE |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 2 |
| Spec score · Relational Databases | 8.4 (#7) | 8.1 (#12) |
| Spec score · Sql Databases | 8.4 (#9) | 8.1 (#10) |
| Founded | 1980 | 1999 |
| Headquarters | Santa Clara, California, United States | Seoul, South Korea |
| Integrations | The product page says Zen Enterprise integrates with existing ERP, point-of-sale, and accounting applications. | ALTIBASE V7.3 lists DBeaver compatibility through plugins and describes the Altibase Kubernetes Utility for cloud use and replication scaling. |
| Interfaces | Zen supports both SQL and NoSQL access; the Enterprise datasheet lists ODBC and JDBC for SQL and Btrieve and Btrieve 2 APIs for NoSQL. | Listed programming interfaces include ODBC, JDBC, .NET and Entity Framework, OLEDB, Embedded SQL, CLI, Perl DBD, and PHP. |
| Product | Actian Zen is an embedded database for edge-to-cloud data management that combines relational data, vector search, semantic queries, and AI-agent connectivity in a lightweight engine. | ALTIBASE is a hybrid relational DBMS combining in-memory and on-disk databases in one engine. |
| Support | Actian Support Services says technical expertise, guidance, and knowledge are available 24/7. | Altibase says subscription-based clients receive support, patches, and upgrades; emergency patches and updates require a subscription agreement. |
Plans
In their own words
Actian Zen
Actian Zen is an embedded database for managing data from edge devices through on-premises and cloud applications. Its lightweight engine combines relational storage, native vector search, semantic queries, and connectivity for AI agents. Vector search supports up to 1 million vectors, while hybrid queries combine relational filters with semantic similarity. A native MCP server allows agents such as ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini to query local data. Zen supports SQL through ODBC and JDBC, and NoSQL through Btrieve and Btrieve 2 APIs. Semantic search, vector queries, and agent workflows can run offline, including in air-gapped environments. Zen Enterprise is designed for embedded, on-premises, and cloud deployments, including branch and remote field settings, and supports Windows, Linux, macOS, Intel, ARM, VMware, Hyper-V, and Docker. Zen Mobile supports Android and iOS with AES 256-bit encryption for stored data. Edge supports over 100 concurrent users; Enterprise is designed for thousands. A 30-day trial is available, with paid pricing from $417/mo (annual).
ALTIBASE
ALTIBASE is a relational database engine that combines in-memory and on-disk storage. It can run entirely in memory, entirely on disk, or in a hybrid mode, with features for both OLTP and OLAP workloads. Built-in replication supports synchronous or asynchronous consistency and Active-Active or Active-Standby architectures. Listed interfaces include ODBC, JDBC, .NET and Entity Framework, OLEDB, Embedded SQL, CLI, Perl DBD, and PHP. ALTIBASE V7.3 lists migration support for Oracle, PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server, Tibero, and CUBRID, along with DBeaver compatibility through plugins. Its listed utilities cover querying, replication management, profiling, monitoring, migration, exporting, and loading data. Security capabilities include SSL/TLS communication, SQL auditing, password policies, IP access control, object privileges, and methods to integrate third-party encryption. The Linux, self-hosted product offers a free A+ Edition for development, testing, and education; it is not for commercial use and is limited to 128 concurrent users, 10 GB in-memory, and 50 GB disk database. Enterprise subscription pricing is available on request.