PouchDB vs SQLDelight
PouchDB
pouchdb.apache.orgSQLDelight
sqldelight.github.ioSide by side
| Figure | PouchDB | SQLDelight |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 2 |
| Spec score · Mobile Databases | 8.5 (#3) | 8.3 (#5) |
| Documentation depth | Official materials include a getting-started tutorial, API reference, guides, FAQ, adapter documentation and plugin listings. | The generated API reference exposes separate modules for drivers, compiler, Gradle plugin, dialects, migrations, coroutines, RxJava, paging, JSON, and adapters. |
| Purpose | PouchDB is an open-source JavaScript database inspired by Apache CouchDB and designed to run in the browser. | SQLDelight generates typesafe Kotlin APIs from SQL statements. |
| What it does | PouchDB is a JavaScript document database for browser applications that stores data locally and synchronizes with CouchDB-compatible servers. | SQLDelight converts SQL statements into type-safe Kotlin APIs and checks schemas, queries, and migrations during compilation. |
Plans
In their own words
PouchDB
PouchDB is a free, open-source JavaScript database for browser and Node.js applications. It keeps documents locally so applications can continue working offline, then synchronizes data bidirectionally with CouchDB-compatible servers when online. The same API is used in browsers and Node.js. Browser storage uses IndexedDB by default, while the documented Node.js adapter uses Node’s native SQLite module with Node.js versions later than 22.5.0. Supported server integrations include CouchDB 1.x, 2.x, and 3.x, Cloudant, and PouchDB Server. PouchDB is framework-agnostic and can work with Angular, React, Ember, Backbone, or another framework. It also runs with Cordova/PhoneGap, NW.js, Electron, and Chrome apps. Documents must be serializable as JSON, and attachments can be base64-encoded strings or Blob objects. Direct synchronization with a non-CouchDB database requires a backend that speaks the CouchDB replication protocol. Platforms listed are Android, API, extension, iOS, self-hosted, web, and Windows. The project lists GitHub Discussions, Slack, and Stack Overflow for discussion.
SQLDelight
SQLDelight generates typesafe Kotlin APIs from SQL statements and checks database schemas, SQL statements, and migrations at compile time. Its IDE features include SQL autocomplete and refactoring support. Documented database dialects include SQLite, MySQL, and PostgreSQL; HSQL and H2 are experimental, while CockroachDB, DB2, and Oracle dialects are listed as third-party options. The JVM connection overview lists MySQL and PostgreSQL, with JDBC and R2DBC variants shown for supported dialects. The project provides a Gradle plugin and extensions for Kotlin coroutines, RxJava, and AndroidX Paging. Its coroutines extension can expose a query as a Flow and emit updated results when the queried data changes. The Gradle verifySqlDelightMigration task applies migrations to stored schema databases and checks whether they reach the latest schema. SQLDelight is open source under the Apache-2.0 license and has a free listing at free, with no paid tiers stated. Its listed platforms are Android, API, iOS, Linux, macOS, web, and Windows.