QuestDB Enterprise

QuestDB Enterprise is a commercial version of the open-source QuestDB time-series database, built for production deployments that demand ultra-low latency, high ingestion throughput, and fault-tolerant operation.

Reviewed by 7wData

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Publisher review

QuestDB Enterprise is a commercial version of the open-source QuestDB time-series database, built for production deployments that demand ultra-low latency, high ingestion throughput, and fault-tolerant operation. It targets trading floors, mission-control environments, and any high-throughput time-series workload where downtime is unacceptable. The Enterprise edition adds replication, automatic failover, multi-AZ support, tiered storage with auto-tiering from hot to cold (Parquet/object storage), unified SQL querying across all tiers, and SLA-backed support from QuestDB's creators. It can be deployed on-premises, in the cloud, or via Bring Your Own Cloud (BYOC).

QuestDB Enterprise ingests data up to 11.36 million rows per second at 100K hosts, and maintains 7.33 million rows/sec even at 1 million hosts. It runs analytical queries 23x to 130x faster than InfluxDB and heavy aggregations 17x faster. Against TimescaleDB, QuestDB achieves 11.0x faster ingestion at 100K hosts and 11.8x faster at 1M hosts. The Enterprise tier provides multi-primary writes, automatic replication and failover, sub-second read replicas across regions via object storage, and hot-to-cold auto-tiering. A single SQL query spans both hot partitions and cold Parquet files, with the query planner handling the split transparently.

Compared to InfluxDB (v1, v2, and 3 Core) and TimescaleDB, QuestDB Enterprise demonstrates a significant performance advantage in both ingestion and query speed, especially at high cardinality. Where InfluxDB throughput degrades sharply as cardinality increases (dropping to ~203K rows/sec at 1M hosts), QuestDB maintains multi-million-row-per-second rates. TimescaleDB peaks at ~1.2M rows/sec and then declines, while QuestDB scales up. The Enterprise edition also differentiates through its tiered storage, unified query across tiers, and SLA-backed support—features not available in the open-source versions of either competitor.

The honest trade-offs: QuestDB Enterprise is not free—pricing depends on hardware, features, and support level, and is not publicly listed. It requires a commercial relationship to access high-availability features, replication, and SLA-backed support. The database is built on Java (zero-GC), C++, and Rust, which may be unfamiliar to teams steeped in PostgreSQL or Go ecosystems. While it excels at time-series workloads, it is not a general-purpose database and lacks the broader ecosystem of PostgreSQL extensions or InfluxDB's Flux query language. Documentation and community resources are smaller than those of InfluxDB or TimescaleDB.

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How it works

  1. Multi-primary writes

    Supports concurrent writes from multiple nodes for continuous availability and zero-downtime upgrades.

  2. Automatic replication and failover

    Provides high availability with multi-AZ replication and automatic failover, targeting 99.9% uptime.

  3. Hot-to-cold auto-tiering

    Automatically moves older data from hot storage to cold Parquet/object storage, reducing costs.

  4. Unified SQL across tiers

    A single SQL query spans both hot partitions and cold Parquet files, with the planner handling the split.

  5. Sub-second read replicas

    Read replicas across regions via object storage update in sub-second time for low-latency global access.

  6. RBAC and audit logging

    Role-based access control, SSO (OAuth 2.0/OIDC), TLS, and audit logs for security and governance.

  7. SLA-backed creator support

    Enterprise customers get SLA-backed support, architecture reviews, and performance reviews from QuestDB's creators.

Strengths and trade-offs

Strengths

  • Ingests data at 11.36 million rows per second at 100K hosts, and 7.33 million rows/sec at 1M hosts.
  • Runs analytical queries 23x to 130x faster than InfluxDB, and heavy aggregations 17x faster.
  • Achieves 11.0x faster ingestion than TimescaleDB at 100K hosts and 11.8x faster at 1M hosts.
  • Provides 99.9% uptime with automatic replication, multi-AZ failover, and sub-second read replicas.

Trade-offs

  • Pricing is not publicly listed and depends on hardware, features, and support level, requiring a sales conversation.
  • High-availability features, replication, and SLA-backed support are only available in the paid Enterprise edition.
  • Built on Java (zero-GC), C++, and Rust, which may be unfamiliar to teams accustomed to PostgreSQL or Go ecosystems.
  • Not a general-purpose database; lacks the broader ecosystem of PostgreSQL extensions or InfluxDB's Flux query language.

Pricing context

Pricing is a function of hardware, features, and support. Available Self Hosted or BYOC. No public tier or dollar figures.

Getting started with QuestDB Enterprise

  1. Request enterprise access

    Contact QuestDB's sales team through their website to discuss your hardware, feature, and support requirements. Provide details about your deployment environment and expected throughput to receive a customized quote and trial access.

  2. Deploy on your infrastructure

    Set up QuestDB Enterprise on your chosen infrastructure—on-premises, cloud, or BYOC. Follow the provided deployment guide to configure nodes, replication, and multi-AZ failover for high availability.

  3. Configure authentication and RBAC

    Enable TLS, set up SSO via OAuth 2.0 or OIDC, and define role-based access control (RBAC) roles and users. Configure audit logging to track all database activities for security and governance.

  4. Ingest time-series data

    Connect your data sources using QuestDB's ingestion protocols (e.g., HTTP, PostgreSQL wire protocol). Start streaming high-throughput time-series data, such as market feeds or sensor readings, to test ingestion rates.

  5. Run unified SQL queries

    Execute SQL queries that span both hot partitions and cold Parquet files. Use the query planner to automatically split workloads across tiers, and verify sub-second read replica performance for global access.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is QuestDB Enterprise and who is it for?

QuestDB Enterprise is a commercial time-series database built for production deployments requiring ultra-low latency, high ingestion throughput, and fault-tolerant operation. It targets trading floors, mission-control environments, and any high-throughput workload where downtime is unacceptable.

How does QuestDB Enterprise compare to InfluxDB in performance?

QuestDB Enterprise runs analytical queries 23x to 130x faster than InfluxDB and heavy aggregations 17x faster. It ingests up to 11.36 million rows per second at 100K hosts, while InfluxDB throughput drops sharply to around 203K rows per second at high cardinality.

What high availability features does QuestDB Enterprise offer?

QuestDB Enterprise provides multi-primary writes, automatic replication and failover, multi-AZ support, and sub-second read replicas across regions via object storage. These features target 99.9% uptime and ensure continuous availability and zero-downtime upgrades for production deployments.

How does QuestDB Enterprise's tiered storage work?

QuestDB Enterprise automatically moves older data from hot storage to cold Parquet or object storage, reducing costs. A single SQL query spans both hot partitions and cold Parquet files, with the query planner handling the split transparently for unified access.

What is QuestDB Enterprise pricing and how can I get it?

QuestDB Enterprise pricing is not publicly listed and depends on hardware, features, and support level. It requires a sales conversation. The database can be deployed on-premises, in the cloud, or via Bring Your Own Cloud (BYOC), with SLA-backed support from QuestDB's creators.

What are the trade-offs of using QuestDB Enterprise?

QuestDB Enterprise is not free and requires a commercial relationship for high-availability features and SLA support. It is built on Java, C++, and Rust, which may be unfamiliar to PostgreSQL or Go teams. It excels at time-series workloads but is not a general-purpose database.

Alternatives

How QuestDB Enterprise compares

Direct head-to-head against 2 competitors. Picked by 7wData.

This tool

QuestDB Enterprise

Pricing
Pricing is a function of hardware, features, and support. Available Self Hosted or BYOC. No public tier or dollar figures.
Target
QuestDB Enterprise is a commercial version of the open-source QuestDB time-series database, built for production deployments that demand ultra-low latency, high ingestion throughput, and fault-tolerant
Strength
Ingests data at 11.36 million rows per second at 100K hosts, and 7.33 million rows/sec at 1M hosts.
Watch for
Pricing is not publicly listed and depends on hardware, features, and support level, requiring a sales conversation.

InfluxDB

Pricing
Custom/Contact sales
Target
Time-series data for observability, IoT
Deployment
Cloud, on-prem, hybrid
Strength
Wide adoption in observability and IoT
Watch for
Recent architectural churn and fragmentation

Prometheus

Pricing
Open source
Target
Observability and server metrics
Deployment
On-prem, cloud
Strength
CNCF-backed, native alerting
Watch for
Limited to metrics, lacks SQL support

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Sources

Reporting on this tool draws on these publicly available sources.

  1. questdb.com
  2. questdb.com
  3. questdb.com
  4. questdb.com
  5. www.reddit.com
  6. www.reddit.com