Embedded graph databases compared
Graph engines that run in-process rather than as a separate server.
18 active embedded graph databases are in the catalogue. They are written mostly in Java and C++, 18 are open source, and 2 carry survey feature scores. Kuzu, KatanaGraph, BrightstarDB are no longer active and listed separately below.
| Attribute | TinkerGraph | LadybugDB | NeuG | Bighorn | CogDB | BangDB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||||||
| Rank | #7 | #8 | #59 | #89 | #125 | #132 |
| Score | 64.0 | 63.6 | 46.6 | 40.5 | 24.9 | 22.2 |
| GitHub stars | 2.1k | 1.7k | 143 | 133 | 396 | 59 |
| Popularity | 84.7 | 67.1 | 41.9 | 35.4 | 37.4 | 23.8 |
| Activity | 69.7 | 71.6 | 49.5 | 42.2 | 72.3 | 25.3 |
| Community | 62.4 | 79.8 | 52.7 | 30.6 | 30.6 | 30.6 |
| Research | 49.6 | 49.6 | 49.6 | — | 49.6 | 49.6 |
| Fundamentals | ||||||
| Description | A lightweight, in-memory property graph engine serving as the reference implementation of the Apache TinkerPop Gremlin graph computing framework. | A community fork of Kuzu. An embedded columnar property graph database for analytical workloads, with openCypher support, vector indices, and full-text search. | An embedded property graph database for combined analytical and transactional workloads, developed by the GraphScope team at Alibaba on the GraphScope Flex engine. Runs in-process from Python or Node.js or as a network service on the same core, with Cypher queries and a DuckDB-inspired extension system for graph algorithms. | A community fork of Kuzu maintained by Kineviz. An embedded property graph database with openCypher support, adding vector search and full-text search capabilities. Integrates with GraphXR visualization. | An embedded graph database for Python with built-in persistence, traversal, and semantic vector search. It runs entirely in-process, stores graph data as triples, and exposes Torque, a Python-native API for querying relationships. | An embeddable multi-model database supporting key-value, documents, and graphs. Integrates graph queries with a streaming engine and complex event processing (CEP) for pattern and anomaly detection. |
| Vendor | Apache TinkerPop | LadybugDB | Alibaba | Kineviz | NodeFn Inc. | BangDB |
| Model | Property Graph | Property Graph | Property Graph | Property Graph | RDF | Other |
| Kind | embedded | embedded | embedded | embedded | embedded | embedded |
| Category | Established | Growing | Emerging | Emerging | Emerging | Emerging |
| First released | 2009 | 2025-11 | 2026-03 | 2025-10 | 2018-07 | 2012 |
| Status | active | active | active | active | active | active |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT | Apache-2.0 | MIT | MIT | BSD-3-Clause |
| Written in | Java | C++ | C++ | C++ | Python | C++ |
| Query languages | Gremlin | openCypher | openCypher | openCypher | Custom API | openCypher |
| gdotv support | yes | yes | no | no | no | no |
Feature scores
Survey feature scores are available for 2 of these 18 engines. See each engine's page.
All 18 engines
| Name | Vendor | Model | Category | GitHub stars | License | Written in | Query languages | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FalkorDBLite | FalkorDB | Property Graph | Emerging | 62 | SSPL-1.0 | Python | openCypher | #90 |
| Bitsy | LambdaZen | Property Graph | Emerging | 150 | Apache-2.0 | Java | Gremlin | #103 |
| LatticeDB | Jeff Hajewski | Property Graph | Emerging | 646 | MIT | Zig | Cypher | #114 |
| Quadstore | Jacopo Scazzosi | RDF | Emerging | 233 | MIT | TypeScript | SPARQL | #115 |
| agdb | Agnesoft | Property Graph | Emerging | 139 | Apache-2.0 | Rust | Custom API | #117 |
| froGQL | PLEIAD | Property Graph | Emerging | 7 | MIT | Rust | GQL | #120 |
| GraphLite | DeepGraph AI | Property Graph | Emerging | 230 | Apache-2.0 | Rust | GQL | #121 |
| TurboLynx | POSTECH (DSLab) | Property Graph | Emerging | 25 | MIT | C++ | openCypher | #124 |
| TribleSpace | — | Other | Emerging | 69 | MIT OR Apache-2.0 | Rust | Custom API | #127 |
| Minigraf | — | Other | Emerging | 31 | MIT OR Apache-2.0 | Rust | Datalog | #129 |
| KGLite | Kristian dF Kollsgård | Property Graph | Emerging | 37 | MIT | Rust | openCypher, Custom API | #133 |
| LoraDB | LoraDB | Property Graph | Emerging | 20 | BUSL-1.1 | Rust | Cypher | #151 |
No longer active
- Kuzu — Acquired by Apple in October 2025. Repository archived. Continued as LadybugDB and Bighorn forks.
- KatanaGraph — Katana Graph shut down in 2023. GitHub repositories archived.
- BrightstarDB — No active development since 2015.
- HyperGraphDB — Sporadic maintenance only since 2024
- ZipG — Academic research prototype from AMPLab Berkeley. No active development.
- LiveGraph — Academic research prototype. No active development.
- ChronoGraph — Last meaningful commit several years ago. Minimal community.