Updated May 24, 2023
Difference Between MySQL vs SQLite
MySQL is one of the most popular and most preferred open-source relational database management systems. Many small and large-scale industrial applications widely use it, and it has the capability to handle a large volume of data. MySQL supports the standard Structured Query Language (SQL). It is written in C and C++ and developed by Michael Widenius and David Axmark in 1994. currently, Oracle Corporation is developing, distributing, and supporting the MySQL application.
SQLite, a library written in the C language, implements a serverless, configuration-less, and transactional SQL database. Unlike the other SQL database engines, it has no separate server. It uses an ordinary disk file for its read and writes operation. The SQLite database file is cross-platform and is easily copied between 32-bit and 64-bit OS systems.
Head to Head Comparison between MySQL vs SQLite (Infographics)
Below are the top 14 differences between MySQL and SQLite
Key Differences between MySQL vs SQLite
MySQL database server and SQLite have many things in common, but there are some key differences that a programmer should know well in advance before choosing a database. Let’s have a look at the main key differences between MySQLvs SQLite.
1. Application Programming Interface
As you know to connect your application with the database, you need some connector or API that makes the connection setup easy. MySQL has its API, whereas SQLite does not offer any. Both database systems have the same access methods: JDBC, ADO.NET, and ODBC.
2. Authentication and Security
Most applications deal with Personally Identifiable Information data that needs utmost security and limited access. A database should have some authentication to avoid easy access to the data by an unauthorized person. MySQL offers built-in security features like SSH to authenticate its Users; also, to grant limited privileges, you can assign different roles to a user. Unfortunately, SQLite lacks all these features; in fact, SQLite does not have any mechanism to authenticate the Users. Any person can get access to the database files.
3. Database as a Service
With the advent of cloud services like Azure, Amazon Web Services, and Google Cloud, many companies are looking for a solution or a product that can be utilized as a service for its client. When hosted on a cloud, users can utilize MySQL as a service, whereas SQLite does not provide support for this.
4. Multi-User Connection
There is often a requirement where multiple developers need to work on the same database simultaneously; MySQL is specially designed to cater to this need and can handle concurrent Users. Unfortunately, SQLite has no provision for User Management, so at a time, one User can access the database.
5. Scalability
Scalability is the most important factor any developer would check for in the database. Where MySQL is highly scalable and capable of handling a large volume of data, SQLite fails to perform at the same level. SQLite performance tends to degrade with the increase in the volume of data as it writes the data directly in a file that occupies a lot of memory.
Comparison Table between MySQL vs SQLite
Below is the topmost comparison between MySQL vs SQLite:
| MySQL | SQLite |
| MySQL is developed in C and C++ languages. | SQLite is entirely developed in C language. |
| MySQL requires a database server to interact with the client over the network. | SQLite is a serverless embedded database that runs as part of the application and can not connect with any other application over the network. |
| MySQL is open-source and managed by Oracle. | SQLite is not only open source; the code is also available in the public domain for commercial and personal usage. |
| MySQL server requires around 600 Mb of space for its functioning. | SQLite is a very lightweight library of around 250 kb in size. |
| MySQL supports almost all the data types like TINYINT, SMALLINT, MEDIUMINT, INT, BIGINT, FLOAT, DOUBLE, DOUBLE PRECISION, REAL, DECIMAL, NUMERIC, DATE, DATETIME, TIMESTAMP, YEAR, CHAR, VARCHAR, TINYBLOB, TINYTEXT, BLOB, TEXT, MEDIUMBLOB, MEDIUMTEXT, LONGBLOB, LONGTEXT, ENUM, SET, etc. | SQLite supports only BLOB, NULL, INTEGER, TEXT, and REAL. |
| Data portability in MySQL is tedious as you export it as a file and then move it to another system. Also, it is time-consuming because of its size. | SQLite directly writes the data in a file and can move pretty easily. |
| MySQL can handle multiple simultaneous connections. | SQLite can cater only to one connection at a time. |
| In MySQL, you can create multiple users with different levels of permissions and roles. | SQLite does not support User Management. |
| It supports XML format as well. | It does not support XML format. |
| MySQL is highly scalable and can handle a large volume of data. | SQLite is ideal for a small data set; its performance degrades with the increase in the data volume as it consumes a lot of memory. |
| MySQL offers and supports many authentication methods to protect against unauthorized access to the database. It includes basic user-name and password protections to advanced SSH authentication. | SQLite has no inbuilt authentication technique, and anyone can access the database files. Also, they can read and update the data as well. |
| Setting up the MySQL server requires many server configurations. | SQLite does not need any configuration, and getting it up and running is easier than the MySQL server. |
| MySQL is usually used for web and desktop applications requiring many calculations and frequent transactions. | SQLite is usually used for mobile applications, where it is primarily used to retrieve certain predefined information. |
| MySQL is supported and maintained by the Oracle Corporation. | An international team of developers working full-time on SQLite supports the application. They are responsible for bug fixes and enhancements. |
Conclusion
Now that we have reached the end of the article, let’s wrap up and summarize the key taken away from this discussion. Choose MySQL for web applications where security is a serious concern and the volume of data is huge. Choose SQLite for relatively smaller or mobile applications that do not require any security features, and the volume of data is not too large.
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