Turso vs PocketBase
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Turso and PocketBase.
Quick Verdict
4.1/5
Turso
0 reviews
4.0/5
PocketBase
0 reviews
Turso is rated higher (4.1 vs 4.0). Turso offers SQLite-based databases at the edge for multi-tenant SaaS. Create thousands of database instances, each at a different edge location. Per-tenant isolation at SQLite pricing. PocketBase is an open source backend consisting of a single executable file with embedded SQLite database, realtime subscriptions, auth, file storage, and an admin dashboard.
Turso Edge SQLite — create thousands of DB instances | PocketBase Open-source backend with built-in database and real-time APIs | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Rating | 4.1 (0 reviews)✓ | 4.0 (0 reviews) |
| Pricing model | freemium | free and open source (MIT); self-hosted, infrastructure costs only |
| Starting price | Free tier available | Free tier available |
| Best for | Multi-tenant SaaS and AI agent workloads needing per-tenant SQLite databases replicated close to users | Solo developers and small teams who want a self-hosted backend with auth, database, files and realtime — without running multiple services or paying a platform fee |
| Specifications (entry plan) | ||
| CPU cores | — | — |
| RAM | — | — |
| Storage | 5 GB | — |
| Bandwidth | — | — |
| SLA uptime | — | — |
| Data-center count | 30 | — |
| Features | ||
| IPv6 | ||
| DDoS protection | ||
| Automated backups | ||
| Snapshots | ||
| Managed option | ||
| Bare metal | ||
| GPU available | ||
| S3-compatible | ||
| Hourly billing | ||
| Free tier | ||
| Tags | ||
| Tags | free tierapi accessopen source | free tieropen sourceself hostable |
| Visit Turso → | Visit PocketBase → | |
Turso
Pros
- + True per-tenant database isolation at SQLite pricing — 100 databases free, unlimited from $5.99/mo
- + Published pricing, overage rates, and even per-tier commit latency — rare transparency
- + Edge replication across 30+ locations with placement you control per database
- + Eleven-nines durability via S3-backed commits; MIT-licensed engine you can self-host
- + SQLite file-format and SQL compatibility keeps local dev and production aligned
Cons
- - No public uptime SLA on self-serve plans — the guarantee is durability, not availability
- - Rows-read metering punishes unindexed queries; costs can surprise the careless
- - EU databases still back up to S3 us-east-2 unless you bring your own buckets (Pro+)
- - SQLite dialect limits rule out query-heavy relational workloads
- - Big price jump from Scaler ($29/mo) to Pro ($499/mo) for priority support and compliance
PocketBase
Pros
- + Complete backend (SQLite, REST API, auth, files, SSE realtime, admin UI) in one MIT-licensed binary
- + Zero software cost and no vendor lock-in: MIT licence explicitly permits commercial reuse and self-hosting
- + Fast local storage and simple deployment — Docker, any VPS, or embedded as a Go framework in your own binary
- + Extensible without Go via JS hooks and migrations; S3-compatible file storage and built-in backup tooling
- + Excellent documentation and a 61.5k-star community; auth covers password, OAuth2, OTP and MFA out of the box
Cons
- - Pre-1.0 with no backward-compatibility guarantee — v0.23 broke the core Go API and hooks
- - Single-node SQLite: no clustering, replication or managed failover; HA and backups are your job
- - Predominantly one maintainer, community support only — no SLA or support contract
- - No official managed hosting (third parties fill that gap), no job queue or cron built in
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