Embedded graph databases compared
Graph engines that run in-process rather than as a separate server.
16 active embedded graph databases are in the catalogue. They are written mostly in C++ and Java, 16 are open source, and 2 carry survey feature scores. Kuzu, BrightstarDB, KatanaGraph are no longer active and listed separately below.
| Attribute |  LadybugDB |  TinkerGraph |  NeuG |  FalkorDBLite |  CogDB |  BangDB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||||||
| Rank | #11 | #16 | #63 | #86 | #120 | #127 |
| Score | 61.5 | 59.7 | 45.4 | 40.5 | 24.7 | 21.3 |
| GitHub stars | 1.5k | 2.1k | 130 | 61 | 367 | 59 |
| Popularity | 64.1 | 84.8 | 39.8 | 29.1 | 36.1 | 22.6 |
| Activity | 67.5 | 71.1 | 46.4 | 45.3 | 72.1 | 21.0 |
| Community | 78.0 | 38.2 | 53.0 | 31.7 | 31.0 | 31.0 |
| Research | 50.4 | 50.4 | 50.4 | 50.4 | 50.4 | 50.4 |
| Fundamentals | ||||||
| Description | A community fork of Kuzu. An embedded columnar property graph database for analytical workloads, with openCypher support, vector indices, and full-text search. | A lightweight, in-memory property graph engine serving as the reference implementation of the Apache TinkerPop Gremlin graph computing framework. | 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. | An embedded property graph database for Python that bundles a Redis server with the FalkorDB module into a zero-configuration package. Provides the same GraphBLAS-based query engine as FalkorDB with data persistence, sync and async APIs, and support for multiple independent graphs per instance. | 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 | LadybugDB | Apache TinkerPop | Alibaba | FalkorDB | NodeFn Inc. | BangDB |
| Model | Property Graph | Property Graph | Property Graph | Property Graph | RDF | Other |
| Kind | embedded | embedded | embedded | embedded | embedded | embedded |
| Category | Growing | Established | Emerging | Emerging | Emerging | Emerging |
| First released | 2025-11 | 2009 | 2026-03 | 2025 | 2018-07 | 2021-11 |
| Status | active | active | active | active | active | active |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 | SSPL-1.0 | MIT | BSD-3-Clause |
| Written in | C++ | Java | C++ | Python | Python | C++ |
| Query languages | openCypher | Gremlin | openCypher | openCypher | Custom API | openCypher |
| gdotv support | yes | yes | no | no | no | no |
Feature scores
Survey feature scores are available for 2 of these 16 engines. See each engine's page.
All 16 engines
| Name | Vendor | Model | Category | GitHub stars | License | Written in | Query languages | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bitsy | LambdaZen | Property Graph | Emerging | 150 | Apache-2.0 | Java | Gremlin | #96 |
| Bighorn | Kineviz | Property Graph | Emerging | 132 | MIT | C++ | openCypher | #104 |
| Quadstore | Jacopo Scazzosi | RDF | Emerging | 236 | MIT | TypeScript | SPARQL | #110 |
| agdb | Agnesoft | Property Graph | Emerging | 137 | Apache-2.0 | Rust | Custom API | #112 |
| GraphLite | DeepGraph AI | Property Graph | Emerging | 228 | Apache-2.0 | Rust | GQL | #115 |
| froGQL | PLEIAD | Property Graph | Emerging | 7 | MIT | Rust | GQL | #118 |
| TurboLynx | POSTECH (DSLab) | Property Graph | Emerging | 25 | MIT | C++ | openCypher | #119 |
| TribleSpace | — | Other | Emerging | 69 | MIT OR Apache-2.0 | Rust | Custom API | #121 |
| KGLite | Kristian dF Kollsgård | Property Graph | Emerging | 34 | MIT | Rust | openCypher, Custom API | #125 |
| Minigraf | — | Other | Emerging | 28 | MIT OR Apache-2.0 | Rust | Datalog | #129 |
No longer active
- Kuzu — Acquired by Apple in October 2025. Repository archived. Continued as LadybugDB and Bighorn forks.
- BrightstarDB — No active development since 2015.
- KatanaGraph — Katana Graph shut down in 2023. GitHub repositories archived.
- ZipG — Academic research prototype from AMPLab Berkeley. No active development.
- HyperGraphDB — Sporadic maintenance only since 2024
- LiveGraph — Academic research prototype. No active development.
- ChronoGraph — Last meaningful commit several years ago. Minimal community.