Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Realm.io VS ObjectBox

Compare Realm.io VS ObjectBox and see what are their differences

Realm.io logo Realm.io

Realm is a mobile platform and a replacement for SQLite & Core Data. Build offline-first, reactive mobile experiences using simple data sync.

ObjectBox logo ObjectBox

ObjectBox empower edge computing with an edge device database and synchronization solution for Mobile & IoT. Store and sync data from edge to cloud.
  • Realm.io Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-04
  • ObjectBox Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-02-06

ObjectBox is a super fast database and sychronization solution, built uniquely for Mobile and IoT devices. ObjectBox is uniquely designed for small devices, so it is the ideal solution across hardware from Mobile Apps, to IoT Devices and IoT Gateways. It is the first high-performance NoSQL, ACID-compliant on-device edge database. Plus, it's built with developers in mind, with easy to use code that takes minimal time to implement.

ObjectBox supports Java, C/C++, Go, Kotlin, Swift and Python. Running on Android, Mac/iOS, Windows, Linux, Raspbian & more.

Realm.io features and specs

  • Easy Integration
    Realm is designed to be easy to set up and integrate into existing projects, with straightforward APIs and comprehensive documentation.
  • Performance
    Realm provides high performance with minimal overhead. It's faster than many traditional databases for many use cases, especially with large datasets and complex queries.
  • Cross-Platform Support
    Realm supports multiple platforms including iOS, Android, and React Native, allowing for easy cross-platform development.
  • Real-Time Data Sync
    Realm offers real-time synchronization of data between devices and a server, ensuring consistency and enabling collaborative features.
  • Rich Data Types
    Realm supports complex data types such as lists and objects, making it more flexible for various types of applications.

Possible disadvantages of Realm.io

  • Learning Curve
    Despite extensive documentation, there can be a learning curve for developers new to Realm, particularly if they are accustomed to traditional SQL databases.
  • Storage Size
    Realm databases can become large quickly, especially if not properly managed, potentially impacting app performance and storage costs.
  • Limited Query Language
    While powerful, Realm's query language isn't as mature or feature-rich as SQL, which might limit some advanced querying needs.
  • Tooling
    The tooling ecosystem for Realm is not as extensive as those for more established databases like SQLite or MongoDB, which could impact developer productivity.
  • Vendor Lock-In
    Using Realm might lead to vendor lock-in, as migrating away from it to another database system can be complex and time-consuming.

ObjectBox features and specs

  • Performance
    ObjectBox is known for its high performance in terms of speed. It provides fast data access and efficient data storage, which can be crucial for mobile applications and IoT devices.
  • Ease of Use
    ObjectBox offers an intuitive API that simplifies database management. Developers can easily implement it without needing extensive database expertise.
  • Object-Oriented Approach
    ObjectBox allows developers to work with database objects directly, eliminating the need for ORMs and reducing boilerplate code.
  • Cross-Platform Support
    Supports multiple platforms including Android, iOS, Linux, and others, enabling seamless data management across different operating systems.
  • Automatic Updates
    ObjectBox provides automatic database schema migrations, making it easier to manage changes without manual intervention.
  • Size
    It has a small footprint, which is beneficial for mobile applications where space and resources are constrained.

Possible disadvantages of ObjectBox

  • Limited Complexity Handling
    While great for simpler use cases, ObjectBox may face challenges with complex queries and data structures compared to more traditional SQL-based databases.
  • Community and Support
    Being a relatively newer database solution, it has a smaller community compared to established databases like SQLite, potentially reducing the availability of community-driven support and resources.
  • Feature Set
    It might lack some advanced features found in other databases, such as customized SQL queries, which could be limiting for some applications.
  • Vendor Lock-In
    Using ObjectBox ties you to its ecosystem, which might limit flexibility if you choose to switch databases in the future.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite its ease of use, developers unfamiliar with NoSQL or object database paradigms might encounter a learning curve.

Realm.io videos

No Realm.io videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

ObjectBox videos

Getting Started with Objectbox for Android / Java

More videos:

  • Review - ObjectBox - Startup of Startupnight 2018

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Realm.io and ObjectBox)
Databases
52 52%
48% 48
NoSQL Databases
52 52%
48% 48
Data Integration
70 70%
30% 30
Development
50 50%
50% 50

User comments

Share your experience with using Realm.io and ObjectBox. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Realm.io should be more popular than ObjectBox. It has been mentiond 25 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Realm.io mentions (25)

  • Release Radar · September 2024: Major updates from the open source community
    From the team at MongoDB comes Realm, a mobile database that runs directly inside phones, tablets, or wearables. It's built for mobile, and designed for offline use. The latest release comes with built-in Swift 6 language mode, and Xcode 16 support. Some breaking changes include removal of Atlas App Services and Atlas Device Sync functionality, Strings and Data now considered different types and thus queries won't... - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • I built a WebComponents-based framework
    Looks really cool, I like to make very minimalistic dependency choices for the web apps I work on. Web Components look interesting and it's great to see frameworks that build upon it and provide features that are currently missing from it. When I landed on the page I remembered another Realm framework I used a lot long time ago. https://realm.io has the same name and the logo looks very similar too. Not sure if... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Realm Database, Expo SDK 49 and Expo Router Getting Started
    Realm is a fast, scalable alternative to SQLite with mobile to cloud data sync that makes building real-time, reactive mobile apps easy. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Looking for android java developer mentor
    I would focus on Kotlin instead of Java, there's really no point in sticking to Java at this point. And when it comes to databases, some local ones that are pretty easy to get into are Realm and ObjectBox, SQLite can definitely be a bit overwhelming at the beginning. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Want to build a simple database app....Where do I start
    Just to add to this, there's also Realm and ObjectBox as alternatives. Source: over 2 years ago
View more

ObjectBox mentions (7)

  • Publishing to F-Droid
    When I first attempted to publish to F-Droid, I experienced several pipeline issues. After reading through the pipeline logs in GitLab, I realized that my application's database (ObjectBox) was not entirely FOSS compliant and was causing build failures. The following day was spent migrating my app to Room. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Looking for android java developer mentor
    I would focus on Kotlin instead of Java, there's really no point in sticking to Java at this point. And when it comes to databases, some local ones that are pretty easy to get into are Realm and ObjectBox, SQLite can definitely be a bit overwhelming at the beginning. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Want to build a simple database app....Where do I start
    Just to add to this, there's also Realm and ObjectBox as alternatives. Source: over 2 years ago
  • EdgeDB 2.0
    Adding ObjectBox [0] to the list. [0] https://objectbox.io/. - Source: Hacker News / almost 3 years ago
  • Embedded databases - What is an embedded database? and how to choose one
    While - strictly speaking - "database" refers to a systematic collection of data, "Database Management System'', or DBMS, refers to the piece of software that provides an efficient and versatile method of working with data(eg: ObjectBox). However, often the term "database" is also used loosely to refer to a DBMS, and you will find most DBMS only use the term database in their name and communication. - Source: dev.to / almost 3 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Realm.io and ObjectBox, you can also consider the following products

Microsoft SQL Server Compact - Bring Microsoft SQL Server 2017 to the platform of your choice. Use SQL Server 2017 on Windows, Linux, and Docker containers.

CompactView - Viewer for Microsoft® SQL Server® CE database files (sdf)

UnQLite - UnQLite is a in-process software library which implements a self-contained, serverless...

NuoDB - A scale-out SQL database for global operations

VoltDB - In-memory relational DBMS capable of supporting millions of database operations per second

Clustrix - Clustrix is the leading scale-out SQL database engineered for the cloud.