SQLite
Embedded, serverless SQL database engine that stores a full database in a single file.
Commenters like SQLite for being a zero-config database that is just a file123, for robust storage that resists corruption456, and as a fast-enough backend for small web apps and local tools.78910 The most common caveats are weaker replication and high-availability options than Postgres1112, plus lock contention with concurrent writers and loose default column typing.13141516
Why people recommend it
Simplicity · 3
A single file with no separate server or config is enough for many projects.
“SQLite is just a file and often, that is enough.”
“I wish it was as simple as sqlite. No config just works.”
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“I just use sqlite on the instance for my database.”
Web app backends · 3
Commonly paired with Go, Rust or PHP on a single server for web apps.
“Single Go binary + SQLite database all the way.”
“Most of my apps are now simply HTMX + Go + SQLite. I've found it's enough for most projects.”
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“I mostly use Go + SQLite for all the things I used to use Rails, JavaScript, or Python for.”
Speed · 3
Commenters say it is fast enough for full-text search, per-keystroke queries and app data.
“Search is via FTS5 in SQLite and works great on an 8 year old MacBook Pro.”
“This is fast enough using SQLite to just dump all commands into it and query on each typed letter.”
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“I used this approach to drive entire app, and it works.”
Reliability · 3
Praised as robust and resilient against file corruption.
“You're less likely to end up with corrupted files with sqlite.”
“It’s an incredibly robust piece of software that’s often cost me pennies per month to serve 100k+ monthly users.”
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“I'm grateful SQLite exists.”
Easy backups · 3
Backups are simple via the .backup command or Litestream.
“SQLite backups are easy. I really like how I am building web apps these days.”
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“sqlite as Database backen on ephemeral pods”
App file format · 3
Recommended as an application file format in place of raw files, CSVs or zip containers.
“I used SQLite because it makes a lot of sense to use as an application file format”
“My advice: Just use SQLite. Don't use PG if you don't need it.”
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“I think it is the next logical extension over using zip as the container (jar/ooxml/epub).”
Caveats and dissent
High availability · 2
Replication for minimal downtime and data loss relies on add-ons that some consider less battle-tested than Postgres replication.
“I love SQLite, and I really want to run it in production”
“I love SQLite, but my clients expect minimal data loss and downtime when one of my servers goes down.”
Concurrent writes · 2
Multiple concurrent writers can hit locks, even with WAL mode.
“I have not found WAL mode is an antidote to SQLite locks during multiple concurrent writes.”
“I use SQLite for everything, and I'm perfectly happy with it.”
Loose typing · 2
Non-strict column typing by default bothers some users.
“SQLite’s default of non-strict typing is, to me, bananas.”
“One time, the database got corrupted and all the data was lost. That was the day I stopped using SQLite.”
Network filesystems · 1
Running it on a distributed cloud file system caused race conditions at scale.
“I still like sqlite but I'd be wary of using it again for a usecase like mine.”
Corruption report · 1
One commenter lost all data to a corrupted database.
“One time, the database got corrupted and all the data was lost. That was the day I stopped using SQLite.”
Often compared with
3 moved from PostgreSQL to SQLite
2 moved from SQLite to DuckDB
1 moved from SQLite to MySQL
1 moved from SQLite to Tantivy
1 moved from PGlite to SQLite
Who recommends it in their own words
Threads where it came up
- PostgreSQL for Everything 4 mentions
- SQLite Is All You Need 4 mentions
- SQLite is all you need for durable workflows 4 mentions
- SQLite Is a Library of Congress Recommended Storage Format 4 mentions
- Do You Even Need a Database? 4 mentions
- Modern SQLite: Features You Didn't Know It Had 4 mentions
Also written as Althttpd, althttpd. Data: sqlite.json. Quotes are verbatim; the verdict and theme labels are written by a model from these comments, and every clause links to its sources.
All comments 51
“Search is via FTS5 in SQLite and works great on an 8 year old MacBook Pro.”
“relaxed durability on SQLite to reach 3500+ ingest requests per second”
“The parsed data is added to a SQLite database.”
“You're less likely to end up with corrupted files with sqlite.”
“SQLite backups are easy. I really like how I am building web apps these days.”
“I miss the tools I used in the past (gcc, linux, sqlite,…)”
“SQLite does a great job to support single writer and multiple readers.”
“thought it would be nice to have it a little more self contained and allow for a sqlite db if wanted”
“Writing data to a SQlite database to keep context relevant”
“Everything is stored in SQLite and Markdown as well”
“I think SQLite is good enough, but in the current agent era, it doesn’t seem good enough anymore.”
“sqlite (which is also more scalable than people think!)”
“loads it into a SQLite database for querying”
“The standard that I want to hold myself is derived from the open source world like SQLite.”
“FastAPI + SQLite for the backend”
“These days I just use EF with Sqlite on 99% of my projects.”
“sqlite3 instead of k8s-style complexity blowup”
“I used SQLite because it makes a lot of sense to use as an application file format”
“sqlite as Database backen on ephemeral pods”
“Drop a SQLite db if you want a quick portable app”
“Its what I used to migrate to the 6 TB sqlite database”
“i use this stack quite a bit too”
“I use sqlite for a lot of my personal projects.”
“I love SQL, and respect SQLite and DuckDB for what they are.”
“Single Go binary + SQLite database all the way.”
“I think it is the next logical extension over using zip as the container (jar/ooxml/epub).”
“Project into sqlite on your app server is the main trick I use.”
“I used this approach to drive entire app, and it works.”
“I've used Postgres, Sqlite, Duckdb”
“I can get away with SQLite for local development, prototyping (and even staging)”
“I use SQLite for everything, and I'm perfectly happy with it.”
“has recently migrated to a sqlite backend”
“SQLite’s default of non-strict typing is, to me, bananas.”
“I love this trend of pushing SQLite for advanced scenarios and new architectures. It’s so much more powerful than people give it credit for.”
“I have a 400 GB sqlite database with samples of rendered root document DOMs”
“Think phpBB but written in Rust with modern UI niceties and a SQLite backend.”
“When I use Sqlite I miss many of its upsides--better data migrations and better concurrency being two.”
“making it an alternative to SQLite/turso?”
“SQLite for storage”
“I just use sqlite on the instance for my database.”
“I love SQLite, and I really want to run it in production”
“This is fast enough using SQLite to just dump all commands into it and query on each typed letter.”
“I mostly use Go + SQLite for all the things I used to use Rails, JavaScript, or Python for.”
“SQLite is just a file and often, that is enough.”
“I love SQLite, but my clients expect minimal data loss and downtime when one of my servers goes down.”
“Most of my apps are now simply HTMX + Go + SQLite. I've found it's enough for most projects.”
“I wish it was as simple as sqlite. No config just works.”
“One time, the database got corrupted and all the data was lost. That was the day I stopped using SQLite.”
“I'm grateful SQLite exists.”
“I have not found WAL mode is an antidote to SQLite locks during multiple concurrent writes.”
“It’s an incredibly robust piece of software that’s often cost me pennies per month to serve 100k+ monthly users.”