#55th of 29 in Backends, databases and hosting
spacetimedb
Relational database that runs your app logic as modules and syncs clients live
- Stars
- 25.4k
- License
- custom license
- Last commit
- Oct 2026
- Last release
- Oct 2026
- Language
- Rust
23,892 on 27 Mar 202625,364 on 23 Oct 2026
From GitHub's daily star counts.
Checked on GitHub.
Overview
SpacetimeDB is a relational database that doubles as the application server. You write tables and reducers as a module in Rust, C#, TypeScript or C++, upload it, and clients connect directly, subscribe to tables and receive committed changes automatically. State is held in memory with an on-disk commit log for durability, and reducers run as ACID transactions.
Who it is for: Developers building realtime web apps or multiplayer games, no separate server
Ranked among open-source alternatives to Firebase (#5 of 10), Vercel (#5 of 10) and Heroku (#5 of 10).
Strengths
- Replaces the API server and pub/sub layer: clients subscribe to tables and get pushed updates
- Module languages: Rust, C#, TypeScript, C++; client SDKs include React hooks, Unity and Unreal
- Reducers are ACID transactions; confirmed reads wait for commit log durability by default
- Used for the full backend of the MMORPG BitCraft Online
Weaknesses
- BSL 1.1 license, converting to AGPL v3.0 with linking exception after a few years
- Aimed at low-latency transactional workloads, not batch or analytical queries
- Application logic lives inside the database, tying the app to its module model
- RAM requirements are unknown, though all application state is held in memory
What it needs
- no GPU
- Docker + Compose
- port 3000
Quick answers
Is spacetimedb open source?
Its code is public on GitHub under its own license terms; read them before you use it at work.
Can you run spacetimedb with Docker?
Yes. Its repository has a Docker setup: a Dockerfile, a Compose file or a published image.
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