Real-time OLAP databases · StarRocks (Linux Foundation project; commercial backing from CelerData)

StarRocks

Open-source MPP database for sub-second analytics across real-time data and data-lake tables.

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StarRocks is an open-source massively parallel processing SQL database built for sub-second analytics at high concurrency, forked from the same lineage as Apache Doris and later moved under Linux Foundation governance. It runs vectorized query execution with a cost-based optimizer and can query data in place across Iceberg, Hudi, Delta Lake and Hive without a separate ingestion step, in addition to serving data loaded natively into its own storage. StarRocks is MySQL-protocol compatible, which lets existing BI tools and drivers connect without changes, and it supports materialized views that automatically accelerate lakehouse queries. It is self-hosted by default; CelerData, founded by StarRocks's original creators, sells a commercial managed cloud version. It is frequently shortlisted against ClickHouse and Apache Doris for teams wanting one engine across both fresh and lake-resident data.

At a glance

Vendor StarRocks (Linux Foundation project; commercial backing from CelerData)
Pricing model Open source + paid options
Free tier Yes
Deployment Self-hosted
Open source Yes (Apache-2.0)
Best for Teams wanting a single fast SQL engine across both freshly loaded data and existing lakehouse tables.

Pricing

Free and open source; a commercial managed cloud version is offered separately by CelerData.

Pricing has not been verified yet — see the vendor's site.

Features

  • Vectorized execution with cost-based optimizer
  • Query federation across Iceberg, Hudi, Delta Lake and Hive
  • Materialized views that accelerate lakehouse queries
  • MySQL wire-protocol compatibility
  • Real-time streaming ingestion
  • Shared-data architecture separating compute and storage

Integrations

Profile last reviewed September 21, 2026

Head to head

Alternatives

Apache Doris Open-source MPP database combining real-time analytics with sub-second query response at large scale. ClickHouse Open-source columnar database built for sub-second aggregate queries over billions of rows. Trino Open-source distributed SQL engine that queries data across warehouses, lakes and databases without moving it.

StarRocks in the index now

Terms to know

OLAP (online analytical processing) A category of technology optimized for fast, multi-dimensional aggregation and slicing of data for analysis. Data lakehouse A storage architecture that adds warehouse-style structure and transactions directly on top of low-cost data lake storage. Massively parallel processing An architecture that splits a query across many independent compute nodes, each processing its own data slice. Real-time OLAP An analytical database that ingests streaming data continuously and answers aggregation queries with sub-second latency.

Related guides

How to choose a real-time OLAP database Real-time OLAP databases trade operational complexity for speed on fresh data — the decisions are architecture, query concurrency, and who runs it.