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It's a split decision.
Choose Supabase when you want Postgres plus managed authentication, storage, realtime, Edge Functions and REST APIs in one backend. Its Free plan has defined usage caps; Pro starts at $25 per month, with overages and compute costs to track. Choose MySQL when you need a database to run and integrate on your own terms, including the free GPL Community Edition or paid commercial editions. These products overlap at the database layer, but Supabase includes more application services.
01Side by side
| Supabase | MySQL | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Managed plans, usage overages, compute and add-ons | Free GPL edition; paid editions licensed per server |
| Free tier | 50,000 MAUs; 500 MB database; 5 GB egress | Community Edition free under GPL |
| Open source and licence | Open source; licence not specified here | Community Edition is free under GPL |
| Self-hosting | Self-hostable Postgres-based platform | Self-hostable database platform |
| API and SDKs | Ready REST APIs; JavaScript SDK example for React | Database platform; application APIs are separate |
| Integrations | React, Next.js, Flutter, Expo, Stripe, OpenAI | HeatWave cloud choices; ISV, OEM and VAR products |
| Deployment model | Hosted backend or self-hosted platform | Self-hosted database or HeatWave cloud service |
| Platforms | Web and mobile | Web |
Supabase Choose Supabase if
- Choose Supabase if you want Postgres and backend services together.
- Choose Supabase if built-in REST APIs and Auth reduce service work.
- Choose Supabase if your app uses its listed web or mobile integrations.
MySQL Choose MySQL if
- Choose MySQL if you want a database rather than a bundled backend.
- Choose MySQL if GPL Community Edition fits your deployment.
- Choose MySQL if you need its commercial, cluster or embedded editions.
02Pricing at real usage
Supabase’s Free plan costs $0 and includes 50,000 monthly active users, 500 MB of database per project, 5 GB egress and 1 GB file storage. It allows two active projects, which pause after one week inactive. Pro starts at $25 per month and includes 100,000 MAUs, 8 GB disk, 250 GB egress and 100 GB file storage. The pricing page lists overages for Pro and Team: $0.00325 per additional MAU, $0.125 per GB of disk and $0.09 per GB of egress. Paid plans include $10 monthly compute credits; Micro compute is listed at $10 per month.
MySQL Community Edition is free under GPL. Commercial Standard and Enterprise editions are licensed per server, with annual list prices from $2,140 for Standard on 1–4 socket servers to $10,700 for Enterprise on 5+ sockets. The vendor lists annual prices; monthly prices are not published.
03API, SDKs and integration
Supabase puts application services beside its Postgres database. The platform offers ready-to-use REST APIs, built-in Auth with Row Level Security, file storage, Realtime and Edge Functions. Its homepage shows a React example using the @supabase/supabase-js package and a createClient call; it also names React Native, Next.js, Flutter and Expo. The homepage points developers to React documentation. It lists integrations including Stripe, Vercel, OpenAI, Hugging Face and LangChain.
MySQL is a database platform, not a bundled application backend. Build the application’s API and service layer around the database, or use HeatWave for its cloud-service offering. MySQL’s homepage highlights Community, Enterprise, Cluster, HeatWave and OEM/ISV use, but does not name application SDKs or languages there. It says HeatWave lets teams deploy apps with a choice of cloud providers. For a stack comparison, account for the backend services Supabase supplies; with MySQL, select and maintain those services separately.
04Open source, self-hosting and lock-in
Both products are marked open source and self-hostable. Supabase describes each project’s database as full, portable Postgres. That portability applies to the database layer; a Supabase application may also depend on its Auth, Storage, Realtime, Edge Functions and REST API services. Replacing those services means accounting for them separately from moving the database.
MySQL Community Edition is free under GPL, and MySQL also has commercial editions with per-server licensing. Its platform includes database offerings for self-hosted use, alongside HeatWave as a cloud service. The MySQL homepage describes OEM and embedded licensing for products. Supabase’s homepage calls its Postgres database portable, while neither product’s homepage specifies a complete export procedure or migration effort. Before choosing, map the database schema and the application services that would need to move, then confirm export and migration requirements against the relevant product documentation.
Questions people ask
Is there anything better than Supabase?
It depends on what the application needs. Supabase combines Postgres with Auth, storage, Edge Functions, Realtime and REST APIs. MySQL is a database platform with Community, commercial, cluster, HeatWave and embedded offerings. If you need a database rather than a bundled backend, MySQL may fit better; the two are not direct substitutes across every layer.
Is it better to learn MySQL or PostgreSQL?
Choose based on the systems you want to build. Supabase gives developers a Postgres database with backend services and a JavaScript SDK example for React. MySQL has a free GPL Community Edition as well as commercial and embedded editions. The published product details do not establish which database is more widely required by employers.
What are the top three relational databases?
This comparison covers two database options: Supabase’s Postgres database and MySQL. The product details do not provide market-share or adoption data to rank relational databases overall. For this decision, compare the database engine and the surrounding services: Supabase bundles backend features, while MySQL is a database platform.
Is MySQL enough to get a job?
MySQL is a database platform used in application, analytics and embedded-product contexts, and its homepage describes use by ISVs, OEMs and VARs. The product details do not establish hiring requirements or whether MySQL alone is sufficient for a particular job. Check the technologies and responsibilities in the roles you are targeting.