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MySQL vs Redis

MySQL and Redis both land on Depends.

MySQL

mysql.com

Depends
Confidence: High

Buy it if you're a developer running a web app . the free Community Edition is battle-tested and cheap to grow with.

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Redis

redis.io

Depends
Confidence: Medium

Redis is the proven category leader for in-memory caching and real-time data . fast, widely deployed, and highly rated . but the 2024-2025 license saga, recurring critical CVEs, and costs that spike at scale make it workload- and risk-dependent.

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MySQL versus Redis
CompareMySQLRedis
VerdictDependsDepends
Best forDevelopers building web appsLow-latency caching and session storage for high-traffic apps (users report 'absolutely awesome' caching performance on massive analytics workloads)
Who it's not forNon-technical teams that just need a contact listCost-sensitive teams expecting flat costs as data grows . Redis Cloud users name cost 'the biggest downside as you scale,' and cheaper per-GiB managed options (Google Memorystore, Upstash) and Dragonfly (claims up to 80% savings, same API) exist
PrivacyActively maintained; recurring CVEs patched through Oracle Critical Patch Updates.⁷Active and serious CVE history in 2025-2026, headlined by the critical RediShell RCE (CVE-2025-49844), a use-after-free bug affecting all versions released over 13 years (~60,000 exposed servers; no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation at disclosure).
Public sentimentReviewers praise transactional performance and value, while critics cite performance/speed issues and some teams migrating to Postgres.¹Ratings are strong: roughly 4.5/5 across ~170-180 G2 reviews and 4.7/5 (212 ratings) on Gartner Peer Insights.14
Biggest gotchaBest features sit behind Oracle's paid per-server Enterprise licensesPricing trap: costs balloon as you scale . G2 users explicitly call cost 'the biggest downside of Redis Cloud as you scale'; benchmark against per-GiB providers and Dragonfly's claimed 80% savings before committing12

Pick MySQL when

  • Developers building web apps
  • High-transaction backends
  • Cost-conscious teams wanting open source
  • Existing LAMP-stack shops

When MySQL is not a fit

  • Non-technical teams that just need a contact list
  • Small teams without a DBA or ops budget
  • Buyers wanting cutting-edge SQL features . Postgres fits better
  • One-person projects where a spreadsheet suffices

Pick Redis when

  • Low-latency caching and session storage for high-traffic apps (users report 'absolutely awesome' caching performance on massive analytics workloads)
  • Teams wanting a fully managed, multi-cloud service (Redis Cloud integrates with Google Cloud and Azure)
  • Organizations that value a mature product with strong peer ratings (4.5/5 on G2, 4.7/5 on Gartner Peer Insights)
  • Performance-critical in-memory workloads where 'always-on' operation with minimal launch overhead matters

When Redis is not a fit

  • Cost-sensitive teams expecting flat costs as data grows . Redis Cloud users name cost 'the biggest downside as you scale,' and cheaper per-GiB managed options (Google Memorystore, Upstash) and Dragonfly (claims up to 80% savings, same API) exist
  • Organizations requiring unambiguous OSI open-source licensing . Redis dropped its open-source license in 2024, triggering the Valkey fork, and only re-opened in 2025; compliance teams should not assume stability
  • Anyone planning to use it as a primary durable relational database . practitioners warn it 'is wonderful' for certain use cases but is frequently misused, with published guides on the ways to shoot yourself in the foot with it
  • Teams without the ops discipline to harden and patch . defaults assume trusted networks, and critical CVEs like RediShell required prompt upgrades across 13 years of affected releases

Sources

  1. MySQL Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & Features . G2g2.com
    review
  2. MySQL Reviews from Real Users . TrustRadiustrustradius.com
    review
  3. MySQL Software Reviews, Demo & Pricing . SoftwareAdvicesoftwareadvice.com
    review
  4. MySQL Licensing 2026: Editions and Real Costredresscompliance.com
    official
  5. MySQL Pricing Explained . Airbyteairbyte.com
    official
  6. MySQL CVE List . CVE Detailscvedetails.com
    security
  7. MySQL vulnerabilities CVE-2024-21247, CVE-2024-21209, CVE-2024-21231 . F5my.f5.com
    security
  8. Leaving MySQL . Reddit r/programmingreddit.com
    review
  9. What are the top 6 MySQL alternatives? . IONOSionos.com
    news
  10. MySQL Enterprise Customer Successesmysql.com
    official
  11. Redis Cloud Reviews & Ratings . Gartner Peer Insights (4.7/5, 212 ratings)gartner.com
    review
  12. Redis Cloud Reviews . G2g2.com
    review
  13. Redis Software Reviews . G2g2.com
    review
  14. Redis Reviews 2026: What Enterprise Users Really Saycheckthat.ai
    review
  15. What do you think about REALLY using Redis? . r/railsreddit.com
    review
  16. Redis on FreeBSD: In-Memory Data Store Reviewfreebsdsoftware.org
    review