Overview
TiDB is an open-source distributed SQL database that is compatible with the MySQL protocol. Data is split across nodes automatically, so you scale out by adding capacity rather than sharding by hand, and a columnar engine (TiFlash) keeps an analytical copy for real-time reporting. TiDB Cloud is PingCAP's managed service for it, with full-text and vector search added.
The Starter plan (formerly called Serverless) is multi-tenant and scales to zero. Each organization can run up to five free instances, each with 5 GiB of row storage, 5 GiB of columnar storage and 50 million Request Units per month. Above that you pay $0.20 per GiB and $0.10 per million RUs, with a spend limit you set. When a free instance hits its quota, new connections are refused until the next month.
Essential (preview) adds provisioned autoscaling compute and point-in-time recovery up to 30 days; the vendor cites roughly $20 a day for a typical small production setup. Premium starts at $1,800/mo, and Dedicated clusters start at $1,376/mo with nodes you size yourself on AWS, Google Cloud or Azure. Before paying, test how many RUs your real queries use, since that drives the Starter and Essential bills.
Pricing and plans
Free tier · no card
Starter: per organization 25 GiB row storage, 25 GiB columnar storage and 250M Request Units a month (5 GiB + 5 GiB + 50M RUs on each of the first five instances). Up to 5 free instances; scales to zero; new connections are refused once a quota is hit.
At the limit Stops at the limit New connections are refused once a free quota is hit; nothing is charged.
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $0 + usage | Free quota, then $0.20/GiB storage and $0.10 per 1M RUs; spend limits; scale to zero; AWS and Alibaba Cloud |
| Essential (preview) | Usage-based | Provisioned autoscaling compute up to 100K RUs, PITR with up to 30-day retention; vendor cites about $20/day for a typical small production setup |
| Premium (preview) | From $1,800/mo | Unlimited autoscaling, CMEK, PrivateLink, VPC peering, 99.99% multi-zone availability |
| Dedicated | From $0.22/hr per node; clusters from $1,376/mo | 4 to 32 vCPU per node on AWS, Google Cloud and Azure; PCI-DSS and SOC 2 Type II |
| Self-Managed | Custom | Enterprise support for running TiDB on your own infrastructure; TiDB Community is free open source |
What it does
- MySQL compatibility
- Connect with MySQL drivers and ORMs; TLS is required and user names carry an instance prefix on Starter and Essential.
- Horizontal scaling
- Storage and compute scale out without manual sharding; Dedicated replicates each storage node across availability zones.
- HTAP columnar storage
- A columnar copy of data serves analytical queries alongside transactions.
- Branching
- Create branches of Starter and Essential instances, up to five per organization by default.
- Vector and full-text search
- Native vector capabilities and full-text search for AI and search features.
- Spend limits
- Starter lets you cap monthly spend so usage cannot exceed a budget.
Strengths and limitations
Strengths
- Large free quota with no credit card and up to five free instances
- Scales from a free serverless tier to multi-cloud dedicated clusters on the same engine
- MySQL-compatible, so existing tools and ORMs work
- Open-source engine that can be self-hosted
- Row and columnar storage in one database for mixed workloads
Limitations
- Request Unit billing makes Starter costs hard to predict before testing
- Some features are partially supported or unavailable on Starter and Essential
- Essential and Premium are still in preview
- Dedicated clusters start at $1,376/mo and node storage cannot be decreased after creation
- Not every MySQL feature behaves the same in a distributed database
Who it suits
Good for
- MySQL apps expected to need more than a single server
- SaaS platforms that need many small databases or branches
- Apps mixing transactions with real-time analytics
- Hobby projects that want a free MySQL-compatible database
Look elsewhere if
- Teams that need PostgreSQL
- Small production apps that want a fixed, predictable monthly bill
Alternatives to TiDB Cloud
| Tool | From | Free option | Stages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neon Serverless Postgres | Usage-based | Free tier | |
| MongoDB Atlas Managed document database | $8/mo | Free tier | |
| Crunchy Bridge Managed PostgreSQL on AWS, Azure and GCP | $9/mo | ||
| Supabase Managed Postgres backend platform | $25/mo | Free tier | |
| Convex Reactive backend and document database | $25/mo | Free tier | |
| Render Managed PaaS | $7/mo | Free tier |
Questions
Is TiDB Cloud free?
The Starter plan is free within its quota: per organization 25 GiB row storage, 25 GiB columnar storage and 250M Request Units a month, across up to five free instances. No credit card is needed.
What happened to TiDB Serverless?
The scale-to-zero tier is now called TiDB Cloud Starter, alongside the newer Essential and Premium plans.
Is TiDB compatible with MySQL?
Yes, TiDB uses the MySQL protocol, so MySQL drivers, clients and most ORMs work with it.
How much does TiDB Cloud Dedicated cost?
Nodes start at $0.22 per hour and the pricing page lists clusters from $1,376/mo.
Does TiDB Cloud have an EU region?
Yes. Starter is available in AWS Frankfurt (eu-central-1), and Dedicated runs in 30+ regions across AWS, Google Cloud and Azure.
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