DbSchema vs DB Designer

DbSchema9.4Visit DB Designer8.8Visit

Higher score DbSchema #1 in Database Design Tools 9.4/10 Free plan · 15-day trial Free planFree trial✓ 5 of 5 features Visit DbSchema

vs

DB Designer #6 in Database Design Tools 8.8/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 5 of 5 features Visit DB Designer

• DbSchema fits best

  Broad, cross-platform database modeling

• DB Designer fits best

  Affordable collaborative web modeling

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Side by side

Feature	DbSchema 9.4/10 Visit ↗	DB Designer 8.8/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	8.8
Ranking	#1 in Database Design Tools	#6 in Database Design Tools
Best for	Broad, cross-platform database modeling	Affordable collaborative web modeling
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	—	—
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	15 days	—
Deployment	Desktop	Cloud
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Web
Support	Tickets, Docs	Email, Tickets, Live chat, Phone, Docs
Compliance	ISO 27001, GDPR	GDPR
Built for	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features DbSchema 5/5 · DB Designer 5/5
Reverse engineering	✓	✓
Forward engineering	✓	✓
SQL export	✓	✓
Team collaboration	✓	✓
Version history	✓	✓
Specs
Supported databases	Access, Amazon Athena, Amazon Timestream, Apache Drill, Apache Druid, Apache Ignite, Apache Pinot, Apache Solr, Aurora MySQL, Aurora PostgreSQL, Azure Synapse, Azure SQL, Cache, Cassandra, ClickHouse, Cockroach, Couchbase, CrateDB, CSV Files, CTreeAce, CUBRID, DaffodilDb, Databricks, Dataverse, Db2, DBF/FoxPro/xBase, Derby, DocumentDB, Dremio, DuckDB, DynamoDB, Elasticsearch, EnterpriseDB, Exasol, Fabric Lakehouse, FileMaker, Firebird, Firebolt, FrontBase, Google AlloyDB, Google BigQuery, Google Cloud Spanner, Greenplum, H2, HBase, Hive, Hologres, HSQL, Impala, InfluxDB, Informix, Ingres, Interbase, JDataStore, Kafka, MariaDB, MarkLogic, MemSQL, Mimer, MonetDB, MongoDB, MySQL, Neo4j, Neon, NuoDB, Oracle, OrientDB, Pervasive, PlanetScale, PointBase, PostgreSQL, QuestDB, Redis, Redshift, Salesforce, SAP Adaptive Server, SAP HANA, SAP MaxDB, ScyllaDB, SingleStore, SnappyData, Snowflake, SQL Anywhere, SQLBase, SQLite, SQL Server, Starburst, Supabase, TarantoolDB, Teradata, ThoughtSpot, Tibero, TiDB, TimescaleDB, Transbase, Trino, Vertica, VoltDB, Xata, Yellowbrick, YugabyteDB	MySQL, MS SQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQLite
Deployment	Desktop	Web
Our review
Pros	Reverse- and forward-engineers schemas across SQL and NoSQL databases Generates migration SQL plus HTML5, PDF, and Markdown documentation Supports Git commits, diffs, merges, and schema review workflows	Free plan plus monthly tiers starting at $9 Visual modeling with reverse and forward engineering Collaboration includes roles, comments, chat, and version restore
Cons	Paid edition prices are not stated here Desktop deployment may not suit browser-first teams Advanced logical and conceptual design requires Architect	Starter limits users to 2 models and 10 tables per model Reverse engineering is documented for only three databases Web-only deployment may not suit desktop-first teams
Our verdict	DbSchema is a desktop database design and management tool for developers, database administrators, architects, analysts, and data teams. It reverse-engineers existing SQL and NoSQL databases into interactive ER diagrams, imports DDL… Read the review →	DB Designer is a browser-based tool for creating, importing, editing, sharing, and exporting database schemas. It is aimed at developers, database administrators, engineers, educators, freelancers, and organizations that need visual… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• DbSchema — where it wins

  • Reverse- and forward-engineers schemas across SQL and NoSQL databases
  • Generates migration SQL plus HTML5, PDF, and Markdown documentation
  • Supports Git commits, diffs, merges, and schema review workflows

  Where it doesn't

  • Paid edition prices are not stated here
  • Desktop deployment may not suit browser-first teams
  • Advanced logical and conceptual design requires Architect

• DB Designer — where it wins

  • Free plan plus monthly tiers starting at $9
  • Visual modeling with reverse and forward engineering
  • Collaboration includes roles, comments, chat, and version restore

  Where it doesn't

  • Starter limits users to 2 models and 10 tables per model
  • Reverse engineering is documented for only three databases
  • Web-only deployment may not suit desktop-first teams

• DbSchema9.4/10 · Free plan · 15-day trial

  A broad cross-platform modeler for database design, migration, documentation, and review.

  Visit DbSchemaFull verdict →
• DB Designer8.8/10 · Free plan

  Affordable web-based modeling with collaboration, version history, and SQL workflows.

  Visit DB DesignerFull verdict →