Flyway vs Skeema

Flyway9.4Visit Skeema8.3Visit

Higher score Flyway #1 in Database Migration Tools 9.4/10 Free plan · 28-day trial Free planFree trial✓ 5 of 5 features Visit Flyway

vs

Skeema #7 in Database Migration Tools 8.3/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 5 features Visit Skeema

• Flyway fits best

  Teams needing mature, broad migration automation

• Skeema fits best

  MySQL-focused teams needing schema safety

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Side by side

Feature	Flyway 9.4/10 Visit ↗	Skeema 8.3/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	8.3
Ranking	#1 in Database Migration Tools	#7 in Database Migration Tools
Best for	Teams needing mature, broad migration automation	MySQL-focused teams needing schema safety
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	—	$649/yr
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	28 days	—
Deployment	Self-hosted, Desktop	Cloud, Self-hosted, Desktop
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows, macOS, Linux
Support	Email, Tickets, Community, Docs	Email, Community, Docs
Built for	Solo, Mid-market, Enterprise	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Flyway 5/5 · Skeema 4/5
Rollback support	✓ (best)	—
Schema diff	✓	✓
CI/CD automation	✓	✓
Drift detection	✓	✓
Self-hosted option	✓	✓
Specs
Supported databases	Not checked yet	4
Migration format	Mixed	Sql
Our review
Pros	Free Community edition includes core migration commands, CLI, and API. Supports versioned SQL and Java migrations with rollback workflows. Connects with CI/CD tools, Git, Docker, Maven, and Gradle.	Free open-source Community edition with schema diff and pull/push workflows Configurable linting, drift checks, sharding, and CI/CD automation Runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows with Plus and Max tiers
Cons	Schema diff and object-level versioning begin with the Teams edition. Drift detection and generated rollback scripts require Enterprise. The broad feature set may exceed the needs of simple migration projects.	The Community edition does not include a native Windows build It documents no conventional down-migration workflow Private technical support is limited to the Max tier
Our verdict	Flyway is a database change management tool for developers, database teams, and enterprises managing versioned schema changes. It runs migration workflows through commands such as migrate, validate, repair, and baseline, while supporting… Read the review →	Skeema is a command-line schema management tool for MySQL and MariaDB. It stores desired database definitions as SQL CREATE statements, compares them with live databases, generates DDL, and applies schema changes. That makes it a fit for… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Flyway — where it wins

  • Free Community edition includes core migration commands, CLI, and API.
  • Supports versioned SQL and Java migrations with rollback workflows.
  • Connects with CI/CD tools, Git, Docker, Maven, and Gradle.

  Where it doesn't

  • Schema diff and object-level versioning begin with the Teams edition.
  • Drift detection and generated rollback scripts require Enterprise.
  • The broad feature set may exceed the needs of simple migration projects.

• Skeema — where it wins

  • Free open-source Community edition with schema diff and pull/push workflows
  • Configurable linting, drift checks, sharding, and CI/CD automation
  • Runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows with Plus and Max tiers

  Where it doesn't

  • The Community edition does not include a native Windows build
  • It documents no conventional down-migration workflow
  • Private technical support is limited to the Max tier

• Flyway9.4/10 · Free plan · 28-day trial

  A broad migration platform with free core commands and deeper controls in paid editions.

  Visit FlywayFull verdict →
• Skeema8.3/10 · Free plan

  A schema-first CLI for MySQL-focused teams that need diffing, linting, and CI/CD control.

  Visit SkeemaFull verdict →