Databricks Lakehouse Federation
Databricks Lakehouse Federation: A governed way for Databricks teams to query external databases and catalogs in place. Ranked #26 of 29 in Analytical Data Store Software by our editors (6.9/10); pricing: Paid; best for databricks users federating queries across external catalogs.
At a glance
- Editor score6.9 / 10
- PricingPaid
- Best forDatabricks users federating queries across external catalogs
- Free planNo
- Deployment modelCloud
- Founded2013 · San Francisco, California
- Facts checked24 Sep 2026
Where it wins
- Federates queries across a broad range of external databases and catalogs
- Pushes SQL queries to external relational databases
- Uses Unity Catalog foreign catalogs with table-level access controls
Where it doesn't
- Queries external stores rather than serving as an analytical store itself
- Foreign catalogs provide read-only access
- Usage-based charges vary by cloud provider, region, and compute use
Our verdict on Databricks Lakehouse Federation
Databricks Lakehouse Federation gives teams a way to query external relational databases and supported catalogs through Databricks, without moving that data into a Databricks store first. It fits mid-market and enterprise organizations already working in Databricks that need ad hoc reporting, BI, proof-of-concept work, or incremental migration. It is a platform capability, not a standalone analytical warehouse, so it suits federating access more than replacing an analytical store.
Its breadth is a key consideration for teams with varied source systems. JDBC query federation supports MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redshift, Teradata, Oracle, Snowflake, SQL Server, Azure Synapse, BigQuery, Salesforce Data 360, and Databricks; catalog federation supports external catalogs including Hive Metastore and AWS Glue. SQL queries can be pushed down to external relational databases. Teams create connections and foreign catalogs, refresh catalog metadata, and run SQL from Databricks. That makes the fit strongest when Databricks is already the query workspace, rather than for organizations seeking a separate, general-purpose warehouse.
Governance is handled through read-only foreign catalogs in Unity Catalog, with fine-grained table-level access controls. This helps teams expose external data under Databricks access policies, while keeping the federated access read-only. The capability is paid, with usage-based charges that vary by cloud provider, region, and compute use; the pricing page does not give a fixed starting price. Documentation is the listed support channel. Choose it when governed, in-place querying across external sources is the priority; look elsewhere if the requirement is an analytical store that serves and stores data itself, or if write access to federated sources is needed.
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Databricks Lakehouse Federation pricing
Databricks Lakehouse Federation fact sheet
| Free plan | No |
|---|---|
| Paid from | Not verified |
| Deployment model | Cloud |
| Storage architecture | Lakehouse |
| Compute scaling | Separate |
| Free storage limit | Not verified |
| SQL support | Yes |
| Cross-account data sharing | Not verified |
| Deployment | Cloud |
| Platforms | Web |
| Support | Docs |
| Built for | Mid-market, Enterprise (editorial estimate) |
| Integrations | 13 integrations: MySQL, PostgreSQL, Teradata, Oracle, Amazon Redshift, Salesforce Data 360 … |
| Pricing | Paid (source) |
| Website | docs.databricks.com |
| Facts checked | 24 Sep 2026 |
Databricks Lakehouse Federation integrations
Databricks Lakehouse Federation lists 13 integrations on its own site.
- MySQL
- PostgreSQL
- Teradata
- Oracle
- Amazon Redshift
- Salesforce Data 360
- Snowflake
- Microsoft SQL Server
- Azure Synapse
- Google BigQuery
- Databricks
- Hive Metastore
- AWS Glue
Alternatives to Databricks Lakehouse Federation
- Google BigQueryA flexible SQL analytics store with separate storage and compute and a free tier.9.4
- Amazon RedshiftRedshift combines provisioned and serverless warehousing with AWS data-lake and streaming access.9.2
- Oracle Autonomous Data WarehouseA governed Oracle warehouse with autonomous operations, broad analytics, and an always-free tier.9.1
See all Databricks Lakehouse Federation alternatives →
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Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
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