How to Choose a Graph Database for Your Real-Time Application

Graph databases are essential for analyzing large volumes of interconnected data, particularly in real-time analytics, where latency and throughput are critical metrics. The blog compares Memgraph and Neo4j to determine their suitability for real-time applications, highlighting that while both databases use the Bolt protocol and Cypher query language, they differ in architectural design, with Neo4j based on JVM and Memgraph written in native C++. Benchmarking results reveal that Memgraph generally offers lower query latency and higher throughput than Neo4j, making it more suitable for applications requiring rapid data processing and scalability. Although both databases are open-source and free to use, hosting costs depend on memory and CPU usage, with Neo4j potentially incurring higher expenses due to memory overheads associated with its JVM base. The article suggests that Memgraph's performance advantages, especially in-memory efficiency and scalability, make it a strong candidate for real-time graph analytics.