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Agents tracked: 444 Releases (7d): 644 Agent status: 3 with issuesSince last limit reset: Claude 31d · Codex 3d Updated Oct 23, 2026
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Backends and databases · by SurrealDB Ltd

SurrealDB

A database engine written in Rust that stores documents, graph relations, vectors, time-series and relational tables in one place and queries them all with one SQL-like language (SurrealQL); it runs embedded, on one server, as a cluster, or as a hosted cloud service.

An app or agent that needs vector search, graph traversal and plain records at once can keep them in one database and one transaction instead of wiring three separate stores together.

APICommercial OK

Open surrealdb.com ↗ agent.md

For your project

Official API
Official API · Free tier Free cloud instance: 0.25 vCPU, 1 GB memory, 1 GB storage; further instances billed by the hour
“Public HTTP control-plane API for managing SurrealDB Cloud and connecting to instances and contexts.” surrealdb.com/llms.txt
Key
Needed
“Bearer JWT auth; the authorization server is https://auth.surrealdb.com.” surrealdb.com/llms.txt
Formats
JSON
Data download
Not stated
Price
No free tier stated · from $15.33/mo
“Small | 0.5 | 1 GB | $0.021 | $15.33” surrealdb.com/pricing
License
Business Source License 1.1 (core, becomes Apache 2.0 after at most four years); Apache 2.0 / MIT (SDKs); SurrealDB Cloud terms Self-hosted core may be used, modified and embedded in your own apps, including in production; running it as a database service for third parties needs a commercial licence
Commercial use
Commercial use OK
“SurrealDB is free to use in your own applications, in development and production.” surrealdb.com/license
Credit
Not stated
Embedding
Embedding unclear
Using the website
Free tier

Read on SurrealDB's own pages on Oct 24, 2026 · license or terms · API docs · pricing. Check the license page before you ship.

For your agent

  • Run locally with `docker run --rm -p 8000:8000 surrealdb/surrealdb:latest start` and query SurrealQL over HTTP/WebSocket or an official SDK (Rust, JavaScript, Python, Go, Java, .NET, PHP); the hosted MCP server (streamable HTTP) authenticates with OAuth 2.1 or a personal access token; any docs page returns markdown with `Accept: text/markdown` or a `.md` suffix.
  • Self-hosting in your own product is allowed, but do not offer SurrealDB as a database service where third parties manage their own schemas without a commercial licence
  • Keep cloud credentials (personal access tokens, JWTs) server-side; record-level permissions apply when clients connect directly

llms.txt: surrealdb.com/llms.txt · MCP: https://mcp.surrealdb.com

Paste into your agent: Read https://agentgid.com/resources/surrealdb/agent.md before using SurrealDB.

Quick answers

Does SurrealDB have an API?

Yes. SurrealDB has an official API documented at https://surrealdb.com/docs.

Does the SurrealDB API need a key?

Yes, you need an API key. Limits: Free cloud instance: 0.25 vCPU, 1 GB memory, 1 GB storage; further instances billed by the hour

Is SurrealDB free?

There is no free tier stated on its pricing page. Paid plans start at $15.33 a month.

Can I use SurrealDB in a commercial project?

Yes. Its terms say: "SurrealDB is free to use in your own applications, in development and production."

What you can build

  • A RAG agent that stores chunks, embeddings and an entity graph in one SurrealDB instance and answers with a single hybrid vector + graph query
  • A real-time collaborative app that uses live queries to push record changes straight to browser clients
  • An offline-first desktop or edge tool that embeds SurrealDB as a library and syncs to a cloud instance

Alternatives in Backends and databases

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Files SDK You can switch your app from S3 to R2 or Vercel Blob by changing one adapter line instead of rewriting every upload and signed-URL call. Open sourceFree tierCommercial OK Powabase You get database, auth, file storage, RAG search and tool-calling agents from one backend instead of wiring Postgres, a vector database, an agent framework and glue code together yourself. APIOpen sourceFree tierCommercial OK Fluree You can give an AI agent a knowledge graph with typed relationships, record history and per-user access rules, so answers can be traced to specific facts instead of loose vector matches. APIFree tierCommercial OK Directus You get a full API and an editing UI for an existing Postgres or MySQL database without writing a CRUD backend or admin panel. APIDownloadFree tierCommercial: conditions Busabase What your agents produce stops vanishing into chat logs: it lands in structured records the next agent or teammate can read, and writes from untrusted keys can wait for a person to approve. APIOpen sourceFree tierCommercial OK

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