SQLite vs DynamoDB for Solo Developers

Quick Comparison

SQLite Overview

SQLite is the most deployed database on Earth and for good reason. It runs inside your application as a library. No server, no configuration, no daemon process. Your entire database is a single file sitting on disk. Copy it, back it up, delete it, share it. The developer experience is unmatched.

I reach for SQLite whenever I'm prototyping or building something that doesn't need to handle thousands of concurrent writers. Read performance is exceptional because there's zero network overhead. The data lives in your process memory. For content-driven sites, personal tools, and side projects, SQLite just works without you ever thinking about it.

The zero-ops nature of SQLite is what makes it special. No connection pooling to configure, no vacuuming schedules to manage, no credentials to rotate. You focus on your product, not your database infrastructure.

DynamoDB Overview

DynamoDB is AWS's fully managed NoSQL database. It delivers single-digit millisecond latency at any scale, handles virtually unlimited throughput, and you never manage a server. AWS takes care of replication, backups, and scaling. You define your tables, set your capacity mode, and start writing data.

The catch is that DynamoDB requires you to think about your access patterns upfront. Unlike SQL databases where you model your data and then write whatever queries you need, DynamoDB forces you to design your partition keys and sort keys around how you'll query the data. Get this wrong and you're stuck with expensive table scans or a complete data model redesign.

The free tier gives you 25GB of storage and enough read/write capacity for small applications. But pricing gets complicated fast once you exceed the free tier, especially if your access patterns aren't optimized.

Key Differences

Data model. SQLite is relational. Tables, rows, columns, joins, SQL. DynamoDB is a key-value and document store. Items, attributes, partition keys, sort keys, no joins. If your data is naturally relational (users have orders, orders have line items), SQLite lets you express that naturally. DynamoDB forces you to flatten and denormalize.

Query flexibility. SQLite lets you write any SQL query at any time. Need to join three tables, filter by date range, and aggregate results? Write the SQL. DynamoDB only efficiently supports queries that align with your key design. Ad-hoc queries require full table scans or secondary indexes that cost extra money and add complexity.

Operational complexity. SQLite has zero operational overhead. DynamoDB has zero server management but significant design complexity. You'll spend time learning about partition keys, sort keys, GSIs, LSIs, capacity modes, and the DynamoDB-specific way of thinking about data. For a solo developer, that's cognitive load that SQLite doesn't impose.

Scaling. DynamoDB scales to virtually infinite throughput and storage. SQLite is limited to a single server and a single writer at a time. If you're building something that genuinely needs to handle millions of requests per second, DynamoDB handles that. But let's be honest, most solo developer projects will never reach SQLite's limits.

Cost predictability. SQLite is free forever. DynamoDB's pricing depends on your read/write patterns, storage, and whether you're using on-demand or provisioned capacity. I've seen developers get surprised by DynamoDB bills because their access patterns weren't optimized. SQLite will never surprise you with a bill.

Portability. SQLite is a file. Move it anywhere, use it with any language, on any platform. DynamoDB locks you into AWS. Your data model, your queries, your application logic all become AWS-specific. Migrating away from DynamoDB is a significant engineering effort.

When to Choose SQLite

• You're building a prototype, side project, or personal tool
• Your application is read-heavy with moderate write volume
• You want zero configuration and zero operational overhead
• You value portability and don't want cloud vendor lock-in
• Your data is naturally relational

When to Choose DynamoDB

• You're already deep in the AWS ecosystem
• Your application genuinely needs virtually unlimited scale
• Your access patterns are well-defined and won't change much
• You need global tables with multi-region replication
• You're building a serverless application on AWS Lambda

The Verdict

For solo developers, SQLite wins this comparison and it's not close. The 9/10 vs 5/10 rating gap reflects reality.

SQLite gives you a database that requires zero thought about infrastructure. No AWS account, no IAM policies, no capacity planning, no billing surprises. You write SQL, your data lives in a file, and your application runs. The cognitive overhead is near zero.

DynamoDB is a powerful tool, but it's built for teams at AWS scale. The data modeling constraints, the AWS lock-in, and the pricing complexity make it a poor fit for most solo developer projects. Unless you're building specifically on AWS Lambda and need the tight integration, DynamoDB adds complexity without proportional benefit.

My recommendation: use SQLite for everything you can. If you genuinely outgrow it (which most solo projects won't), migrate to PostgreSQL. DynamoDB solves problems that most solo developers don't have.