SQLite vs Turso for Solo Developers

Quick Comparison

SQLite Overview

SQLite is the database with no moving parts. No server process. No network layer. No credentials. One file holds your entire database. It runs inside your application as a library, which means reads are instantaneous, there's no connection pooling to worry about, and deployment is as simple as shipping a file alongside your application.

I've built more prototypes with SQLite than any other database. The zero-setup nature means I'm writing application code within minutes of starting a new project. No Docker, no cloud console, no configuration. For solo developers who value speed and simplicity, SQLite removes every barrier between you and a working database.

In production, SQLite performs remarkably well for single-server deployments. WAL mode allows concurrent reads, and reads are faster than any network database because there's no TCP round trip. The limitation is concurrency on writes: one writer at a time. For applications where reads far outnumber writes (which is most web applications), this constraint rarely becomes a bottleneck.

Turso Overview

Turso takes SQLite and solves its biggest limitation: being stuck on a single server. Built on libSQL (a fork of SQLite), Turso distributes your SQLite database to edge locations globally. Reads happen from the nearest replica. Writes route to a primary and propagate back. You get SQLite's simplicity with global distribution.

The embedded replica feature is what makes Turso special. Instead of querying a remote database over the network, Turso can sync a replica into your application process. Reads happen locally with zero network latency, exactly like traditional SQLite. But unlike traditional SQLite, writes sync to the primary and replicate to all other locations. It's the best of both worlds.

Turso's free tier is generous: 9GB total storage, 500 databases, and 25 billion row reads per month. You can run multiple projects on the free tier without worry. The Scaler plan at $29/month adds more storage and compute for production workloads.

Key Differences

Turso IS SQLite. This isn't SQLite versus a completely different database. Turso is SQLite with distribution, replication, and managed hosting. The SQL dialect is the same. The data types are the same. The behavior is nearly identical. The comparison is really: do you need the distribution and managed features that Turso adds, or is plain SQLite sufficient?

Distribution. Plain SQLite lives on one machine. Your database file is on one disk, and your application reads and writes to that one file. Turso replicates your data to edge locations worldwide. Users in Tokyo get fast reads from a Tokyo replica. Users in London get fast reads from a London replica. If your users are geographically distributed, Turso reduces latency significantly.

Embedded replicas. Turso's embedded replicas bring the read performance of local SQLite to distributed applications. Your application has a local copy of the database that serves reads with zero network latency. Changes sync asynchronously from the primary. This is a unique capability that combines SQLite's in-process speed with Turso's global distribution.

Write path. Plain SQLite writes directly to the local file. Turso routes writes to a primary instance, which introduces network latency on writes. If your application is write-heavy and latency-sensitive, plain SQLite on a single server is faster for writes. Turso's write latency depends on the distance to your primary location.

Multi-server deployment. Plain SQLite doesn't support running on multiple application servers accessing the same database (unless you use a distributed file system, which introduces its own problems). Turso handles multi-server deployments natively. If your application runs on multiple servers or edge functions, Turso is the SQLite-compatible option that works.

Cost. Plain SQLite is free. Always. Turso's free tier is generous, but you're still depending on a cloud service. If Turso changes pricing or shuts down, you need to migrate. Plain SQLite will work forever because it's public domain software with no service dependency.

Operational overhead. Plain SQLite requires zero management. Turso requires account management, API key management, and dependency on their platform. For solo developers who want to minimize external dependencies, plain SQLite is simpler. For solo developers who want managed global distribution, Turso handles the complexity for you.

When to Choose SQLite

• Your application runs on a single server and that's sufficient
• Zero cost and zero external dependencies are priorities
• Offline functionality is needed (mobile apps, desktop apps, CLI tools)
• Prototyping speed matters more than global distribution
• You want the absolute simplest database setup possible
• Write performance without network latency is important

When to Choose Turso

• Your users are geographically distributed and read latency matters
• Your application runs on multiple servers or edge functions
• Embedded replicas with zero-latency local reads fit your architecture
• You want SQLite's simplicity but need global distribution
• You're deploying to platforms like Cloudflare Workers or Vercel Edge
• Multi-region read replicas are important for your user experience

The Verdict

If your application runs on a single server and your users are mostly in one region, plain SQLite is the better choice. It's free, simpler, and faster for writes. There's no reason to add the complexity of a managed service when a local file does the job perfectly.

If your application needs to serve users globally with low latency, run on edge platforms, or scale across multiple servers, Turso is the natural upgrade from SQLite. You keep the familiar SQL dialect and simple mental model while gaining distribution and replication.

The transition from SQLite to Turso is smoother than any other database migration because they share the same foundation. Start with plain SQLite. If your project grows to need global distribution or multi-server support, Turso is a near-drop-in upgrade. Your queries don't change. Your schema doesn't change. You're adding a hosting layer, not switching databases.

The 9/10 for SQLite reflects its unmatched simplicity for solo developers. The 8/10 for Turso reflects the value it adds for distributed workloads, with a small deduction for the added complexity and cost compared to plain SQLite. Both are excellent choices. SQLite for simplicity, Turso for scale.