Turso vs DynamoDB for Solo Developers

Quick Comparison

Turso Overview

Turso brings SQLite to the edge with global replication. Your primary database lives in one location, and read replicas are distributed worldwide. The killer feature, embedded replicas, puts a read replica directly in your application process. Reads become local function calls instead of network requests.

SQLite is beautifully simple. One file, one process, zero configuration. Turso takes that simplicity and solves the main objection people have: "but SQLite can't handle production web apps." With libSQL, replication, and edge distribution, it actually can. You keep the simple SQL you know and add global performance.

The developer experience is smooth. The CLI works well. The JavaScript/TypeScript SDK is clean. Drizzle ORM supports Turso natively. For a solo developer who wants to build fast without wrestling with database infrastructure, Turso removes friction.

DynamoDB Overview

DynamoDB is AWS's fully managed NoSQL database, designed for applications that need guaranteed single-digit millisecond latency at any scale. It handles the infrastructure completely. No servers, no patching, no capacity planning (in on-demand mode). It just works.

But the tradeoff for that performance guarantee is a rigid data model. DynamoDB uses partition keys and sort keys. You design your tables around access patterns, not data relationships. Want to query your data in a new way? You probably need a new Global Secondary Index. That rigidity is the price of DynamoDB's performance.

The 25GB free tier is decent for experimentation. But I've found that the real cost of DynamoDB isn't the pricing. It's the time spent learning single-table design patterns, modeling access patterns, and working around query limitations that SQL databases handle trivially.

Key Differences

SQL vs key-value is the fundamental difference. Turso gives you SQLite's SQL. You write SELECT queries with JOINs, WHERE clauses, and aggregations. DynamoDB gives you GetItem, PutItem, and Query operations on a key-value store. SQL is flexible by nature. DynamoDB's query model is optimized for specific access patterns at the cost of flexibility.

Learning curve is dramatically different. If you know SQL (and you probably do), you can use Turso immediately. DynamoDB requires learning a new data modeling paradigm. Single-table design, partition key selection, secondary index strategies. These concepts take weeks to understand properly. As a solo developer, that learning time directly delays shipping.

Global distribution is a strength of both, but implemented differently. Turso replicates SQLite to edge locations with embedded replicas for local reads. DynamoDB uses Global Tables to replicate across AWS regions. Both achieve low-latency reads globally. Turso's approach is simpler. DynamoDB's is tightly integrated with the AWS ecosystem.

Vendor lock-in is asymmetric. Turso uses libSQL, a fork of SQLite. Your data is in a standard SQL database. Migrating to regular SQLite, Postgres, or MySQL is straightforward SQL export/import. DynamoDB uses a proprietary API. Migrating off DynamoDB means rewriting your entire data access layer. There's no "export to standard format" path.

Cost predictability. Turso's pricing is simple: free tier, then $29/mo. DynamoDB's pricing depends on read/write units, storage, data transfer, secondary indexes, and streams. You can optimize it to be cheap, but you can also accidentally create expensive query patterns. Solo developers benefit from predictable costs.

Write patterns. Turso's SQLite foundation means single-writer. One write at a time. DynamoDB handles concurrent writes naturally across partitions. For write-heavy applications, DynamoDB has an architectural advantage. For typical read-heavy web apps, this difference doesn't matter.

When to Choose Turso

• You know SQL and want to keep using it
• Global read performance matters and embedded replicas interest you
• You want a simple pricing model with no surprises
• You prefer avoiding vendor lock-in
• Your application is read-heavy with moderate writes

When to Choose DynamoDB

• You're building entirely on AWS (Lambda, API Gateway, etc.)
• Your access patterns are well-defined and unlikely to change
• You need massive write throughput across many partitions
• Your data is naturally key-value (sessions, profiles, event logs)
• You already understand DynamoDB data modeling

The Verdict

Turso is the better choice for solo developers. The 8/10 vs 5/10 gap reflects practical reality. SQL is more flexible than DynamoDB's query model. Turso's learning curve is nearly flat if you know SQLite. The pricing is predictable. And you're not locked into AWS.

DynamoDB is genuinely impressive technology, but the mental overhead of data modeling and the AWS lock-in make it a poor fit for solo developers who need to move fast. Pick Turso if you want edge performance with familiar SQL. Pick Neon if you want full Postgres power. Save DynamoDB for when you're deep in the AWS ecosystem with well-defined access patterns that won't change.