At a glance
| Data model | Multi-model: document, graph and key-value |
| Query language | AQL (ArangoDB Query Language) |
| Consistency model | Cluster described as CP: favours consistency over availability during a network partition; Raft-based Agency stores cluster configuration |
| Replication | Synchronous, per shard, with a configurable replicationFactor; reads and writes go to the shard leader |
| Partitioning or sharding | Collections split into shards (hashed on _key by default); SmartGraphs for graph-aware sharding |
| Transactions | ACID on a single server; in clusters, the OneShard mode runs ACID transactions on shard leaders |
| Deployment and cloud availability | Linux packages (x86-64 or ARM64) and Docker; managed Arango Managed Platform |
| Licensing | Source BSL 1.1; Community License (non-commercial, under 100 GB); Enterprise by quote |
ArangoDB is attractive if you want documents and graph traversals in one database and one query language instead of running a document store and a graph database side by side. Check the licence first: the source is BSL 1.1, the free Community Edition stops at 100 GB and commercial use needs a paid licence, and no prices are published.
Overview
ArangoDB stores JSON documents in collections and lets edge collections link documents into graphs, so the same data can be queried as documents, as key-value pairs or as a graph. AQL, the ArangoDB Query Language, covers filtering, joins, aggregation and graph traversals in one declarative language, and ArangoSearch adds full-text search. ArangoDB runs as a single server or a cluster; current release notes cover the 3.12 series, at 3.12.13.
The licensing changed with 3.12. The source code is under the Business Source License 1.1 (ArangoDB, Inc. as licensor), which allows internal production use but not commercial offerings that give third parties database access, and converts each version to Apache 2.0 four years after release. Community Edition binaries come under a separate ArangoDB Community License that limits use to internal business purposes and datasets under 100 GB across the cluster. From 3.12.5 the Community Edition includes all former Enterprise features, such as SmartGraphs and encryption at rest. Since 3.12, native Windows and macOS packages are no longer provided; those hosts can run the Docker image, but not for production.
Key features
- Multi-model storage: JSON documents, graphs (edge collections) and key-value in one engine
- AQL, a single declarative query language for documents, joins and graph traversals
- Graph traversals, shortest paths and pattern queries over edge collections
- ArangoSearch full-text search integrated with AQL
- Cluster mode with sharded collections and SmartGraphs, available in Community from 3.12.5
- Encryption at rest, included in all editions from 3.12.5
- Arango Managed Platform (AMP) for a vendor-run deployment
Integrations and ecosystem
Pros and cons
Pros
- Documents and graphs in one database and one query language
- From 3.12.5 the Community Edition includes the former Enterprise features
- Docker images and Linux packages for x86-64 and ARM64
- A managed platform from the vendor for teams that do not want to run clusters
Cons
- No longer open source: source under BSL 1.1 and Community binaries limited to non-commercial use under 100 GB
- No published prices for Enterprise, AMP or the platform suites
- Native Windows and macOS packages dropped in 3.12; those hosts are not supported for production
- Smaller ecosystem and talent pool than single-model leaders such as MongoDB or Neo4j
Pricing
Community Edition is free only within its licence: Arango's pricing page describes it as free for evaluation and non-commercial use, and the Community License limits use to internal business purposes with datasets under 100 GB aggregated across the cluster (the 3.12 release notes say a licence is needed for commercial purposes or datasets over 100 GiB). Self-managed Enterprise Edition, the Arango Managed Platform (AMP) and the Arango platform suites have no published prices; all are by request.
Pricing checked on the vendor's official page on 7 November 2026. Prices change; confirm before buying.
Who it is best for
Teams that need document storage and graph traversals over the same data and prefer one multi-model engine to two separate databases.
Typical use cases
- Knowledge graphs that mix rich documents with relationships
- Fraud and identity resolution across linked entities
- Product catalogues with recommendation traversals
- Network and IT asset dependency mapping
Who should look elsewhere
- Pure graph workloads where the most mature graph tooling matters: see Neo4j.
- Organisations that need an OSI-approved licence or free commercial use at scale.
Verdict
ArangoDB is a capable multi-model database that saves running separate document and graph stores, and 3.12.5 made the full feature set available in Community. The licence is the main constraint: free use is limited to non-commercial work under 100 GB, so most production deployments need a quoted Enterprise licence or AMP.
Frequently asked questions
Is ArangoDB still open source?
Not since 3.12. The source code is under the Business Source License 1.1, which converts each version to Apache 2.0 four years after release, and the Community Edition binaries are under the ArangoDB Community License. Earlier versions were Apache 2.0.
What are the limits of ArangoDB Community Edition?
The Community License allows use only for internal business purposes with datasets under 100 GB aggregated across the cluster, and the 3.12 release notes say commercial use or datasets over 100 GiB need a licence. From 3.12.5 Community includes all Enterprise features.
How much does ArangoDB cost?
Arango publishes no prices. Community is free within its licence; Enterprise Edition, the Arango Managed Platform and the platform suites are priced on request.
Does ArangoDB run on Windows or macOS?
Not natively from 3.12: packages for Windows and macOS are no longer provided, and production on those hosts is not supported. You can run the official Docker image on them for development.
Sources
- ArangoDB release notes
- What's new in ArangoDB 3.12
- ArangoDB cluster deployment
- ArangoDB installation
- ArangoDB BSL 1.1 licence (GitHub)
- ArangoDB Community License
- Arango pricing
Checked November 2026.
Listed in: NoSQL & Distributed Databases.
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