For a free multi-database replacement, start with DBeaver Community; its paid editions also cover NoSQL, schema compare and scheduled tasks, the Enterprise features Navicat users most often need. DataGrip is the strongest IDE-style alternative and is free for non-commercial use. If you like Navicat's perpetual licence but not its cost, TablePlus also sells perpetual licences, per device. On Windows, dbForge Studio matches Navicat's compare and sync tooling per engine, and HeidiSQL is a free option for MySQL and MariaDB. Beekeeper Studio and DbVisualizer round out the list.
Navicat Premium 18 is a commercial client for MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, Oracle, MariaDB, SQLite, MongoDB, Redis, Snowflake and more (see our Navicat review). These are the usual reasons people look for an alternative:
- Cost of the paid editions. Navicat Premium is sold per user. In our view it sits at the upper end of desktop database client pricing, and the most requested features are in the higher edition.
- Premium Lite is limited. The free Premium Lite 18 may be used commercially by up to 5 user accounts per organisation, but Navicat's feature matrix places the query builder, debugger, ER diagrams, form view, data profiling, backup and restore, data modelling, BI charts and data synchronisation in the paid editions but not in Premium Lite; check the matrix for the remaining differences between Standard and Enterprise.
- Perpetual or subscription. Navicat offers both: a perpetual per-user licence that includes one year of maintenance (upgrades and support), with paid maintenance extensions after that, or monthly and yearly subscriptions for Standard, Enterprise and Non-Commercial. Some buyers want neither a large one-off cost nor an ongoing subscription.
- Edition eligibility. The Non-Commercial edition is restricted to education, non-profit and similar organisations, so most businesses choose between Lite and the full-price editions.
Quick picks
Apache 2.0 Community edition for many engines, with paid editions that add NoSQL, schema and data compare and a task scheduler.
Database diagrams and a full SQL IDE, free for non-commercial use.
One-time licence with a year of updates, for everyday browsing, editing and querying.
Schema and data compare and a data generator in Professional, with a free Express edition for SQL Server.
How we chose
Considered: DBeaver (Community and PRO), DataGrip, DbVisualizer, TablePlus, HeidiSQL, Beekeeper Studio, dbForge Studio and dbForge Edge, DbGate, MySQL Workbench, pgAdmin and Azure Data Studio.
Inclusion criteria: currently maintained; able to replace Navicat for everyday multi-database work or for a significant part of it; and it addresses cost, Lite's missing features or the licence model, verified on the vendor's own pages. Single-engine official tools (MySQL Workbench, pgAdmin) are mentioned in the closing section rather than listed. Azure Data Studio is excluded because Microsoft retired it on 28 February 2026.
What was checked, not tested: editions pages, pricing and store pages, feature matrices, download pages and documentation, on 7 October 2026. The order is not a ranking: multi-database tools first, then engine-focused and Windows-only tools.
At a glance
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Databases | Licence model | Main trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DBeaver | Freemium | Windows, macOS, Linux | Many relational; NoSQL in paid editions | Community Apache 2.0; paid editions by subscription | Java-based; compare and scheduler need Enterprise |
| DataGrip | Paid (free non-commercial) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Many relational and NoSQL | Subscription for commercial use | No data modelling or sync wizard in the Navicat sense |
| DbVisualizer | Freemium | Windows, macOS, Linux | Many JDBC databases | Pro licensed per user | Editing and import/export Pro-only |
| TablePlus | Freemium | macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS | Many relational, Redis, MongoDB (beta) | Perpetual, per device, 1 year of updates | No ER diagrams; free version limited |
| HeidiSQL | Free (GPL) | Windows, Linux, macOS (Apple silicon) | MariaDB, MySQL, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, SQLite, others | Free | No NoSQL; no modelling or sync suite |
| Beekeeper Studio | Freemium | Windows, macOS, Linux | PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, SQL Server, others | Subscription with perpetual fallback | Community limited to small organisations |
| dbForge Studio / Edge | Freemium (Express for SQL Server) | Windows (macOS and Linux via CrossOver) | SQL Server, MySQL/MariaDB, Oracle, PostgreSQL | Annual subscription | Windows-native; one Studio per engine |
| DbGate | Freemium | Windows, macOS, Linux, web | MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, MongoDB, SQLite, others | Community GPL-3.0; Premium paid | Smaller vendor; some features Premium |
DBeaver
DBeaver Community 26.2.2 is free under Apache 2.0 and covers many relational databases, with read-only ER diagrams, import and export and a SQL editor. The paid editions map closely onto Navicat's: every paid edition adds NoSQL and big data support (MongoDB, Redis and others), and Enterprise and above add schema compare and migration, table data comparison and a task scheduler. DBeaver's paid editions are subscriptions: Lite and Enterprise are offered monthly or yearly, Ultimate and Team yearly only.
See DBeaver vs Navicat and DBeaver Community vs DBeaver PRO.
- No perpetual licence is listed on the editions page, so it does not help buyers who want to avoid subscriptions.
- Navicat-style data modelling and BI dashboards have no direct equivalent in Community.
- Java-based; the vendor documents memory settings for large result sets.
DataGrip
DataGrip 2026.2 connects to many relational and NoSQL databases and documents database diagrams with export to PNG, Mermaid, PlantUML, Graphviz DOT and other formats. Since 1 October 2025 it has been free for non-commercial use, under an annual, renewable licence that requires online activation and anonymised usage statistics, which may suit people who would otherwise have looked at Navicat's Non-Commercial edition. Commercial use needs a subscription after a 30-day trial.
See DataGrip vs Navicat.
- Commercial use is subscription-only.
- It is centred on writing SQL; it has no equivalent of the data modelling or BI features in Navicat's paid editions.
- JetBrains lists 8 GB of total RAM, with 3 GB available for the IDE.
DbVisualizer
DbVisualizer 26.2.3 is a cross-platform JDBC client with a Free edition and a Pro edition that is commercial and licensed per user, like Navicat. The Free edition includes connection management, SSH, generic JDBC support, SQL history and references graphs. Pro adds table management, data editing, import and export, a query builder, explain plan, charts, scheduling and a command line interface. See DbVisualizer vs DBeaver.
- The Free edition cannot edit table data or import and export tables, so it is weaker than Navicat Premium Lite for those jobs.
- Pro prices are not shown on the editions page.
TablePlus
TablePlus is the closest match to Navicat's perpetual model at a lower scale: licences are one-time purchases with one year of updates, after which you can keep using the last build covered or renew. It handles MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, SQLite, SQL Server, Redis and other engines, with MongoDB in beta. Its licences are per device rather than per user, and its free version is limited to 2 tabs, 2 windows and 2 advanced filters.
See TablePlus vs Navicat and TablePlus alternatives.
- No ER diagram, schema comparison or data modelling feature appears in its documentation.
- Engine support varies by platform; Oracle is documented as macOS only.
- Per-device licences can cost more than expected for someone using several machines.
HeidiSQL
HeidiSQL 12.21 (August 2026) is free under the GPL and supports MariaDB, MySQL, MS SQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite, Interbase/Firebird and others. For people who bought Navicat for MySQL day-to-day work, it covers browsing, editing, querying and exporting data with no licence cost and no user limit. See DBeaver vs HeidiSQL.
- No MongoDB, Redis or Oracle support.
- No modelling, synchronisation or scheduling suite comparable with Navicat's paid editions.
- The macOS build is for Apple silicon only.
Beekeeper Studio
Beekeeper Studio's GPLv3 Community edition has unlimited connections, queries and tabs for about ten engines, including PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, SQL Server and Redis; Oracle, MongoDB and the rest of its 20+ engines, plus import and export and backup and restore, need a paid plan. Its paid plans are subscriptions with a perpetual fallback: the pricing page says that after 12 months of payments you can keep using the paid features released in that window, even if you cancel. That sits between Navicat's two models. See Beekeeper Studio vs DBeaver.
- The Community edition is intended for individuals, non-profits and businesses with fewer than 10 employees or under USD 1M revenue.
- Engines such as Oracle and MongoDB, and import and export, need a paid plan, and it does not offer Navicat-style modelling or data sync.
dbForge Studio
Devart's dbForge Studio products are native Windows applications, with separate Studios for SQL Server, MySQL and MariaDB, Oracle and PostgreSQL, and a bundle, dbForge Edge, that combines all four. For SQL Server, the editions page lists a free Express edition with database diagrams, while Professional adds schema compare, data compare and a data generator, and Enterprise adds a source control manager. Paid editions are annual subscriptions, as is dbForge Edge, which has a 30-day trial.
- Windows-native only; macOS and Linux need the commercial CrossOver layer.
- Each engine is a separate product unless you buy dbForge Edge.
- Subscription only, so it does not suit buyers who wanted Navicat's perpetual option.
DbGate
DbGate's Community edition is open source under GPL-3.0 and works with MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, MongoDB, SQLite and others, on Windows, macOS and Linux or as a web application deployed with Docker. A paid Premium edition, with a 30-day trial, adds further features and DbGate Cloud. It is one of the few free tools here that cover MongoDB alongside relational engines, which Navicat Premium Lite also does.
- Some features are reserved for Premium.
- A smaller vendor than DBeaver or JetBrains; check that the engines and features you need are in Community.
When to stay with Navicat
Stay with Navicat if you use its paid-edition features together: data modelling (conceptual, logical and physical), structure and data synchronisation, scheduled automation, BI charts and shared connection and query settings for a team. Few tools on this page combine all of those, and replacing them often means two or three products. Navicat's per-user licence with one key usable on Windows, macOS and Linux also suits people who move between platforms, and its perpetual option avoids a subscription.
If you only need everyday work, first check whether the free Navicat Premium Lite is enough before switching. If you work with one engine, the official free tools may cover it: MySQL Workbench for MySQL (see Navicat vs MySQL Workbench) and pgAdmin for PostgreSQL. For platform-specific choices, see Windows, Mac and Linux.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free version of Navicat?
Yes. Navicat Premium Lite 18 is free and may be used commercially by up to 5 user accounts per organisation. Navicat's feature matrix shows the query builder, ER diagrams, debugger, backup and restore, modelling and synchronisation in the paid editions, and none of them in the free Premium Lite.
What is the best free alternative to Navicat?
For most multi-database users, DBeaver Community, which is free under Apache 2.0. For MySQL and MariaDB only, HeidiSQL is free under the GPL. DbGate Community is free and also covers MongoDB.
Is Navicat a subscription or a one-time purchase?
Both are offered. Navicat sells perpetual per-user licences with one year of maintenance included, and monthly or yearly subscriptions for the Standard, Enterprise and Non-Commercial editions.
Which Navicat alternative has a perpetual licence?
TablePlus sells one-time, per-device licences with a year of updates. Beekeeper Studio's subscriptions let you keep the paid features released during 12 paid months. DBeaver's paid editions and dbForge Studio's paid editions are subscriptions.
Is DBeaver as good as Navicat?
They overlap for everyday SQL work. DBeaver Community is free and open source, while Navicat's strengths are its modelling, synchronisation and automation in paid editions. See DBeaver vs Navicat.
Sources
- Navicat Premium product page
- Navicat Premium feature matrix
- Navicat Premium Lite
- Navicat Premium store (perpetual licences)
- Navicat Premium subscription plans
- DBeaver editions
- DataGrip database diagrams (JetBrains)
- DataGrip is now free for non-commercial use (JetBrains blog)
- DbVisualizer editions
- TablePlus documentation: Licensing
- HeidiSQL downloads
- Beekeeper Studio pricing
- dbForge Studio for SQL Server editions (Devart)
- dbForge Edge (Devart)
- DbGate GitHub repository
Checked October 2026.
How we research these guides: our editorial method.