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Comparisons

Audience: technical leads and developers choosing local persistence.

ModelVault is the database for application models—not a universal replacement for every datastore. Use this section to explain the product to your team and to pick the right tool for each job.

The question ModelVault answers

Where do I put typed application data locally without running a database server?

If your answer today is “SQLite + ORM,” “a JSON file,” or “TinyDB,” read the tables below. If your primary need is warehouse-scale analytics, start with ModelVault vs DuckDB.

Why ModelVault? (README summary)

Alternative Limitation ModelVault
Relational DBs App models mapped into tables/rows; schema friction Model-first schemas; validation on write; nested objects native
JSON files No indexes, weak queries, manual integrity Typed storage, indexes, queries, durability
TinyDB Document store without production-grade validation or evolution Strict schemas, migrations, indexes, crash-safe file format
DuckDB Built for analytics (OLAP), not app CRUD Embedded OLTP for application models (complementary, not competing)

Why ModelVault

Capability matrix

Capability SQLite JSON files TinyDB DuckDB ModelVault
Primary abstraction SQL tables Files / documents JSON documents SQL tables (analytics) Typed collections / models
Maps to app models Via ORM / manual Manual Manual Via SQL Native (modelvault.models)
Validation on write App / CHECK None App App / constraints Engine (types + constraints)
Nested objects JSON column / serialize Yes (untyped) Yes Structs / nested First-class typed paths
Secondary indexes SQL indexes None Limited Yes Declared on model
Schema evolution SQL migrations Manual versioning Weak SQL migrations Catalog + plan/apply
Single-file deploy Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Server required No No No No No
Best for General embedded SQL Prototypes, config Tiny scripts OLAP / analytics Application OLTP models

Deep dives

Comparison Read when…
ModelVault vs SQLite You know SQLite and want model-first ergonomics without ORM ceremony
ModelVault vs JSON files You outgrew data.json and need indexes and integrity
ModelVault vs TinyDB You want document-like simplicity with production structure
ModelVault vs DuckDB You are splitting app state from analytics workloads

ModelVault and DuckDB are complementary:

Layer Role
ModelVault Authoritative application state—users, settings, domain records, CLI persistence
DuckDB Analytics, exports, ad-hoc SQL on snapshots or ETL inputs

Many teams already use SQLite + DuckDB; ModelVault + DuckDB follows the same split with a model-native OLTP side.

What ModelVault does not replace

  • Network multi-user databases — use PostgreSQL or MySQL
  • Full SQL reporting across arbitrary relational schemas — use SQLite or a server database
  • Large-scale OLAP — use DuckDB or a warehouse

Next steps