StackShareStackShare
Follow on
StackShare

Discover and share technology stacks from companies around the world.

Follow on

© 2025 StackShare. All rights reserved.

Product

  • Stacks
  • Tools
  • Feed

Company

  • About
  • Contact

Legal

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  1. Stackups
  2. Application & Data
  3. Databases
  4. Databases
  5. H2 Database vs IBM DB2

H2 Database vs IBM DB2

OverviewComparisonAlternatives

Overview

IBM DB2
IBM DB2
Stacks245
Followers254
Votes19
H2 Database
H2 Database
Stacks1.3K
Followers121
Votes0

H2 Database vs IBM DB2: What are the differences?

Introduction

In this article, we will discuss the key differences between H2 Database and IBM DB2. These differences are important to consider when choosing a database for a specific application or project.

  1. Data Types Compatibility: The first notable difference between H2 Database and IBM DB2 is in the data types they support. H2 Database provides more flexibility in terms of data types, including support for spatial data and arrays, while IBM DB2 has a more standardized set of data types.

  2. Platform Support: Another significant difference lies in the platforms supported by H2 Database and IBM DB2. H2 Database is a pure Java database engine, making it platform-independent and suitable for Java-based applications. On the other hand, IBM DB2 is available for a wide range of platforms, including Windows, Linux, Unix, and mainframe systems.

  3. Scalability and Performance: H2 Database is known for its lightweight nature and fast performance, making it suitable for small to medium-sized applications. In contrast, IBM DB2 is a robust database system that offers high scalability and is designed to handle large enterprise-level workloads efficiently.

  4. Licensing: H2 Database is an open-source database that is available for free, making it a cost-effective option for small-scale projects. On the other hand, IBM DB2 is a commercial database that requires a license for usage, which may be more suitable for larger enterprise applications with specific support requirements.

  5. SQL Compatibility: When it comes to SQL compatibility, H2 Database is known for its extensive support of SQL standards, making it easier to migrate from other SQL databases. IBM DB2 also has good SQL compliance but may have some specific features and syntax unique to DB2.

  6. Advanced Features: Lastly, IBM DB2 offers a range of advanced features such as built-in support for high availability, partitioning, and business intelligence, which makes it more suitable for complex enterprise-level applications. H2 Database, although lightweight, may not have such advanced features built-in.

In summary, the key differences between H2 Database and IBM DB2 lie in the supported data types, platform compatibility, scalability, licensing, SQL compatibility, and availability of advanced features. These differences should be carefully considered when choosing a database for a specific application or project.

Share your Stack

Help developers discover the tools you use. Get visibility for your team's tech choices and contribute to the community's knowledge.

View Docs
CLI (Node.js)
or
Manual

Detailed Comparison

IBM DB2
IBM DB2
H2 Database
H2 Database

DB2 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows is optimized to deliver industry-leading performance across multiple workloads, while lowering administration, storage, development, and server costs.

It is a relational database management system written in Java. It can be embedded in Java applications or run in client-server mode.

Statistics
Stacks
245
Stacks
1.3K
Followers
254
Followers
121
Votes
19
Votes
0
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • 7
    Rock solid and very scalable
  • 5
    BLU Analytics is amazingly fast
  • 2
    Native XML support
  • 2
    Secure by default
  • 2
    Easy
No community feedback yet
Integrations
Node.js
Node.js
JavaScript
JavaScript
PHP
PHP
Ruby
Ruby
Java
Java
Python
Python
C#
C#
.NET
.NET
C++
C++
Perl
Perl
No integrations available

What are some alternatives to IBM DB2, H2 Database?

MongoDB

MongoDB

MongoDB stores data in JSON-like documents that can vary in structure, offering a dynamic, flexible schema. MongoDB was also designed for high availability and scalability, with built-in replication and auto-sharding.

MySQL

MySQL

The MySQL software delivers a very fast, multi-threaded, multi-user, and robust SQL (Structured Query Language) database server. MySQL Server is intended for mission-critical, heavy-load production systems as well as for embedding into mass-deployed software.

PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL is an advanced object-relational database management system that supports an extended subset of the SQL standard, including transactions, foreign keys, subqueries, triggers, user-defined types and functions.

Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft® SQL Server is a database management and analysis system for e-commerce, line-of-business, and data warehousing solutions.

SQLite

SQLite

SQLite is an embedded SQL database engine. Unlike most other SQL databases, SQLite does not have a separate server process. SQLite reads and writes directly to ordinary disk files. A complete SQL database with multiple tables, indices, triggers, and views, is contained in a single disk file.

Cassandra

Cassandra

Partitioning means that Cassandra can distribute your data across multiple machines in an application-transparent matter. Cassandra will automatically repartition as machines are added and removed from the cluster. Row store means that like relational databases, Cassandra organizes data by rows and columns. The Cassandra Query Language (CQL) is a close relative of SQL.

Memcached

Memcached

Memcached is an in-memory key-value store for small chunks of arbitrary data (strings, objects) from results of database calls, API calls, or page rendering.

MariaDB

MariaDB

Started by core members of the original MySQL team, MariaDB actively works with outside developers to deliver the most featureful, stable, and sanely licensed open SQL server in the industry. MariaDB is designed as a drop-in replacement of MySQL(R) with more features, new storage engines, fewer bugs, and better performance.

RethinkDB

RethinkDB

RethinkDB is built to store JSON documents, and scale to multiple machines with very little effort. It has a pleasant query language that supports really useful queries like table joins and group by, and is easy to setup and learn.

ArangoDB

ArangoDB

A distributed free and open-source database with a flexible data model for documents, graphs, and key-values. Build high performance applications using a convenient SQL-like query language or JavaScript extensions.

Related Comparisons

Bootstrap
Materialize

Bootstrap vs Materialize

Laravel
Django

Django vs Laravel vs Node.js

Bootstrap
Foundation

Bootstrap vs Foundation vs Material UI

Node.js
Spring Boot

Node.js vs Spring-Boot

Liquibase
Flyway

Flyway vs Liquibase