--- title: "chroma vs supabase" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/chroma-core-chroma-vs-supabase-supabase" tools: ["chroma-core-chroma", "supabase-supabase"] --- # chroma vs supabase *GraphCanon updated Jul 11, 2026* ## Verdict Pick chroma if chroma is an open-source data infrastructure for AI designed to support vector, hybrid, and full-text search capabilities with high performance; pick supabase if primarily considered for applications needing a dedicated PostgreSQL environment with added features like authentication and real-time data synchronization. [chroma](https://www.trychroma.com/) reports 29k GitHub stars, 2.4k forks, and 728 open issues, last pushed Jul 10, 2026. [supabase](https://supabase.com) has 106k stars, 13k forks, and 1.1k open issues, last pushed Jul 11, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [chroma's repository](https://github.com/chroma-core/chroma) and [supabase's repository](https://github.com/supabase/supabase). | | [chroma](/tools/chroma-core-chroma.md) | [supabase](/tools/supabase-supabase.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Search infrastructure for AI | The Postgres development platform. | | Stars | 28,763 | 106,150 | | Forks | 2,377 | 13,184 | | Open issues | 728 | 1,077 | | Language | Rust | TypeScript | | Adopt for | Chroma is an open-source data infrastructure for AI designed to support vector, hybrid, and full-text search capabilities with high performance. | Primarily considered for applications needing a dedicated PostgreSQL environment with added features like authentication and real-time data synchronization. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Chroma is released under the Apache 2.0 license. | Apache-2.0 | | Categories | Data & Retrieval, Vector Databases | Data & Retrieval | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [chroma](/tools/chroma-core-chroma.md) | [supabase](/tools/supabase-supabase.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Open issues (now) | 728 | 1.1k | | Security scan | 8 low (8 low) | No lockfile | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/chroma-core-chroma/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/supabase-supabase/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: chroma - **Pricing:** freemium - The open-source version is free to use and modify; the hosted service (Chroma Cloud) has a freemium model offering $5 of initial credits. - **Requirements:** Min 1 GB RAM - **Adopt for:** Chroma is an open-source data infrastructure for AI designed to support vector, hybrid, and full-text search capabilities with high performance. - **License detail:** Chroma is released under the Apache 2.0 license. ## Decision facts: supabase - **Pricing:** freemium - Offers free plans with paid tiers for additional capacity and enterprise features. - **Requirements:** Supports deployment in multiple cloud environments including AWS, DigitalOcean, and Vercel - **Adopt for:** Primarily considered for applications needing a dedicated PostgreSQL environment with added features like authentication and real-time data synchronization. ## Choose when ### Choose chroma if… - chroma is primarily Rust; supabase is TypeScript. - Pricing: The open-source version is free to use and modify; the hosted service (Chroma Cloud) has a freemium model offering $5 of initial credits.. - Requirements: Min 1 GB RAM. - Tags unique to chroma: agents, ai-agents, full-text-search, hybrid-search. - Also covers Vector Databases. - - When you require a high-performance data infrastructure that can handle complex query needs for AI applications. - If your project necessitates fast, cost-effective, and scalable serverless services ### Choose supabase if… - supabase is primarily TypeScript; chroma is Rust. - Pricing: Offers free plans with paid tiers for additional capacity and enterprise features.. - Requirements: Supports deployment in multiple cloud environments including AWS, DigitalOcean, and Vercel. - Tags unique to supabase: ai, alternative, auth, embeddings. - - When developing AI applications that require seamless integration with a PostgreSQL database through websockets for a real-time experience ## When NOT to use chroma - - In scenarios where a more mature or enterprise-grade solution is required, as Chroma might be rapidly evolving and not yet fully stabilized. - - If your project requires extensive customization at the lower levels that the relatively new tool might not support comprehensively yet - - When the specific need for an AI application does not benefit from vector, hybrid, or full-text search capabilities that Chroma excels in. ## When NOT to use supabase - - In scenarios where a highly customizable database backend is required with deep control over every aspect; Supabase offers limited customization beyond its defined set of features - - For projects wanting to avoid tightly coupling their authentication and authorization schemes within the same system as data storage, as Supabase integrates both closely ## Common questions ### What is the difference between chroma and supabase? chroma: Search infrastructure for AI. supabase: The Postgres development platform.. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose chroma over supabase? Choose chroma over supabase when chroma is primarily Rust; supabase is TypeScript; Pricing: The open-source version is free to use and modify; the hosted service (Chroma Cloud) has a freemium model offering $5 of initial credits.; Requirements: Min 1 GB RAM; Tags unique to chroma: agents, ai-agents, full-text-search, hybrid-search; Also covers Vector Databases; - When you require a high-performance data infrastructure that can handle complex query needs for AI applications. - If your project necessitates fast, cost-effective, and scalable serverless services. ### When should I choose supabase over chroma? Choose supabase over chroma when supabase is primarily TypeScript; chroma is Rust; Pricing: Offers free plans with paid tiers for additional capacity and enterprise features.; Requirements: Supports deployment in multiple cloud environments including AWS, DigitalOcean, and Vercel; Tags unique to supabase: ai, alternative, auth, embeddings; - When developing AI applications that require seamless integration with a PostgreSQL database through websockets for a real-time experience. ### When should I avoid chroma? - In scenarios where a more mature or enterprise-grade solution is required, as Chroma might be rapidly evolving and not yet fully stabilized. - If your project requires extensive customization at the lower levels that the relatively new tool might not support comprehensively yet - When the specific need for an AI application does not benefit from vector, hybrid, or full-text search capabilities that Chroma excels in. ### When should I avoid supabase? - In scenarios where a highly customizable database backend is required with deep control over every aspect; Supabase offers limited customization beyond its defined set of features - For projects wanting to avoid tightly coupling their authentication and authorization schemes within the same system as data storage, as Supabase integrates both closely ### Is chroma or supabase more popular on GitHub? supabase has more GitHub stars (106,150 vs 28,763). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are chroma and supabase open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (chroma: Apache-2.0, supabase: Apache-2.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to chroma or supabase? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [chroma alternatives](/tools/chroma-core-chroma/alternatives) and [supabase alternatives](/tools/supabase-supabase/alternatives) ([chroma markdown twin](/tools/chroma-core-chroma/alternatives.md), [supabase markdown twin](/tools/supabase-supabase/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/chroma-core-chroma-vs-supabase-supabase.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, chroma or supabase? chroma: Very active. supabase: Very active. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for chroma and supabase? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [chroma trust report](/tools/chroma-core-chroma/trust); [supabase trust report](/tools/supabase-supabase/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=chroma-core-chroma`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=chroma-core-chroma) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_