Flutter databases are databases specifically designed to give Flutter / Dart apps fast data persistence. Other databases can be used depending on the database and use case, but in our experience Flutter databases are easier to use and faster in Flutter/Dart apps. Note: Because “Dart” is such an ambiguous term, “Flutter database” is the established terminology (even though from a tech perspective it is not a great name).

As a Flutter app developer, selecting the right local database is important. After a market overview and terminology, we’ll compare the most popular options (ObjectBox, sqflite, Drift, Floor, Isar, Hive, Sembast, MongoDB Realm) in a matrix.

Flutter is here to stay 

Flutter, Google’s open-source multi-platform application framework, has gained quite some popularity over the years. In 2024, Flutter was used by 1 mill monthly active developers, powered nearly 30% of new iOS apps, and indeed was the most widely used cross-platform development framework. This is up from only 1 million published Flutter-based apps in May 2023, which was already doubling from mid-2022.

This growth is driven by an active developer community of over 1,400 contributors, 10,000 package publishers, and more than 50,000 packages. The Flutter framework uses Dart as the programming language, which was first released in 2011. Despite Dart being a still young language, it has already reached spot 28 on the Tiobe index (February 2025).

Flutter has become a solid foundation for mobile app development, with its databases gaining momentum alongside its expanding ecosystem.

Flutter databases / Flutter Dart data persistence

While the database market is huge and dynamic,  there are only a few Flutter databases options to choose from if you are a Flutter / Dart app developer. Before we dive into the Flutter database options, advantages and disadvantages, we’re taking a very quick look at databases to make sure we share a common ground. 

What is a database?

A database is a piece of software that allows the storage and systematic use of digital information, in other words: data persistence. As opposed to mere caching, data is reliably stored and available to work with unless actively deleted. A database allows developers to store, access, search, update, query, and otherwise manipulate data via a developer language or API. These types of operations are done within an application, in the background, typically hidden from end users. Many applications need a database as part of their technology stack. The most typical database operations are CRUD: Create, Read, Update, Delete.

What are the major types of databases?

There are many types of databases. For our purpose, the most important differentiations are non-relational (NoSQL) versus relational databases (SQL), cloud databases versus edge databases, and maybe embedded versus in-memory. However, databases can be further distinguished by additional criteria e.g. the data types they support, or the way they scale – and definitions can vary.

What is an ORM?

An Object relational Mapper (ORM) is not a database. We’re bringing this up mainly, because we see it confused often. It is a layer that sits on top of a database and makes it easier to use. This is typically especially relevant when the database is a relational database (SQL) and the programming language used is object-oriented. As noted above, Dart is an object-oriented programming language.

The Flutter database landscape

The database landscape for Flutter Dart is limited. So, let us quickly introduce the handful of current market players. 

• Drift (formerly known as Moor) is an ORM on top of SQLite, so in itself it isn’t a database really. SQLite is a long-established lightweight relational (SQL) database.
• Floor is an ORM on top of SQLite too.
• Isar is a fast lightweight NoSQL database written by the author of hive.
• ObjectBox DB is a fast lightweight NoSQL database with an integrated Data Sync. 
• Realm is a fairly lightweight NoSQL database written primarily in Java and acquired by Mongo DB in spring 2019. 
• Sembast is a NoSQL database
• sqflite is a wrapper around SQLite, which is a relational database without direct support for Dart objects. 

Note: As Hive will be deprecated (according to its author) and Isar is the new thing, we are covering only Isar. 

What is the best Flutter database?

This of course depends… Make up your own mind with the following comparison matrix as a starting point. If you’re on mobile, use this link to view the table.