About Apache AGE
Apache AGE, short for A Graph Extension, is an extension for PostgreSQL that adds a graph database to an existing relational database. The principle is a single storage layer that handles both the relational and the graph data model, so you can use ANSI SQL together with the openCypher graph query language in the same database.
It is inspired by AgensGraph, the multi-model PostgreSQL fork from Bitnine, and positions itself for graph processing and analytics on top of relational data. Repository topics mention analytics, multi-model database and PostgreSQL extension, and the latest release tags support recent PostgreSQL versions. The extension is written mainly in C.
Apache AGE is an Apache Software Foundation project under the Apache-2.0 license. You install it into your own PostgreSQL servers, and some managed Postgres providers also offer it. It suits teams that want to add relationship-heavy queries such as social graphs, recommendations and lineage to Postgres without adopting a separate graph database.
Key features
- Graph database inside PostgreSQL
- openCypher query language support
- Single storage for relational and graph data
- Standard ANSI SQL alongside graph queries
- Multi-model database design
- Releases for current PostgreSQL versions
Good fit for
- →Adding graph queries to an existing Postgres database
- →Relationship and lineage analysis
- Tags
- graph-database
- postgresql
- opencypher
- apache
- extension
- analytics
- multi-model
- sql
Apache AGE: questions and answers
- What is Apache AGE used for?
- Apache AGE is a PostgreSQL extension that adds graph database capabilities, letting you run openCypher graph queries alongside standard SQL. It is a good fit for adding graph queries to an existing Postgres database, and relationship and lineage analysis.
- Is Apache AGE open source?
- Yes. Apache AGE is open source under the Apache-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at apache/age and is written mainly in C.
- Is Apache AGE free?
- Yes. Apache AGE is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
- Can I self-host Apache AGE?
- Yes. Apache AGE can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.
- What is Apache AGE an alternative to?
- Apache AGE is an open-source alternative to Amazon Neptune and Neo4j AuraDB. Other open-source alternatives to Amazon Neptune include OrientDB, ArangoDB and NebulaGraph.
- Is Apache AGE actively maintained?
- Yes. The most recent commit to Apache AGE was on 19 September 2026. The project has 4.9k stars on GitHub.
Open-source alternatives to Apache AGE
See all
OrientDB
Databases
OrientDB is the most versatile DBMS supporting Graph, Document, Reactive, Full-Text and Ge
Apache-2.0vs Amazon Neptune★ 5k
ArangoDB
Databases
🥑 ArangoDB is a native multi-model database with flexible data models for documents, grap
OSSvs Azure Cosmos DB★ 14k
NebulaGraph
Databases
A distributed, fast open-source graph database featuring horizontal scalability and high
Apache-2.0vs Amazon Neptune★ 12k
Dgraph
Databases
high-performance graph database for real-time use cases
Apache-2.0vs Amazon Neptune★ 22k
Neo4j
Databases
Graphs for Everyone
GPL-3.0vs Amazon Neptune★ 17k
FalkorDB
Databases
A super fast Graph Database uses GraphBLAS under the hood for its sparse adjacency matrix
OSSvs Amazon Neptune★ 6.6k
SaaS alternatives to Apache AGE
See all
Amazon Neptune
Databases
Managed graph database service on AWS supporting property graph and RDF models
SaaS
Neo4j AuraDB
Databases
Fully managed graph database service from Neo4j
SaaS
TigerGraph
Databases
Graph database and analytics platform for connected-data and fraud use cases
SaaS
Amazon Athena
Databases
Serverless interactive query service for analyzing data in Amazon S3 with SQL
SaaS
Amazon Redshift
Databases
Managed cloud data warehouse on AWS for SQL analytics at scale
SaaS
Azure Database for PostgreSQL
Databases
Managed PostgreSQL database service on Microsoft Azure
SaaS

