About Apache Druid
Apache Druid is an open source analytics database for fast queries on streaming and batch data. It is built for high concurrency, so many users and services can query it at the same time.
What it does
Druid ingests data from streams such as Kafka and Kinesis and makes it queryable as it arrives. It stores data in a column format with time-based indexes, which keeps analytical queries quick even on very large tables. Ingestion, querying and orchestration run as separate components that scale independently. Data is kept in deep storage, which supports backup and recovery.
Key features
- Queries on streaming data as it arrives
- Native integration with Kafka and Kinesis
- Column storage with time-based indexes
- Tiering settings for mixed workloads
- Automatic schema discovery during ingestion
Who it's for
Teams building customer-facing analytics, product groups that need live event metrics, and engineers who run high-volume dashboards that must stay responsive under load.
Pricing and good to know
Druid is free and licensed under the Apache 2.0 license, and it can be downloaded from the project site. Running it means operating a cluster with several components, so plan for setup, monitoring and upgrades. Its strengths show most clearly with streaming data and many concurrent queries.
Highlights
- Query streaming events within moments of arrival
- Connect to Kafka and Kinesis streams
- Store data in columns with time-based indexes
- Keep data in deep storage for recovery
- Discover column names and types during ingest
