MariaDB vs. MySQL: What's the Difference and Does It Matter?

When researching open-source databases to replace Access, you will find MySQL and MariaDB mentioned almost interchangeably. They look the same, use the same SQL syntax, accept the same ODBC drivers, and were built by the same person. So what is the difference, and does it matter for your Access replacement project?

The History in 30 Seconds

MySQL was created by Michael “Monty” Widenius and David Axmark in 1995. It became the most popular open-source database in the world. Sun Microsystems acquired MySQL AB in 2008. Oracle acquired Sun in 2010, gaining ownership of MySQL.

Monty Widenius, concerned about MySQL’s future under Oracle, forked the MySQL source code and created MariaDB in 2009. MariaDB started as a drop-in replacement for MySQL — same commands, same file formats, same protocol. Since then, the two have diverged somewhat, but they remain largely compatible.

What Is the Same

For an Access replacement scenario, the similarities are more important than the differences:

SQL syntax. Queries that work in MySQL work in MariaDB and vice versa. The SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE syntax is identical.
ODBC connectivity. Both work with the MySQL ODBC driver. MariaDB also has its own ODBC connector, but the MySQL driver works with both.
Data types. VARCHAR, INT, DECIMAL, DATETIME, TINYINT(1) for booleans — all the same.
Access linked tables. If you set up linked tables from Access to MySQL, the same configuration works with MariaDB.
Tools. MySQL Workbench can connect to MariaDB. Most MySQL management tools work with both.
Default port. Both use port 3306.
Administration commands. CREATE DATABASE, GRANT, SHOW TABLES, user management — all the same.

If you follow a MySQL migration guide, you can substitute MariaDB at every step and it will work.

What Is Different

Licensing

MySQL: Dual-licensed. The Community Edition is GPL (free for most uses). Oracle also sells a commercial license for companies that need to embed MySQL in proprietary products or want official Oracle support.

MariaDB: GPL only, managed by the MariaDB Foundation (a non-profit). There is no commercial licensing option because there is no commercial version. MariaDB Corporation offers paid support and enterprise tools, but the database itself is entirely community-owned.

What this means for you: If you are installing a database server for your own organization (not embedding it in software you sell), both are free. But MariaDB’s governance structure provides more certainty that it will remain free. There is no single company that could change the licensing terms.

Storage Engines

MySQL: Default engine is InnoDB (owned by Oracle). Also supports MyISAM and others.

MariaDB: Default engine is also InnoDB (through a fork called XtraDB in older versions, now using InnoDB directly). Additionally supports Aria (an enhanced MyISAM replacement), ColumnStore (for analytics), and Spider (for distributed tables).

What this means for you: For typical Access replacement workloads, both use InnoDB and you will not notice a difference. MariaDB’s additional engines are useful for specialized workloads but irrelevant for most migrations.

Features Added Since the Fork

Since the 2009 fork, each database has added features independently:

MariaDB added: - Sequences (auto-incrementing number generators independent of tables) - System-versioned tables (automatic history tracking) - Oracle compatibility mode (useful if you ever need to run Oracle SQL) - Window functions (added before MySQL) - Common Table Expressions (added before MySQL) - Faster query optimizer improvements

MySQL added: - JSON document store - MySQL Shell (an advanced command-line client) - MySQL Router (for connection routing and load balancing) - Group Replication (multi-master replication) - InnoDB Cluster (high-availability solution) - Better integration with Oracle Cloud

What this means for you: For a standard Access replacement, none of these features are critical. MariaDB tends to implement SQL standard features faster. MySQL tends to implement enterprise infrastructure features faster.

Performance

Performance benchmarks between MySQL and MariaDB depend heavily on the workload, configuration, and version. Neither is consistently faster than the other across all scenarios.

For the workloads typical of an Access replacement — moderate data volumes, mixed read/write operations, moderate concurrency — both perform well and the differences are negligible.

What this means for you: Do not choose between them based on performance. You will not notice the difference.

Compatibility Going Forward

When MariaDB started, it was a perfect drop-in replacement for MySQL. You could swap one for the other and nothing would break. This is still mostly true, but the two are slowly diverging:

MariaDB no longer guarantees binary compatibility with MySQL for new features
Some MySQL-specific syntax (like CREATE USER ... IDENTIFIED WITH) differs from MariaDB’s implementation
Replication between MySQL and MariaDB is no longer guaranteed to work seamlessly
Some third-party tools are starting to differentiate between the two

For an Access replacement, these compatibility differences are unlikely to affect you. Your linked tables, ODBC connections, and standard SQL queries work identically on both.

Which Should You Choose?

Choose MySQL If:

Your hosting provider only supports MySQL. Many shared hosting environments provide MySQL but not MariaDB. If you are using a hosting provider for your database, check what they support.
You want maximum third-party tool compatibility. Some database management tools, ORM frameworks, and cloud services are tested specifically against MySQL and may not officially support MariaDB.
You are using a MySQL-specific feature like MySQL Shell, Group Replication, or MySQL Router.
Your team already knows MySQL. No reason to switch if you are comfortable.

Choose MariaDB If:

Licensing concerns matter to you. MariaDB’s community governance provides stronger guarantees that the database will remain free and open.
You want the latest SQL features. MariaDB has historically been faster to implement SQL standard features like window functions and CTEs.
You are using Linux. Many Linux distributions have switched their default MySQL package to MariaDB. If you install “mysql-server” on Debian, Ubuntu, or Red Hat/CentOS, you may actually get MariaDB.
You want system-versioned tables. If tracking the history of record changes is important, MariaDB has this built in.

It Genuinely Does Not Matter If:

You are doing a straightforward Access migration with linked tables
Your database is under 10GB
You have fewer than 50 concurrent users
You are using standard SQL without database-specific extensions

In these cases — which describe most Access replacement scenarios — pick whichever one is easier to install in your environment. If your server runs Linux and the package manager installs MariaDB by default, use MariaDB. If your hosting provider gives you MySQL, use MySQL.

The Bottom Line

MariaDB and MySQL are more alike than they are different. For an Access replacement project, they are functionally interchangeable. The choice between them matters less than the choice to move off Access in the first place.

If you want a recommendation: MariaDB, slightly, because of the cleaner licensing situation and the community governance model. But MySQL is a perfectly fine choice, and you should not spend more than five minutes on this decision.