Staxly

Convex vs Chroma

The reactive database where queries are TypeScript code
vs. Open-source vector DB designed for AI apps — embeddings-first, dev-friendly

Convex websiteChroma website

Pricing tiers

Convex

Starter (Free)
Free with overage via usage-based billing. Great for prototypes.
Free
Professional
$25/developer/month. Overage: $2/M function calls. Daily backups, email support, custom domains.
$25/mo
Business / Enterprise
From $2,500/month. SAML/SSO, SLA, dedicated deployments, Slack Connect support.
$2500/mo
Convex website

Chroma

Cloud — Free
$5 free credits. Great for trying it out.
Free
Cloud — Pro
$100 credits included, then usage-based. Dedicated resources, SOC2, priority support.
$0 base (usage-based)
Self-Host (OSS)
MIT-licensed. Embedded or Docker. Free forever.
$0 base (usage-based)
Cloud — Enterprise
Custom. VPC, compliance, dedicated support.
Custom
Chroma website

Free-tier quotas head-to-head

Comparing starter on Convex vs cloud-free on Chroma.

MetricConvexChroma
db storage gb0.5 GB
deployments40 deployments
egress gb month1 GB/month
file storage gb1 GB
function calls month1000000 calls/month
team members6 users

Features

Convex · 18 features

  • ActionsNon-deterministic functions for external I/O (fetch, AI APIs, email). Cannot rea
  • AuthenticationConvex Auth (built-in) or BYO provider (Clerk, Auth0, Kinde, WorkOS). ID tokens
  • Convex AgentsAI agent framework with durable memory, threads, tool use. Works with OpenAI / A
  • Convex AuthFirst-party auth library: passwords, magic links, OAuth, phone — stored in your
  • Convex ComponentsReusable backend modules (rate limiter, workflow, aggregate, action-retrier, etc
  • Cron JobsRecurring schedules defined in convex/crons.ts. UTC, cron-style patterns.
  • Durable WorkflowsLong-running multi-step workflows with retries and at-least-once guarantees.
  • Exception ReportingAuto-capture errors to Sentry, Axiom, Datadog.
  • File StorageUpload/download via storage API. Returns storage IDs referenced in documents.
  • Full-Text SearchBM25 search index on table fields. withSearchIndex query helper.
  • HTTP ActionsExpose public HTTP endpoints for webhooks, OAuth callbacks, third-party integrat
  • Log StreamsStream function logs to Axiom, Datadog, Sentry. Pro+.
  • MutationsTransactional write functions. All reads + writes in one mutation are ACID; conf
  • Preview DeploymentsEvery Git branch gets its own isolated deployment. Integrates with Vercel/Netlif
  • QueriesDeterministic read-only TS functions. Automatically cached and re-run when under
  • Real-Time SubscriptionsuseQuery auto-subscribes; server invalidates when data a query read changes. No
  • Schedulerschedule.after / schedule.at — enqueue functions to run later. Durable, survives
  • Vector SearchNative vector index on tables. withIndex + filter fields. Up to 4096 dims.

Chroma · 11 features

  • Client-Server ModeRun Chroma via Docker; clients connect over HTTP.
  • CollectionsNamed groups of embeddings + metadata.
  • Distributed (Cloud)Horizontal scaling on Chroma Cloud.
  • Embedded ModeIn-process Python — chromadb.Client() and go. Zero setup.
  • Embedding FunctionsPlug-in embedders (OpenAI, Cohere, SentenceTransformers, HF).
  • Full-Text SearchBM25 + vector hybrid.
  • Metadata FiltersWhere-clause query language.
  • Migration ToolsImport from Pinecone + other stores.
  • Multi-ModalText + image embeddings (CLIP, etc.).
  • Python + JS APIsSame API shape across both SDKs.
  • Serverless CloudPay for storage + queries, auto-scale.

Developer interfaces

KindConvexChroma
CLIConvex CLI
SDKAndroid / Kotlin Client, iOS / Swift Client, JavaScript/TypeScript Client, Next.js Integration, Python Client, React Client (useQuery), Rust Client, Svelte Client, Vue Clientchromadb (JS/TS), chromadb (Python)
RESTDeploy / Dashboard API, HTTP ActionsChroma HTTP API
MCPChroma MCP
OTHERWebSocket SubscriptionsDocker Server, Embedded Mode (in-process Python)
Staxly is an independent catalog of developer platforms. Some links to Convex and Chroma may be affiliate links — Staxly may earn a commission if you sign up through them, at no extra cost to you. Pricing is verified against vendor pages at publication time — reconfirm before buying.

Want this comparison in your AI agent's context? Install the free Staxly MCP server.