--- title: "3 Best Starburst Alternatives in 2026 (Compared)" description: "Looking for a Starburst alternative? Compare the best Distributed SQL Query Engines alternatives to Starburst by pricing, free tiers, and features, and find the right fit for your startup." source: https://appstackbuilder.com/tool-alternatives/starburst retrieved: 2026-11-10 --- Distributed SQL Query Engines # The 3 Best Starburst Alternatives in 2026 [Starburst](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/starburst) is for teams that want Trino without running it, or need a supported enterprise build for private cloud and on-premises. If that isn’t you, these 3 Distributed SQL Query Engines tools are the closest alternatives. A common reason to look elsewhere: you have the skills to run it yourself and want no licence. Use Trino. Category Distributed SQL Query Engines Starburst pricing Free tier available Free tier Yes Alternatives 3 compared ## Choose Starburst if… * ✓You like Trino but don’t want to run the cluster. * ✓You need a vendor-supported build on-premises. * ✓You want Iceberg table management alongside queries. ## Look at an alternative if… * You have the skills to run it yourself and want no licence. Use Trino. * Your data sits only in S3\. Amazon Athena may be simpler. ## Starburst vs Alternatives: Quick Comparison | Tool | Pricing | Free tier | Rating | Best for | | ----------------------------------------- | ------------------------ | --------- | ------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | [Starburst](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/starburst)You searched | Free · paid from $0.5/mo | ✓ | 4.4 | Distributed SQL Query Engines: managed Trino, Iceberg, enterprise support | | 1.[Trino](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/trino) | Free | ✓ | 4.6 | Distributed SQL Query Engines: federated SQL, open source, data lakes | | 2.[Presto](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/presto) | Free | ✓ | 4.2 | Distributed SQL Query Engines: open source, C++ workers, Linux Foundation | | 3.[Amazon Athena](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/amazon-athena) | From $0.3/mo | — | 4.4 | Distributed SQL Query Engines: serverless, S3, pay per scan | Ratings are App Stack Builder’s editorial score out of 5, not an average of user reviews. ## Top Starburst Alternatives, Explained ![Trino](https://www.google.com/s2/favicons?domain=trino.io&sz=128) ### 1. Trino Free tier4.6· Free Trino runs fast SQL over data where it already lives, from object storage tables to relational databases, and can join across sources in one query. It is Apache 2.0 licensed and run by the non-profit Trino Software Foundation. You operate the coordinator and workers yourself, or buy it managed from Starburst, which was founded by Trino’s creators. Best for: federated SQL, open source, data lakes * ✓Free and vendor-neutral * ✓Joins across many data sources * ✓Large connector set [Trino pricing & review ](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/trino)[Starburst vs Trino ](https://appstackbuilder.com/compare/starburst-vs-trino) ![Presto](https://www.google.com/s2/favicons?domain=prestodb.io&sz=128) ### 2. Presto Free tier4.2· Free Presto is a distributed SQL query engine for big data, governed by the Presto Foundation under the Linux Foundation, which Facebook, Alibaba, Twitter and Uber founded. It is Apache 2.0 licensed. Presto native is a C++ rewrite of the worker that uses Velox as its engine. There is no paid edition from the project; you run it yourself. Best for: open source, C++ workers, Linux Foundation * ✓Free under Apache 2.0 * ✓C++ native worker on Velox * ✓Neutral foundation governance [Presto pricing & review ](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/presto)[Starburst vs Presto ](https://appstackbuilder.com/compare/presto-vs-starburst) ![Amazon Athena](https://www.google.com/s2/favicons?domain=aws.amazon.com&sz=128) ### 3. Amazon Athena 4.4· From $0.3/mo Athena runs SQL directly on files in Amazon S3 without servers or clusters. You pay $5 per TB of data scanned, so compressed columnar formats and partitions cut the bill. Federated queries over non-S3 sources are rounded up to the nearest MB with a 10 MB minimum. Capacity Reservations cost $0.30 per DPU-hour for steady workloads, and Athena for Apache Spark is $0.35 per DPU-hour. Best for: serverless, S3, pay per scan * ✓Nothing to provision * ✓Pay only for data scanned * ✓Works on existing S3 data [Amazon Athena pricing & review ](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/amazon-athena)[Starburst vs Amazon Athena ](https://appstackbuilder.com/compare/amazon-athena-vs-starburst) ## Frequently Asked Questions What are the best alternatives to Starburst in 2026?⌄ The best Starburst alternatives in 2026 are Trino, Presto, Amazon Athena. Each is a distributed sql query engines option you can compare on pricing, free tiers, and features in the table above. Is there a free alternative to Starburst?⌄ Yes. Trino, Presto offer free tiers, making them strong free Starburst alternatives for bootstrapped startups. When should I choose Starburst, and when an alternative?⌄ Choose Starburst when: You like Trino but don’t want to run the cluster. You need a vendor-supported build on-premises. You want Iceberg table management alongside queries. Look at an alternative when: You have the skills to run it yourself and want no licence. Use Trino. Your data sits only in S3\. Amazon Athena may be simpler. What is the cheapest Starburst alternative?⌄ Trino is among the most affordable Starburst alternatives: free. Check the comparison table above for the full pricing breakdown. Which Starburst alternative is rated highest?⌄ Trino has the highest editorial score among the Starburst alternatives here, at 4.6 out of 5\. That is our own score, not an average of user reviews, so check it against your budget and stack before you pick. ## Find your perfect distributed sql query engines tool Skip the research. Get a free AI-powered tech stack matched to your budget, app type, and team size in seconds. [Build my stack free ](https://appstackbuilder.com/)