SQLite is the most widely deployed database in the world, and almost none of those deployments have a server. It is a full relational engine in a single file, which makes it the natural local store for a mobile application or an offline-first feature.
It is genuinely reliable — its test suite is famously exhaustive — and it supports the transactions and constraints you would expect from a much larger system.
Why we use it
We use SQLite as the on-device store in offline-first applications: local writes go to it immediately, and a sync queue reconciles with the server when a connection returns. It is why a billing counter keeps working through an internet cut.
We do not use it as a server database for a multi-user application. Concurrent write throughput is its known limit, and pretending otherwise is how a quick prototype becomes a production problem.
Planning a SQLite project?
We will tell you honestly whether it is the right choice for what you are building.
