Dolt
'Git for data': a version-controlled SQL database with branching, merging, diffs, and push/pull.
About
Dolt is an open-source SQL database (Apache 2.0) that implements the Git version-control model at the cell level. It can be forked, cloned, branched, merged, diffed, pushed, and pulled just like a Git repository, but on tables and rows instead of files. It connects like any MySQL database, and version control is exposed through Git-style CLI commands and in SQL via dolt_ system tables and stored procedures.
Cell-level merges resolve concurrent edits cleanly, and time-travel queries (AS OF syntax) give a complete audit trail with no extra application code, which has made Dolt popular as an embedded backend for agent tooling and issue trackers. The ecosystem includes DoltHub for sharing databases, DoltLab for self-hosting, Hosted Dolt as a managed option, and Doltgres, a PostgreSQL-compatible version in beta. The dolthub/dolt repository carries roughly 24,600 GitHub stars as of October 2026.
What it can do
- Git-style version control for SQL data: branch, merge, diff, push, pull
- MySQL-compatible interface with SQL access to version history
- Cell-level merges and conflict resolution
- Time-travel queries with AS OF syntax
- DoltHub sharing, DoltLab self-hosting, and Doltgres for Postgres
Setup
Download the Dolt binary for Linux, macOS, or Windows (or run the Docker image); connect with any MySQL client.
Prerequisites
A MySQL-compatible client (or the Dolt CLI); data you want to version.
Use cases
Works with
Trust score — 9/10
Scored 9/10 (verified tier, metrics-v1). Evidence: Verified via vendor site/docs/GitHub and reputable coverage, wave 94; Trending score 86/100 from researcher assessment.
Sources
Every fact above was checked against these sources. Where a claim comes from the provider and couldn't be independently verified, the text says so.