Kysely
Kysely is an open source, type-safe SQL query builder for TypeScript, released under the MIT license. It is a query builder, not a full ORM: it checks queries against your database types and compiles them to SQL. It supports PostgreSQL, MySQL, MS SQL Server, SQLite and PGlite.
Facts checked on against the sources listed at the end of this page.
- Pricing
- Open sourceFree plan: Yes. Kysely is free and open source.
- Open source
- YesMIT
A good fit for
- TypeScript projects that want type-checked SQL without an ORM
- Developers who know SQL and want queries to stay close to it
- Apps that run on edge runtimes or Bun and Deno
- Teams that want a small dependency footprint
Not a good fit for
- Teams that want a full ORM with models and relations: Kysely is a query builder
- Projects that want a schema and model layer generated for them
- Developers who do not want to write SQL-shaped queries
Kysely pricing
Kysely is free and open source under the MIT license. There are no paid plans.
Prices in USD, checked on 6 October 2026. Current prices on kysely.dev.
Main features
- Type-safe queries
- Autocomplete and compile-time errors based on your database schema.
- Composable queries
- Reusable query fragments and subqueries.
- Close to SQL
- Queries compile to the SQL they describe.
- Zero runtime dependencies
- Nothing else is installed with it.
- Multiple dialects
- PostgreSQL, MySQL, MS SQL Server, SQLite and PGlite, plus community plugins.
- Many runtimes
- Node.js, Deno, Bun, Workers and browsers.
About Kysely
Kysely lets you write SQL queries in TypeScript with autocomplete and compile-time checks based on your database schema. The site describes its approach as what you see is what you get: the query you write maps closely to the SQL that runs.
It has no runtime dependencies and runs on Node.js, Deno, Bun, Workers and in browsers. PostgreSQL, MySQL, MS SQL Server, SQLite and PGlite are supported natively, and community plugins cover other databases.
Kysely is a query builder, not an ORM. It does not define models or relations the way a full ORM does. The site says it is used in production by Mozilla, Bluesky, Materialize, Cal.com and 40+ other companies.
- Made by
- Sami Koskimäki and Kysely contributors
- Free plan
- Yes. Kysely is free and open source.
- Available on
- Node.js, Deno, Bun, Cloudflare Workers, Browsers
Kysely alternatives
| Tool | Pricing | GitHub stars |
|---|---|---|
| Drizzle ORMTypeScript ORM that maps closely to SQL, for Postgres, MySQL and SQLite. | Open source | 36k |
| PrismaOpen source ORM and database toolkit for Node.js and TypeScript, made by Prisma. | Freemium | 47.7k |
Questions about Kysely
Is Kysely an ORM?
No. Kysely is a type-safe SQL query builder. It does not provide models or relations like a full ORM.
Is Kysely open source?
Yes. It is released under the MIT license.
Which databases does Kysely support?
PostgreSQL, MySQL, MS SQL Server, SQLite and PGlite natively. Community plugins cover other databases.
How do I install Kysely?
Install the kysely package from npm.
Who maintains Kysely?
The site credits Sami Koskimäki and Kysely contributors.
Sources and links
Work on Kysely? Claim this listing. Something wrong or out of date? Suggest a correction. Stats come from the public GitHub and npm APIs and update every day.