Cube vs Lightdash
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted apps from related categories — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Cube
Semantic layer and headless BI for building data apps
VS
Lightdash
Open-source BI built on top of dbt
| Feature | Cube | Lightdash |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Dashboards & Startpages | Developer Tools & Git |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | Rust | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, source | docker, kubernetes |
| GitHub stars | ★ 20,572 | ★ 6,022 |
| First released | 2019 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Looker, AtScale | Looker |
Why pick each one
Choose Lightdash if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 6k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is Cube or Lightdash better?
Neither is universally better. Cube has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Cube and Lightdash free and open-source?
Yes. Cube is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Lightdash under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Cube and Lightdash with Docker?
Cube: yes. Lightdash: yes.