Neo4j Licensing

Neo4j is an open source project, whose source and copyright is owned and maintained by Neo4j, Inc.

This page is intended to clarify the licenses and terms under which Neo4j is made available.
If you want to learn more about Neo4j AuraDB cloud service or Neo4j self-hosted editions, please visit Neo4j Pricing.

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Neo4j Loves Open Source

Neo4j is committed to open source. Neo4j Community Edition is fully open source, licensed and distributed under GPL v3.

Neo4j offers a number of commercial licensing options, including free licenses for development, startups, academic-educational uses and of course, evaluation.

Neo4j Enterprise Edition is available for download as a zipfile/tarball as well as via Debian, RPM, DockerHub, and more; as well as via under a "bring your own license" model in cloud services, including Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, and AWS.

Visit the Neo4j Open Source Project page to learn more about the history behind Neo4j.

About Neo4j Licenses

Neo4j Community Edition

Neo4j Community is a fully featured, best-in-class graph database that uses the GPL v3 license. We chose GPL because it means that Neo4j Community Edition can be used for free with your project: whether in the cloud or behind the firewall. If you’re building an application that accesses a Neo4j database running inside your organization (or on any personal device), then you are free to use Community Edition, whether or not your software is closed source. Download Neo4j →

Neo4j Enterprise Edition

Neo4j Enterprise is designed for commercial deployments where scale and availability are important. To use Neo4j Enterprise, select the licensing option that best matches your needs:

Neo4j Commercial License

Use of Neo4j Enterprise by closed-source software applications requires a commercial license, offered under a subscription agreement. In addition to granting the right to use the software as part of a closed-source project, it also includes world-class support, and commercial backing by Neo4j, Inc. Learn more→

Neo4j Developer License

Neo4j Desktop is the mission control center for Developers. It's free with registration, and it includes a free development license for Enterprise Edition allowing you to use Neo4j Enterprise on your local desktop for developing applications. Download Neo4j Desktop →

Neo4j Evaluation License

Users seeking to evaluate Neo4j Enterprise Edition may do so under an Evaluation License. This provides the full set of Enterprise Edition features for a trial period in commericial use. Evaluations typically include not just software, but expert assistance from Neo4j to help you get your project successfully off the ground.

Neo4j AuraDB

Neo4j AuraDB cloud DBaaS is the simplest way to run Neo4j in the cloud. Neo4j AuraDB is a subscription-based product that is completely automated and fully managed. Neo4j AuraDB delivers the world’s most flexible, reliable and developer-friendly graph database as a service. With Neo4j AuraDB, you leave the day-to-day management of your database to the same engineers who built Neo4j, giving you more time to focus on building rich graph-powered applications. Start Free →

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to pay to use Neo4j Enterprise Edition?

Neo4j Enterprise Edition is the commercial version of Neo4j and is primarily available on a paid basis. This is how we keep the gears turning and advancing this awesome product. That said, Neo4j Enterprise Edition is also available for free for a number of uses: Startups with <=50 employees can contact us to receive a free Startup License for Neo4j Enterprise, and anybody & everybody can get a free-for-development use (single-user, local desktop/ single machine) license via Neo4j Desktop.

We're always happy to answer your licensing questions – please contact us here.


What’s the best option for startups that need to use Neo4j Enterprise?

We have a great program to help you up your game. Our Startup Program is designed to suit the full range: from individuals and bootstrapped startups in a garage to later stage startups with venture funding. Learn more →


What is the pricing for Neo4j AuraDB and how will it be billed?

The subscription pricing for Neo4j AuraDB begins at $0.09 per hour ($65/month) and is based on memory (RAM) allocation.

Users sign up with their credit cards and will be billed with a pay-as-you-go model on a monthly basis. Users will be charged for the prior month’s actual consumption of the service.


When is Neo4j AuraDB invoicing done?

Billing occurs on a monthly basis. Invoices will be emailed at the end of each month.


I’m an educator interested in including Neo4j in my curriculum; is that allowed?

Absolutely, that's great to hear. We have an Educator Program that provides software and resources for installing Neo4j Desktop in a classroom lab. There is also access to our learning materials for use in your classroom for lectures and hands-on exercises. Visit our Educator Program page and fill out the application.


I’m a student learning Neo4j. Which license is right for me?

The Neo4j Desktop with the Developer License is the best way to learn and build sample applications with Cypher, the graph query language. Also, the Neo4j Community Edition gives you everything you need to learn the basics. If you want to explore more advanced usage scenarios with Neo4j Enterprise, we invite you to use Neo4j Desktop.


I’m building a personal hobby project using Neo4j. What’s my next step?

A lot of startups begin life as hobbies. Our Startup Program is designed to suit the full range: from individuals and bootstrapped startups in a garage to later stage startups with venture funding. Please check out our Startup program and see if it suits your needs. Learn more or contact us and we’ll talk it through.


I’d like to evaluate Neo4j for a business application; which license and edition should I use?

It’s best to do your evaluation and testing with your target edition. First, determine which edition you want to go live with, and if you’re not sure, ask us and we’ll be happy to help you decide. The best way to evaluate Neo4j Enterprise is with a trial license, which provides you not only with an evaluation license but also ensures that you get the right level of support during your evaluation to ensure your success.


I want to include Neo4j in software that I’m shipping. What are my options?

Neo4j offers a mature OEM program tailored to your needs. Learn more →


I’m using an Apache-licensed driver to access Neo4j. What does this mean for my application?

That’s great. Apache-licensed drivers allow you to redistribute your own code. Of course you still need to abide by the same Neo4j license terms as you normally would.


I’m a cloud provider interested in offering Neo4j as a database-as-a-service (DBaaS). How can I get started?

We think that’s a great idea! We have a structured program for this sort of arrangement, so your customers will know you are backed by Neo4j, Inc.


Is there a familiar license to which I can compare the Community Edition license? Are there any limits around its use?

If you’re building a database application that will run inside your organization (or for your personal use), then you are free to use Community Edition, whether or not your software is closed source. A very close analogy is MySQL®(1), which is also licensed under the GPL.

Still have questions? We’ll work with you to find your answer.
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(1) MySQL is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates.