Best Prisma Alternatives

Full-featured ORM for TypeScript and JavaScript supporting Active Record and Data Mapper patterns. Works with PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite, Oracle, SQL Server, and MongoDB. Features decorator-based entity definitions, migrations, relations (one-to-one, many-to-many), lazy/eager loading, query builder, transactions, and caching. Supports both Node.js and browser runtimes. 34K+ GitHub stars. Mature but losing mindshare to Prisma and Drizzle for new TypeScript projects.

Mature, promise-based ORM for Node.js supporting PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite, and SQL Server. Features model definitions with validations, eager/lazy loading, transactions, migrations, raw queries, and lifecycle hooks. Supports soft deletes, scopes, and virtual fields. One of the oldest and most battle-tested Node.js ORMs, widely used in enterprise apps though increasingly succeeded by Prisma and Drizzle in new projects.

Lightweight, serverless-ready TypeScript ORM with zero dependencies bringing SQL-like syntax into TypeScript for maximum type-safety. Maps queries closely to raw SQL with full auto-completion and type inference. Features Drizzle Kit for migrations, Drizzle Studio for visual browsing, supports PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, and Turso. Runs on Node.js, Bun, Deno, Cloudflare Workers, and Vercel Edge. 26K+ GitHub stars, growing fast as a Prisma alternative.

Liam ERD automatically generates beautiful, interactive entity-relationship diagrams from existing database schemas. It supports Rails schema.rb, PostgreSQL, Prisma, and raw SQL — with zero configuration required. A web version handles public repos instantly, while the CLI processes private repositories with CI/CD integration for keeping documentation in sync.