Citus Data
Citus Data, a Microsoft subsidiary since 2019, develops the open-source Citus PostgreSQL extension that horizontally scales Postgres via schema-based and row-based sharding. It serves multi-tenant SaaS, real-time analytics, and microservices workloads through self-managed deployments and Azure managed PostgreSQL services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Citus Data does
Citus Data develops and maintains Citus, an open-source PostgreSQL extension that horizontally scales Postgres by distributing tables, queries, and schemas across multiple nodes. The extension is built as a Postgres extension (not a fork), which keeps it in sync with upstream Postgres releases (including Postgres 18 in Citus 14) and allows users to retain the full Postgres feature set, tooling, and ecosystem. Core technical capabilities include row-based sharding by distribution keys (e.g., tenant_id), schema-based sharding for microservices-style isolation, non-blocking shard rebalancer, row-level security on distributed tables, and HTAP-style combined transactional and analytical workloads. The company was founded in 2011 and open-sourced the bulk of its codebase in 2016, completing the transition to a fully open-source model with Citus 11 in September 2022.
Following Microsoft\u2019s acquisition in January 2019, Citus Data operates as part of Microsoft\u2019s Postgres product team and generates revenue primarily through managed-service consumption of Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL and Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server (Hyperscale/Citus). The historical enterprise-license and support-contract revenue model was phased out after the acquisition. Distribution combines a free self-serve open-source download with enterprise go-to-market executed through the Azure hyperscaler channel, targeting multi-tenant SaaS platforms, real-time customer-facing analytics, and microservices architectures. The team runs community programs including the POSETTE conference and Talking Postgres podcast and maintains a GitHub repository with 10,100+ stargazers as the primary developer-acquisition funnel.
Citus Data firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Citus Data
- Legal name
- Citus Data
- Website
- https://citusdata.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Citus Data, a Microsoft subsidiary since 2019, develops the open-source Citus PostgreSQL extension that horizontally scales Postgres via schema-based and row-based sharding. It serves multi-tenant SaaS, real-time analytics, and microservices workloads through self-managed deployments and Azure managed PostgreSQL services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Citus Data industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Distributed Database Software
- NAICS
- Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- NewSQL / Distributed SQL Databases (HDAEAAAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Data Engineering, Integration & ETL/ELT Services (BPAEAHAB)
Keywords
Where Citus Data is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Citus Data business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Managed cloud service on Azure: Revenue is generated through Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL (which uses Citus) and Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server with Hyperscale (Citus) option. The managed service provides automatic backups, scaling, high availability failover, and integrations with other Azure services. This is the primary revenue model since Microsoft acquired Citus Data in 2019.
- Enterprise support contracts (historical): Before going fully open source in 2022, Citus sold enterprise licenses and support contracts. This revenue model was phased out as the business shifted to the Azure managed service model.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Open source Citus - free download |
| Subscription | Monthly | Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL / Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server (Citus) |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels9 records
Citus Data product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Citus Data develops and maintains an open source PostgreSQL extension (Citus) that distributes tables and queries across multiple nodes via schema-based and row-based sharding, enabling horizontal scale-out for multi-tenant SaaS, real-time analytics, and microservices workloads while preserving full Postgres compatibility. The same technology is delivered as a managed cloud service through Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL and Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server (Hyperscale Citus).
Product overview
Citus Data offers a distributed PostgreSQL database solution through two main vehicles: the open-source Citus extension (currently at version 14) that transforms PostgreSQL into a horizontally scalable distributed database, and Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL as a managed cloud service. The Citus open-source extension provides schema-based and row-based sharding, enabling scale from single node to multi-node clusters while maintaining full PostgreSQL compatibility. The company also organizes community events (POSETTE conference) and produces the Talking Postgres podcast as part of its ecosystem engagement. All remaining enterprise features were open-sourced in Citus 11 (September 2022), making the core extension fully open source.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Citus Open Source Open source PostgreSQL extension that distributes tables and queries across multiple nodes via schema-based and row-based sharding, enabling horizontal scale-out while maintaining Postgres compatibility. Targeted at developers and enterprises needing to scale Postgres for multi-tenant SaaS, real-time analytics, and microservices workloads.
- Citus 14 Latest major version of the Citus PostgreSQL extension, providing distributed scale with schema-based and row-based sharding and full Postgres 18 compatibility, 100% open source.
- Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL Fully managed distributed PostgreSQL service on Azure, powered by Citus. Provides one-click cluster creation, auto-scaling, automatic backups, high availability failover, and Azure-native integrations for enterprise customers.
Quantifiable outcome
- CTE distributed queries up to 10x faster
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Citus Data
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Citus Data technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature11 records
Citus Data partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- MicrosoftflagshipMicrosoft acquired Citus Data in January 2019. The Citus team joined Microsoft and continues to innovate on the open source Citus database engine. The acquisition enabled Microsoft to offer distributed Postgres as a managed cloud service. Citus Data operates as part of Microsoft's Postgres team, maintaining the open source project while focusing on Azure cloud integration.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Citus Data competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Yugabyte: YugabyteDB is an open source distributed SQL database that is PostgreSQL-compatible and designed for horizontal scale, multi-region resilience, and cloud-native deployments. It is one of the closest direct competitors to Citus in distributed PostgreSQL, including a managed service offering (YugabyteDB Managed) that competes with Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL.
- Cockroach Labs: CockroachDB is a distributed SQL database (PostgreSQL-wire-compatible) built for horizontal scale, multi-region deployments, and OLTP at scale. It directly competes with Citus in the distributed-SQL-on-Postgres category, targeting the same multi-tenant SaaS and global applications use cases.
- PingCAP (TiDB): TiDB is an open source distributed SQL database with MySQL compatibility and HTAP capabilities, similar in positioning to Citus for horizontally scalable OLTP + OLAP workloads. It targets the same multi-tenant SaaS and real-time analytics use cases as Citus, with a cloud offering (TiDB Cloud) that competes with managed Citus.
Emerging players
- Timescale: Timescale develops TimescaleDB, a PostgreSQL extension for time-series and analytical workloads, and offers a managed cloud (Timescale Cloud). It is a partial competitor to Citus's real-time analytics use case, particularly for event-driven and time-series analytical workloads, while sharing the Postgres extension business model.
- SingleStore: SingleStore (formerly MemSQL) is a distributed SQL database with HTAP capabilities, designed to combine transactional and real-time analytical workloads in a single engine. It directly overlaps with Citus's HTAP positioning for real-time analytics use cases, including a managed cloud offering.
- EnterpriseDB: EnterpriseDB provides commercial PostgreSQL distributions, tools, and managed services, including features for high availability and scale. It is a partial competitor in the enterprise Postgres space, often considered by customers evaluating advanced Postgres features outside of Azure.
- Crunchy Data: Crunchy Data offers PostgreSQL support, distribution, and a managed cloud database service (Crunchy Bridge). It is an emerging player in the managed Postgres market and an alternative for customers seeking horizontally scalable Postgres on non-Azure clouds.
- PlanetScale (Vitess): PlanetScale offers a managed database platform built on Vitess, an open source sharding layer for MySQL. While it is MySQL-based rather than Postgres-based, it competes for the same horizontal-scale, multi-tenant SaaS workload category that Citus targets, and is a comparable reference point for the sharding-extension business model.
Broad incumbents
- AWS (Aurora PostgreSQL): Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL is a managed cloud database service that competes with Azure's managed Postgres offerings for enterprise workloads. While it does not include Citus-style sharding by default, Aurora is a broad incumbent for managed Postgres and a substitute for Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL on a different cloud.
- Google Cloud (AlloyDB / Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL): Google Cloud's AlloyDB for PostgreSQL and Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL are managed Postgres services that compete broadly with Azure's managed Postgres offerings. They are alternative destinations for customers evaluating horizontally scalable Postgres in a hyperscaler context.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Citus Data social profiles
Digital presenceCitus Data financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Citus Data leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Citus Data funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors12 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Citus Data M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Citus Data
What does Citus Data do?
Citus Data develops and maintains an open source PostgreSQL extension (Citus) that distributes tables and queries across multiple nodes via schema-based and row-based sharding, enabling horizontal scale-out for multi-tenant SaaS, real-time analytics, and microservices workloads while preserving full Postgres compatibility. The same technology is delivered as a managed cloud service through Azure Cosmos DB for PostgreSQL and Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server (Hyperscale Citus).
Is Citus Data a public or private company?
Citus Data is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Citus Data founded?
Citus Data was founded in 2011. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Citus Data based?
Citus Data is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Citus Data make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Managed cloud service on Azure is the primary driver. The others are enterprise support contracts (historical).
Who are Citus Data's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Yugabyte, Cockroach Labs and PingCAP (TiDB). Emerging players are Timescale, SingleStore, EnterpriseDB, Crunchy Data and PlanetScale (Vitess). Broad incumbents are AWS (Aurora PostgreSQL) and Google Cloud (AlloyDB / Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL).
Does Citus Data have an API?
No public API is recorded for Citus Data.
What industry is Citus Data in?
Citus Data's product category is Distributed Database Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAEAAAC, NewSQL / Distributed SQL Databases, with a secondary code of BPAEAHAB, Data Engineering, Integration & ETL/ELT Services. Its NAICS code is 5182 and its SIC code is 7372.