Flyway

Database migration tool that version-controls schema changes with plain SQL, favoring convention over configuration. Migrates from any version, including an empty database, to the latest schema with minimal setup. Built on open source, available free via API, CLI, and Desktop GUI.

Trusted by the Spring Boot team as the default migration tool and cited by ThoughtWorks and Red Hat for continuous delivery and Java EE DevOps. Supports 50+ database platforms including PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server, Oracle, Aurora, and cloud-managed variants. In use since 2010. Differentiates from Liquibase and similar tools by using plain SQL only, no proprietary XML formats or lock-in, and convention-based discovery of migration files.

Core features:

• Plain SQL migrations, no proprietary formats or lock-in
• 50+ database platforms including Aurora, Azure SQL, Google Cloud SQL, MongoDB
• Gradle, Maven, Java API, and CLI integration for CI/CD pipelines
• Convention over configuration: auto-discovery of SQL and Java migrations via filesystem or classpath
• Safe for cluster environments: multiple machines can migrate in parallel
• Optional migrations in Java, Python, or shell scripts for advanced data transformations
• Auto-migration on application startup via API

Teams version database schema changes alongside application code and run migrations automatically in CI/CD pipelines. Spring Boot and Quarkus developers rely on it for zero-config migration on app startup. Typical workflows include greenfield schema setup, incremental changes across dev-staging-production, and cloud deployments to RDS, Azure SQL, or Google Cloud SQL.