Network Deployment Cost Comparison
Network Deployment Cost Comparison
SubQuery vs The Graph Network Deployment: Technical & Cost Comparison
This document provides a technical comparison between SubQuery and the Graph Network for decentralized data indexing and querying. It is intended to help developers evaluate deployment process, technical differences and costs.
Switching from the Graph to SubQuery Network should be quick — migration takes around an hour. In return, developers gain faster performance, more flexibility, and greater control over your data. SubQuery already supports close to 300 networks, so you can scale easily and save on costs, all without a steep learning curve.
The unique Boost model of SubQuery Network ensures token safety and indexing costs optimisation. Moreover, the ongoing Consumer Rewards Programme presents a great opportunity to decrease indexing costs further and even earn some SQT.
Migration & Features
- Migration Time: Migrating from Subgraph to SubQuery takes around an hour on avarage
- Developer Experience: SubQuery preserves a similar development workflow to the Graph, ensuring minimal learning curve for developers familiar with Subgraph
- API Compatibility: SubQuery supports the same query API as the Graph, allowing developers to host their Subgraph on SubQuery without migration
- Network support: SubQuery supports 300+ networks, providing broad compatibility and flexibility for multi-chain projects
| Feature | The Graph | SubQuery |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Filtering | Yes | Yes |
| Sorting | Yes | Yes |
| Aggregation | No | Yes |
| Grouped Aggregation | No | Yes |
SubQuery SDK provides a superior indexing experience
Learn more about SDK features and Graph Migration here: Graph Migration
Tip
Want Support During Migration?
Reach out to our team at professionalservices@subquery.network and get our professional service to help migrate your project.
Deployment Costs
Let’s break down the indexing costs based on the data from the comparison table above.
In case of idexing the Uniswap project on the Graph, developers need to curate GRT tokens worth nearly $4,900 USD. On SubQuery, boosting a similar project only requires a $35 USD stake.
Query fees are another area where SubQuery comes out ahead. After the first 100,000 free requests, the Graph charges $2 USD for every 100,000 queries. On SubQuery, the real cost is just $0.32 USD per 100,000 requests, thanks to boost rewards model. That is about five times less, which really adds up at scale.
Costs checked on 28/05/2025
Tokenomics & Incentives
- Graph Curation Modelh: Graph Network uses a DeFi pool-like curation model. Projects require more curation, more rewards, and more operators interested in running a project to get it indexed. There is a risk of losing tokens due to the pool design.
- SubQuery Boost: SubQuery Network uses a unique Boost mechanism, which ensures that tokens can not be lost.
- SubQuery Consumer Rewards Programme: SubQuery Network is in the midsts of running the Consumer Rewards Programme - distributing 60 million SQT to top data consumers and rewarding them for their SQT spending (up to 900% APY!). Learn more about this programme here.