SQLite Data Access Components (LiteDAC): SQLite for Delphi With No sqlite3.dll to Ship
SQLite Data Access Components (LiteDAC) is a Devart component library that connects Delphi, C++Builder and Lazarus applications to SQLite, either through the SQLite library or with SQLite compiled right into your executable. The default order costs $349.95 at checkout (Professional edition, one developer, one year of updates), and it targets Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android.
If you've ever had a customer's machine pick up the wrong sqlite3.dll, or had to explain to a user why your app won't start without a file next to it, LiteDAC's main selling point is easy to grasp: in Direct mode there's no SQLite file to deploy at all, and the database can be encrypted with a key you set on the connection.
Quick facts
- Version: 8.1.0, released September 29, 2026
- Developer: Devart
- IDEs: Delphi and C++Builder 6 to 13 Florence, every edition including Community; Lazarus 4.8 with Free Pascal 3.2.2 (Professional with Source Code only)
- Target platforms: Windows 32-bit, 64-bit and ARM64EC, macOS 64-bit and Apple Silicon, Linux 64-bit (32-bit too under Lazarus), iOS 64-bit, Android 32-bit and 64-bit
- GUI frameworks: VCL, FireMonkey (FMX) and Lazarus LCL
- Price: Standard $199.95, Professional $349.95, Professional with Source Code $549.95, each with one year of updates and support
- Trial: 60 days, for evaluation only; the download needs a free Devart account
- Guarantee: 60-day money-back guarantee
- License: perpetual and royalty-free per developer, team or site
- What we checked: on November 13, 2026, the order page priced the default LiteDAC order (Professional, single developer, 1 year of updates) at $349.95, with the yearly renewal listed at $179.95 before tax; the download page listed version 8.1.0 with a 40.81 MB installer for RAD Studio 13 Florence. We didn't build an application with it.
Before you buy: Standard is not a cheaper Professional
The trial behaves like the Professional edition, so it's easy to build something in the trial and then buy Standard to save $150. Don't, unless you've checked the matrix. LiteDAC Standard has no Direct mode (you ship sqlite3.dll yourself), no database encryption, no macOS, Linux or Android targets, and none of the SQLite-specific components (TLiteLoader, TLiteBackup, TLiteDump, user functions and collations). Standard does cover Windows and iOS. One buyer on Devart's forum learned this the hard way after his trial project, which used Direct mode, stopped loading once he switched to a Standard license.
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Overview
LiteDAC is one of Devart's single-database "DAC" libraries, the same family as MyDAC, PgDAC and ODAC. You drop a TLiteConnection on a form, point it at a database file, and use TLiteQuery, TLiteTable and TLiteSQL the way you would any TDataSet. Grids, reports and data-aware controls work with them unchanged.
It connects two ways. The normal way loads the SQLite client library at run time. The other, Direct mode, links SQLite statically into your program, which means the app always runs against the exact SQLite build you tested with, and there's nothing extra to install. Encryption sits on top of Direct mode.
Devart keeps it current. Version 8.0 in March 2026 added RAD Studio 13 Florence, the Arm64EC target and vector fields through the sqlite-vec and sqlite-vector extensions; 8.1.0 in September 2026 added Florence Release 2 and Lazarus 4.8. Releases have come every few months for years.
Features
SQLite built into the executable
LiteDAC's Direct mode compiles SQLite into your application, so you deploy one executable and no sqlite3.dll or libsqlite. It's available in the Professional editions for Windows 32- and 64-bit, macOS, iOS and Android. Desktop installs stop depending on whatever SQLite version a user happens to have, and the mobile build behaves like the desktop one.
Database encryption without a paid SQLite build
LiteDAC Professional encrypts the whole database file in Direct mode with AES, Blowfish, TripleDES, Cast128 or RC4. You set the algorithm and key on the connection, and EncryptDatabase encrypts a database that's already open. You don't need to buy a separate SQLite build with encryption. SQLCipher isn't supported in Direct mode, so an existing SQLCipher database can't be opened that way. Devart's ODBC Driver for SQLite uses the same encryption, so other tools can read the file with the key.
One codebase for desktop and mobile
LiteDAC supports VCL, FireMonkey and Lazarus LCL, and one project can target Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android. It works in every Delphi and C++Builder edition back to version 6, including the free Community Edition, which is handy if you maintain an old Delphi 7 application and a new FireMonkey app side by side.
SQLite-specific components
LiteDAC Professional goes beyond plain queries with components for SQLite's own features:
- TLiteLoader for fast bulk inserts
- TLiteBackup, which wraps the SQLite Online Backup API
- TLiteDump to save a database as an SQL script and restore it
- TLiteUserFunction and TLiteUserCollation to write SQL functions and collations in Delphi
- TLiteMetaData for schema information, plus support for FTS3/FTS4, R*Tree, extensions, Shared-Cache mode and vector fields
Data handling that saves code
LiteDAC datasets generate their own INSERT, UPDATE and DELETE statements, refresh records automatically, and support cached updates, local sorting and filtering, and local master/detail links. TVirtualTable keeps data in memory, TCRBatchMove copies records between any two TDataSets, and datasets save to XML or JSON. The free dbMonitor tool traces every SQL statement, commit and rollback your app sends.
Benefits
- Fewer support calls. With SQLite compiled in, "the app can't find sqlite3.dll" stops being a support ticket.
- Protected local data. Customer records in an on-device database can be encrypted without a separate SQLite license.
- Familiar code. If you've used BDE, ADO or another Devart DAC, the components behave the way you expect, so there's little to relearn.
- Long life for old projects. Support from Delphi 6 to 13 lets you move an old BDE-era application to SQLite before you move it to a new IDE.
Real-World Uses
- Retiring the BDE. A Delphi desktop app still on Paradox tables moves its data to an SQLite file and its forms to TLiteTable and TLiteQuery, and the BDE install goes away.
- A field app with offline data. A FireMonkey app for iOS and Android stores job sheets in an encrypted SQLite file on the phone, built from the same code as the Windows office version.
- A local cache for a server app. A client keeps a local SQLite copy of reference data, loaded in bulk with TLiteLoader and backed up with TLiteBackup.
- Semantic search on the device. Vector fields through the sqlite-vec extension let an app store embeddings next to its ordinary tables.
Who It's For, and Who Should Skip It
LiteDAC fits Delphi and C++Builder developers whose applications keep their data in SQLite and who want Direct mode, encryption or one library across desktop and mobile. It also suits teams that already own another Devart DAC, since the components share an engine and an API.
Skip it if:
- Your app talks to several databases. UniDAC covers SQLite plus MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQL Server and others under one API, and saves you buying several DACs.
- You only need basic SQLite access on Windows. FireDAC, which comes with RAD Studio, already connects to SQLite; LiteDAC earns its price through Direct mode, encryption and its extra components.
- You work in Lazarus only. Lazarus and Free Pascal support comes only with Professional with Source Code ($549.95), and free libraries such as ZeosLib cost nothing.
- You need SQLCipher compatibility. Direct mode doesn't open SQLCipher databases.
Usage Guide
- Sign in to (or create) a free Devart account, open the LiteDAC download page and pick the installer for your IDE version (RAD Studio 13 Florence needs Release 2). Lazarus users take the separate Lazarus package.
- Close the IDE and run the installer. If you already have other Devart DACs installed, update them to the same release first: they share base packages, and mixed versions stop the setup or the IDE from loading.
- Open the IDE. The LiteDAC components appear on the tool palette. Drop a TLiteConnection on a form or data module.
- Set Database to your .db file (or a new name with ForceCreateDatabase), and set Direct to True to use the built-in SQLite. For encryption, choose the EncryptionAlgorithm and set EncryptionKey.
- Add a TLiteQuery, write your SELECT, link a TLiteDataSource and a grid, and set Active to True to see data at design time.
- For mobile targets, deploy the database file with the app, or create it on first run.
Where it falls short
- Version lock-in across Devart products. Every DAC you install must share the same engine version, so updating LiteDAC can mean updating MyDAC or SDAC at the same time, which needs an active subscription on each.
- TLiteLoader needs an existing table. It loads into a table that's already there and won't create a database from a dataset on its own. A 2017 forum report also found it far slower than plain inserts for a new database; Devart reproduced and fixed that bug.
- Locking on mobile. A forum user porting a multi-form project to iOS and Android hit "database locked" errors when applying cached updates to several datasets; the thread ends with Devart asking for a sample project.
- Trial terms. The 60-day trial is for evaluation only, and applications built with it can't be used commercially.
What Users Say
LiteDAC is a niche developer library, and independent reviews are rare: the software directories that list it (Software Advice, GetApp, SourceForge) show no user ratings. What exists is one detailed customer review and years of threads on Devart's support forum.
A long-time customer on Serchen (5 out of 5, 1 review)
David, reviewing Devart on Serchen on March 14, 2019, described replacing the BDE with LiteDAC:
"Our company has been using the Devart LiteDac driver for several years and have found it to be the easiest, most cost-efficient, solution for accessing data."
"A major factor in our decision to use Devart LiteDac was the ability to encrypt the database which was a snap. We simply selected the encryption method from a drop down list, typed in our encryption key, and voila, instant security of our data."
"Once we created our database program, we were then able to deploy it to over a thousand customers without one connection issue."
He also noted that Devart's ODBC Driver for SQLite opened the same encrypted database, and that "Devart has been diligent in updating their drivers continually."
Problems raised on Devart's forum
A buyer who moved from the trial to a Standard license in 2014 wrote: "Everything worked in the trial version, when I used direct mode. I purchased a standard version ( did not notice that direct mode is not included) and now I have to use sqlite3.dll."
A user testing TLiteLoader in 2017 reported: "For a data set of ~3000 rows the version using TLiteLoader was hundreds of times slower e.g. 1s vs 400s." Devart's reply: "We have reproduced the problem and fixed the bug. The fix will be included in the next LiteDAC build."
In 2019, a developer moving a FireMonkey project to iOS and Android wrote that applying cached updates gave him "the Database locked error" even after switching to WAL journal mode.
The themes are consistent: people like how quickly LiteDAC connects, the built-in encryption and the end of DLL deployment, and Devart staff answer forum threads, often with a fix in the next build. The complaints are about edition confusion and edge cases on mobile. With so few public reviews, the 60-day trial is the real test.
Comparisons
LiteDAC vs UniDAC
LiteDAC and Devart's UniDAC share the same engine, and UniDAC Professional also connects to SQLite directly. UniDAC costs more ($599.95 for Professional against LiteDAC's $349.95) but adds MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQL Server, InterBase and more behind one set of components. Pick LiteDAC when SQLite is the only database; pick UniDAC when the same app also talks to a server.
LiteDAC vs FireDAC and free libraries
FireDAC comes with RAD Studio and handles SQLite, so for many projects the question is what LiteDAC adds: Direct mode in one executable, file encryption with several algorithms, the SQLite-specific components, support back to Delphi 6, and a dedicated support team. ZeosLib is free and open source and works in Lazarus, but you deploy SQLite yourself and get community support only.
Editions and Pricing
All three editions use the one Buy Now button below: you choose the edition, the license type (Single, Team or Site) and 1, 2 or 3 years of updates on the order page. Prices are for a single developer with one year of updates.
| Edition |
Price |
Platforms |
What it adds |
| Standard |
$199.95 |
Windows, iOS |
Core components through the SQLite client library, script execution, SQL monitoring |
| Professional (default order) |
$349.95 |
Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android |
Direct mode, encryption, TLiteLoader, backup, dump, user functions, DataSet Manager |
| Professional with Source Code |
$549.95 |
Same, plus Lazarus and Free Pascal |
Source code of the component classes (Direct mode ships precompiled) |
A Team or Site license, two or three years of updates, and Priority Support raise the price on the order page. The license stays valid after the year ends; renewing keeps the updates and support coming.
FAQs
Can I keep using LiteDAC after my year of updates ends?
Yes. LiteDAC licenses are perpetual: you keep using the last version released during your subscription. Renewing (listed at $179.95 a year before tax for Professional on November 13, 2026) gets you new versions, fixes, nightly builds and support.
Do my customers need a LiteDAC license to run my app?
No. LiteDAC is royalty-free: you can distribute compiled applications built with it. You can't redistribute the components or their source code.
Does LiteDAC work with Delphi Community Edition?
Yes. LiteDAC supports every Delphi and C++Builder edition, including Community and Starter, from version 6 to 13 Florence.
Can I install LiteDAC next to MyDAC, SDAC or UniDAC?
Yes, LiteDAC can sit in the same IDE as other Devart DACs, but all of them must be the same release, because they share base packages. Mixing versions gives "incompatible DAC packages" during setup or "compiled with a different version" errors when you build.
Can I use the LiteDAC trial to build a production application?
No. LiteDAC's trial runs for 60 days and its license allows evaluation only: applications built with it can't be deployed or used commercially.
Can I get a refund if LiteDAC doesn't work for my project?
Yes. Devart offers a 60-day money-back guarantee on LiteDAC if you're not satisfied.
Should I use LiteDAC or a dbExpress driver for SQLite?
Devart recommends LiteDAC unless you need to switch database servers quickly. LiteDAC has richer design-time editors, passes Unicode fields that dbExpress can't, and skips dbExpress's extra data conversion, which can make it faster.
System Requirements
- IDE: RAD Studio, Delphi or C++Builder 6 through 13 Florence (13 needs Release 2), or Lazarus 4.8 with Free Pascal 3.2.2 for the source-code edition
- Targets: Windows 32-bit, 64-bit and ARM64EC; macOS 64-bit and Apple Silicon (RAD Studio 10.3 and later); Linux 64-bit (RAD Studio 10.2 and later); iOS 64-bit and iOS Simulator ARM64; Android 32-bit and 64-bit
- Database: SQLite; no client library needed in Direct mode
- Installer: about 40 MB for RAD Studio 13 Florence
Conclusion
LiteDAC Professional is worth $349.95 if SQLite is your app's database and you want it inside the executable, encrypted, and running from one codebase on desktop and mobile. That combination is the one reason to buy it, and FireDAC doesn't match it out of the box. The main reason not to: if your app also talks to a server database, UniDAC covers SQLite and everything else for not much more, and if you only need plain SQLite on Windows, FireDAC is already in your IDE. Whatever you do, skip Standard unless you're sure you don't need Direct mode or encryption, and use the 60-day trial to confirm.
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