MariaDB 10.6 LTS reaches end of life on July 6, 2026 — less than seven weeks away. If you're running 10.6 in production, that's your most immediate action item. MariaDB 10.4 and 10.5 are already past EOL. And the shift from the 10.x to 11.x series has caught many teams off guard — the LTS release cadence changed, and the upgrade path is not always obvious.
LTS vs Rolling Releases — What It Means for EOL
MariaDB maintains two types of releases:
LTS releases (10.4, 10.5, 10.6, 10.11, 11.4, 11.8) receive 5 years of support. These are the versions you should be running in production. The .3 release designation within each major version series is the LTS version going forward.
Rolling releases (10.7, 10.8, 10.9, 10.10, 11.0, 11.1, 11.2, 11.3, 11.5, 11.6, 11.7, 12.0, 12.1, 12.2) receive only 1–2 years of support. They are feature preview releases for teams that want upcoming functionality.
Common mistake: running a rolling release thinking it's more "current." MariaDB 11.6 reached EOL before MariaDB 10.11 LTS. MariaDB 12.2 reached EOL on May 13, 2026 while 10.11 LTS is still supported until 2028. Version number alone does not indicate support status. Always check whether your specific version is LTS or rolling.
Complete MariaDB EOL Schedule
| Version | Type | Released | End of Life | Status | EOL Risk Score™ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MariaDB 10.4 | LTS | Jun 2019 | Jun 18, 2024 | EOL | 91 Critical |
| MariaDB 10.5 | LTS | Jun 2020 | Jun 24, 2025 | EOL | 84 Critical |
| MariaDB 10.6 | LTS | Jul 2021 | Jul 6, 2026 | ⚠️ EOL in 7 weeks | 58 High |
| MariaDB 10.11 | LTS | Feb 2023 | Feb 16, 2028 | ✅ Supported | 22 Low |
| MariaDB 11.4 | LTS | May 2024 | May 29, 2029 | ✅ Supported | 16 Low |
| MariaDB 11.8 | LTS | Feb 2025 | Jun 4, 2028 | ✅ Latest LTS | 10 Low |
MariaDB 10.6 LTS — EOL July 6, 2026
EOL Risk Score™: 58 High
MariaDB 10.6 was released in July 2021 as the successor to 10.5, bringing window functions improvements, infinite precision decimals, atomic DDL, and performance improvements. It became the go-to LTS version for many organizations upgrading from 10.4 and 10.5.
Its 5-year LTS window closes July 6, 2026. After that date, MariaDB Corporation will stop issuing security patches for community 10.6. Commercial extended support is available through MariaDB Enterprise for organizations that need more time.
The EOL Risk Score™ of 58 (High) reflects the imminent EOL date. Once July 6 passes, that score will climb rapidly as the days-past-EOL factor increases.
Target version: Upgrade to MariaDB 10.11 LTS (supported until February 2028) or MariaDB 11.4 LTS (supported until May 2029).
MariaDB 10.11 LTS — Supported Until February 2028
EOL Risk Score™: 22 Low
MariaDB 10.11 is the last LTS in the 10.x series. If you're upgrading from 10.6 and want a conservative step before moving to 11.x, 10.11 is the right target. Support runs until February 2028.
Good for: Teams upgrading from 10.6 who want to stay in the familiar 10.x feature set before planning a larger 11.x migration.
MariaDB 11.4 LTS — Supported Until May 2029
EOL Risk Score™: 16 Low
MariaDB 11.4 is the first LTS release in the 11.x series. It brings UUID data type, natural sort order, enhanced JSON support, and significant optimizer improvements. Support runs through May 2029 — the longest runway of any currently available LTS version.
Good for: Teams doing a planned migration who want maximum support runway and access to modern MariaDB features.
MariaDB 11.8 LTS — Current Recommended Version
EOL Risk Score™: 10 Low
MariaDB 11.8 is the latest LTS release, currently receiving the most active development and patch activity. Support runs through June 2028. It's the recommended target for greenfield deployments.
For teams upgrading from 10.6, a direct jump to 11.8 is possible but requires the most testing. The 11.x series introduced changes to replication, binlog format, and some SQL mode defaults.
MariaDB vs MySQL — EOL Implications
MariaDB started as a MySQL fork in 2009. The two databases have diverged significantly since then.
They are not interchangeable at EOL. A MySQL 8.0 EOL date does not apply to MariaDB 10.6, and vice versa. If your infrastructure documentation says "MySQL compatible" but you're running MariaDB, you need to track MariaDB EOL dates specifically.
Amazon RDS for MariaDB has its own EOL schedule. If you're running MariaDB on Amazon RDS, check the RDS for MariaDB support dates separately — they trail community EOL dates by months in some cases.
How to Upgrade Safely
01 — Confirm your current version and release type
Run SELECT VERSION(); on your database. Cross-reference the version number against the table above — confirm whether you're on an LTS or rolling release.
02 — Choose your target version
For most teams on 10.6: upgrade to 10.11 for a conservative step, or 11.4 for the best long-term position. For teams on 10.4 or 10.5: go directly to 11.4 or 11.8 — a two-step upgrade through 10.11 adds unnecessary complexity.
03 — Run mysql_upgrade and check for incompatibilities
MariaDB provides mariadb-upgrade (formerly mysql_upgrade) to update system tables and check for incompatibilities. Run this in your staging environment first.
04 — Test replication carefully
If you're running replication, upgrade replicas before the primary. Validate that binary log format and GTID settings are consistent across the topology after upgrade.
05 — Back up before every step
Take a full backup with mariabackup or mysqldump before upgrading. Test that the backup restores successfully.
06 — Consider commercial extended support if you need time
MariaDB Corporation offers Enterprise support with extended lifecycle for LTS versions. If your migration from 10.6 will run past July 6, evaluate whether enterprise support is worth the cost versus accelerating the upgrade timeline.
Check your full database stack for EOL exposure at endoflife.ai — free EOL checker, stack scanner, and EOL Risk Score™ for 455+ products. No signup required.
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