The following features are compared between a btree database and a hashing database.
| Feature | Btree | Hash |
|---|---|---|
| Sorted data | Yes | No |
| Direct access | Yes | Yes |
| Partial key | Yes | No |
| Sequential access | Yes | No |
| Delete | Yes | Yes |
| Space recovery | Yes | Yes |
| Requires reorganization | Infrequently | Infrequently |
| Adapted to rapid growth | Yes | No |
| Adapted to high turnover | Yes | Yes |
| Very large databases | More levels, longer blocks | Yes |
| Initial Space | Root record | Entire database |
| Space overhead | 33 percent | Space/time tradeoff |
| Good for temporary database | Yes | Less suited |
| Easy to configure | Yes | Slightly harder |
| Signed numeric keys | Sort problem | No problem |
| Binary data | Yes | Yes |
| Good for Unicode | Yes | Yes |
| Accepts encrypted data | Yes | Yes |