MySQL 5.6 End of Life
Support dates, vulnerabilities published since end of life, and upgrade guidance — rebuilt from live data.
MySQL 5.6 reached end of life on 28 Feb 2021. It no longer receives security fixes.
Support timeline
Official dates from the MySQL release process.
| Milestone | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Initial release | 1 Feb 2013 | — |
| End of life | 28 Feb 2021 | 5.4 years ago |
| Active support ended | 28 Feb 2018 | security fixes only after this |
| Latest release | 5.6.51 · 5 Jan 2021 | final |
The cost of staying: CVEs since end of life
344 MySQL vulnerabilities have been published since 28 Feb 2021. All were fixed in supported branches — 5.6 received none of them. Source: NVD.
MySQL CVEs published since 5.6's EOL, by year
0 of the 344 are rated critical · data refreshed 2026-08-09
Published 15 Oct 2024 · rated high — fixed in supported branches only, never in 5.6. Details
Published 22 Apr 2021 · rated high — fixed in supported branches only, never in 5.6. Details
Published 18 Oct 2022 · rated high — fixed in supported branches only, never in 5.6. Details
Where to go from 5.6
Recommended target: MySQL 9.7 (supported until 21 Apr 2034).
The newest actively supported branch is MySQL 9.7 (latest release 9.7.2). Review dev.mysql.com before upgrading.
Frequently asked questions
Is MySQL 5.6 still safe to use?
No. MySQL 5.6 stopped receiving security fixes on 28 Feb 2021. Since then, 344 MySQL vulnerabilities have been published and fixed in supported branches — MySQL 5.6 received none of those fixes.
Can I still download MySQL 5.6?
Yes — the final release (5.6.51) generally remains available from vendor archives and OS package mirrors, but installing it means running software with known, unpatched vulnerabilities.
What should I upgrade MySQL 5.6 to?
Upgrade to MySQL 9.7, the newest actively supported branch (supported until 21 Apr 2034).