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Best Apache Kafka Alternatives in 2026

Updated

20 platforms from message broker software ranked against Apache Kafka on the same published basis.

  1. 1
    Lightstreamer Free plan AndroidapiiOSLinuxMac Free8.1
    Apache Kafka vs Lightstreamer
  2. 2
    HiveMQ MQTT Broker Free plan apiLinuxself-hostedWin $299/mo7.8
    Apache Kafka vs HiveMQ MQTT Broker
  3. 3
    CloudAMQP Free plan apiWeb $19/mo7.7
    Apache Kafka vs CloudAMQP
  4. 4
    Google Cloud Pub/Sub Free plan apiWeb $40/mo7.6
    Apache Kafka vs Google Cloud Pub/Sub
  5. 5
    Faye Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWebWin Free7.2
    Apache Kafka vs Faye
  6. 6
    RabbitMQ Free plan apiLinuxMacself-hostedWin Free7.2
    Apache Kafka vs RabbitMQ
  7. 7
    Amazon SNS Free plan apiWeb $0.06/mo7.1
    Apache Kafka vs Amazon SNS
  8. 8
    Eclipse Mosquitto Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWin Free7.1
    Apache Kafka vs Eclipse Mosquitto
  9. 9
    TIBCO FTL Free plan apiLinuxMacself-hostedWeb Free7.1
    Apache Kafka vs TIBCO FTL
  10. 10
    Upstash QStash Free plan apiWeb $1/mo7.1
    Apache Kafka vs Upstash QStash
  11. 11
    ZeroMQ Free plan LinuxMacself-hostedWin Free7.1
    Apache Kafka vs ZeroMQ
  12. 12
    Amazon SQS Free plan apiWeb Free7.0
    Apache Kafka vs Amazon SQS
  13. 13
    Apache ActiveMQ Free plan apiLinuxself-hostedWin Free7.0
    Apache Kafka vs Apache ActiveMQ
  14. 14
    EMQX Free plan Web $234/mo6.9
    Apache Kafka vs EMQX
  15. 15
    NATS Free plan apiLinuxself-hosted Free6.9
    Apache Kafka vs NATS
  16. 16
    Aedes Free plan apiself-hosted Free6.8
    Apache Kafka vs Aedes
  17. 17
    Apache Artemis Free plan apiLinuxMacself-hostedWin Free6.8
    Apache Kafka vs Apache Artemis
  18. 18
    Mochi MQTT Free plan apiLinuxself-hosted Free6.6
    Apache Kafka vs Mochi MQTT
  19. 19
    Red Hat Trusted Artifact Signer LinuxMacself-hostedWebWin 6.6
    Apache Kafka vs Red Hat Trusted Artifact Signer
  20. 20
    TIBCO BusinessWorks WebWinMacLinux 6.1
    Apache Kafka vs TIBCO BusinessWorks

Apache Kafka alternatives compared

#PlatformScoreFree planFromRuns on
1Lightstreamer8.1Free planFreeAndroid, API, iOS, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
2HiveMQ MQTT Broker7.8Free plan$299/moAPI, Linux, self-hosted, Windows
3CloudAMQP7.7Free plan$19/moAPI, Web
4Google Cloud Pub/Sub7.6Free plan$40/moAPI, Web
5Faye7.2Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
6RabbitMQ7.2Free planFreeAPI, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
7Amazon SNS7.1Free plan$0.06/moAPI, Web
8Eclipse Mosquitto7.1Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
9TIBCO FTL7.1Free planFreeAPI, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
10Upstash QStash7.1Free plan$1/moAPI, Web
11ZeroMQ7.1Free planFreeLinux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
12Amazon SQS7.0Free planFreeAPI, Web
13Apache ActiveMQ7.0Free planFreeAPI, Linux, self-hosted, Windows
14EMQX6.9Free plan$234/moWeb
15NATS6.9Free planFreeAPI, Linux, self-hosted
16Aedes6.8Free planFreeAPI, self-hosted
17Apache Artemis6.8Free planFreeAPI, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows
18Mochi MQTT6.6Free planFreeAPI, Linux, self-hosted
19Red Hat Trusted Artifact Signer6.6No—Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Web, Windows
20TIBCO BusinessWorks6.1No—Web, Windows, Mac, Linux
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Questions about Apache Kafka alternatives

What is the best alternative to Apache Kafka?

Lightstreamer, number 1 in message broker software with a score of 8.1 out of 10. The others here: HiveMQ MQTT Broker, CloudAMQP, Google Cloud Pub/Sub and 16 more.

What is the best free alternative to Apache Kafka?

Lightstreamer is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 18 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.

How are these alternatives ranked?

Ranked on how quickly a newcomer can get going: documentation depth, a free tier or trial, and the platforms it runs on.