Redpanda is a streaming data platform for developers. Kafka API compatible. 10x faster. No ZooKeeper. No JVM!
Kafka API compatible, without ZooKeeper or a JVM.
alternatives to
Apache Kafka
Apache Kafka - A distributed event streaming platform
Redpanda, AutoMQ, Apache RocketMQ and more. 8 alternatives to Apache Kafka, in C++, Java, Go, JavaScript, Rust. Compare fit, licence, stars and the latest signed release. Drop-in: Redpanda, AutoMQ.
Side by side
| Tool | Fit | Stars | Licence | Terms | Self-hosted | Language | Latest | Last push |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Redpanda | Drop-in | 13k | None detected | Source available | Yes | C++ | v26.2.2 | 2026-10-08 |
| AutoMQ | Drop-in | 11k | Apache-2.0 | Open source | Yes | Java | 1.7.5-rc3 | 2026-11-12 |
| Apache RocketMQ | Full replacement | 23k | Apache-2.0 | Open source | Yes | Java | rocketmq-all-5.5.1 | 2026-11-10 |
| Apache Pulsar | Full replacement | 15k | Apache-2.0 | Open source | Yes | Java | v5.0.1 | 2026-11-12 |
| NATS | Partial | 21k | Apache-2.0 | Open source | Yes | Go | v2.15.3 | 2026-11-11 |
| RabbitMQ | Partial | 14k | Other | Open source | Yes | JavaScript | v4.4.0 | 2026-11-11 |
| Apache Iggy | Partial | 5.3k | Apache-2.0 | Open source | Yes | Rust | server-0.10.0 | 2026-11-11 |
| Fluvio | Partial | 5.3k | Apache-2.0 | Open source | Yes | Rust | v0.18.1 | 2026-11-05 |
Every alternative
8 alternatives
Diskless Kafka® on S3. 10x Cost-Effective. No Cross-AZ Traffic Cost. Autoscale in seconds. Single-digit ms latency. Multi-AZ Availability.
A Kafka fork that keeps partitions in S3-compatible object storage, with the same protocol and tools.
- Language
- Java
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Stars
- 11k
- Latest
- 1.7.5-rc3
- Last push
- 2026-11-12
Apache RocketMQ is a cloud native messaging and streaming platform, making it simple to build event-driven applications.
Streaming and messaging with transactional and delayed messages, through its own protocol and clients.
- Language
- Java
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Stars
- 23k
- Latest
- rocketmq-all-5.5.1
- Last push
- 2026-11-10
Apache Pulsar - distributed pub-sub messaging system
Streaming and pub/sub with storage separated from the brokers, multi-tenant.
- Language
- Java
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Stars
- 15k
- Latest
- v5.0.1
- Last push
- 2026-11-12
High-Performance server for NATS.io, the cloud and edge native messaging system.
Durable streams with JetStream, without Kafka's protocol.
- Language
- Go
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Stars
- 21k
- Latest
- v2.15.3
- Last push
- 2026-11-11
Open source RabbitMQ: core server and tier 1 (built-in) plugins
A message broker first; streams add a replayable, Kafka-like log.
- Language
- JavaScript
- Licence
- Other
- Stars
- 14k
- Latest
- v4.4.0
- Last push
- 2026-11-11
Apache Iggy: Hyper-Efficient Message Streaming at Laser Speed
Persistent message streaming in Rust over TCP, QUIC and HTTP, with its own protocol and clients.
- Language
- Rust
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Stars
- 5.3k
- Latest
- server-0.10.0
- Last push
- 2026-11-11
🦀 event stream processing for developers to collect and transform data in motion to power responsive data intensive applications.
Streaming in Rust with WebAssembly transforms, with its own protocol and clients.
- Language
- Rust
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Stars
- 5.3k
- Latest
- v0.18.1
- Last push
- 2026-11-05
Head to head
- AutoMQ vs Fluvio
- AutoMQ vs Apache Iggy
- AutoMQ vs NATS
- AutoMQ vs Apache Pulsar
- AutoMQ vs RabbitMQ
- AutoMQ vs Redpanda
- AutoMQ vs Apache RocketMQ
- Fluvio vs Apache Iggy
- Fluvio vs NATS
- Fluvio vs Apache Pulsar
- Fluvio vs RabbitMQ
- Fluvio vs Redpanda
- Fluvio vs Apache RocketMQ
- Apache Iggy vs NATS
- Apache Iggy vs Apache Pulsar
- Apache Iggy vs RabbitMQ
- Apache Iggy vs Redpanda
- Apache Iggy vs Apache RocketMQ
- NATS vs Apache Pulsar
- NATS vs RabbitMQ
- NATS vs Redpanda
- NATS vs Apache RocketMQ
- Apache Pulsar vs RabbitMQ
- Apache Pulsar vs Redpanda
- Apache Pulsar vs Apache RocketMQ
- RabbitMQ vs Redpanda
- RabbitMQ vs Apache RocketMQ
- Redpanda vs Apache RocketMQ
About Apache Kafka
- Language
- Java
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Stars
- 34k
- Last push
- 2026-11-12