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ESPHome vs Eclipse Mosquitto

ESPHome logo

ESPHome

Smart Home

Custom firmware for ESP8266/ESP32 smart home devices

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Eclipse Mosquitto logo

Eclipse Mosquitto

Networking

Small, EPL-licensed MQTT broker that runs on hardware other brokers cannot

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: ESPHome eSPHome runs only on supported microcontrollers; the project recommends ESP32, ESP32-S3, ESP32-C3 and ESP32-C6 and advises against ESP8266 for new projects; Eclipse Mosquitto there is no clustering: Mosquitto is a single process, so high availability means building your own failover and accepting session loss on switchover.
  • They diverge on capability: ESPHome covers YAML Configuration, Eclipse Mosquitto covers MQTT 5.0 support.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ESPHome and Eclipse Mosquitto actually diverge.

Attributes where ESPHome and Eclipse Mosquitto differ
AttributeESPHomeEclipse Mosquitto
Pricing modelopen-sourceOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsESP8266, ESP32, Docker, Raspberry PiLinux, Windows, macOS, Docker
CategorySmart HomeNetworking
Founded2018Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in ESPHome

  • YAML Configuration
  • OTA Updates
  • Home Assistant Native
  • Custom Components
  • Home Assistant
  • MQTT
  • API
  • Native integration

Only in Eclipse Mosquitto

  • MQTT 5.0 support
  • Very small footprint
  • Bridging
  • WebSockets listener
  • Command line clients
  • Dynamic security plugin

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

ESPHome

  • Building custom smart home sensors and switches on ESP32 hardwarenot Eclipse Mosquitto
  • Replacing vendor cloud firmware on ESP based devices with locally controlled firmwarenot Eclipse Mosquitto
  • Integrating DIY devices into Home Assistant over a native API or MQTTnot Eclipse Mosquitto

Eclipse Mosquitto

  • A home or building automation stack where the broker must run on the same small computer as everything elsenot ESPHome
  • An industrial gateway that buffers local telemetry and bridges selected topics to a cloud brokernot ESPHome
  • Local development and testing of MQTT clients without provisioning a cloud IoT servicenot ESPHome
  • An air-gapped deployment where a broker with no licence server and no phone-home behaviour is a requirementnot ESPHome

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

ESPHome

  • ESPHome runs only on supported microcontrollers; the project recommends ESP32, ESP32-S3, ESP32-C3 and ESP32-C6 and advises against ESP8266 for new projects
  • Support for ESP32-H2, RP2040 and other newer chips is documented as less mature
  • Large displays and some sensors do not work well on ESP8266 because of its limited RAM, which is roughly a fifth of an ESP32

Eclipse Mosquitto

  • There is no clustering: Mosquitto is a single process, so high availability means building your own failover and accepting session loss on switchover.
  • Persistence is a local file rather than a replicated store, so a disk failure or an unclean shutdown can lose retained messages and queued QoS traffic.
  • Practical capacity is a few thousand concurrent clients on typical hardware, so a growing device fleet eventually forces a migration to a clustered broker.
  • The Eclipse Public Licence is weak copyleft rather than permissive, which some legal teams treat as a blocker when embedding the broker in a shipped commercial product.
  • There is no commercial support to buy from the project, so production incidents rely on community mailing lists or on paying a third party who happens to know the codebase.

Pricing, plan by plan

ESPHome

Free
  • CommunityFree
    • Full firmware
    • Home Assistant integration
    • Custom sensors

Eclipse Mosquitto

Free
  • Eclipse MosquittoFree
    • Eclipse Public License 2.0 with Eclipse Distribution Licence
    • MQTT 5.0, 3.1.1 and 3.1
    • No client or message limits beyond your hardware

Which should you pick?

Choose ESPHome if

  • You need yaml configuration.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on ESP8266, ESP32, Docker, Raspberry Pi.
  • You also want ota updates.
ESPHome review

Choose Eclipse Mosquitto if

  • You need mqtt 5.0 support.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, macOS, Docker.
  • You also want very small footprint.
Eclipse Mosquitto review

Questions people ask

Is ESPHome or Eclipse Mosquitto better?
Neither clearly leads. ESPHome starts at Free and Eclipse Mosquitto at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ESPHome or Eclipse Mosquitto?
ESPHome starts at Free and Eclipse Mosquitto at Free.
Does ESPHome or Eclipse Mosquitto run on more platforms?
ESPHome runs on ESP8266, ESP32, Docker, Raspberry Pi. Eclipse Mosquitto runs on Linux, Windows, macOS, Docker.
Can I use ESPHome for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is ESPHome best used for?
ESPHome is most often used for building custom smart home sensors and switches on esp32 hardware, replacing vendor cloud firmware on esp based devices with locally controlled firmware, integrating diy devices into home assistant over a native api or mqtt. Of those, building custom smart home sensors and switches on esp32 hardware and replacing vendor cloud firmware on esp based devices with locally controlled firmware are not what Eclipse Mosquitto is typically brought in for.
What can ESPHome do that Eclipse Mosquitto cannot?
ESPHome covers YAML Configuration, OTA Updates, Home Assistant Native, Custom Components. Eclipse Mosquitto covers MQTT 5.0 support, Very small footprint, Bridging, WebSockets listener.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ESPHome: Is ESPHome free to use?

Yes. ESPHome is free and open-source software. The Desktop App, Device Builder, components, and recipe tools are all available at no cost.

Source
Eclipse Mosquitto: Can Mosquitto be clustered?

No. It is a single process. High availability requires an external failover arrangement you build yourself.

ESPHome: What is the cost to run ESPHome?

ESPHome software itself is completely free. Hardware devices and components used with ESPHome vary in cost depending on which microcontrollers and IoT devices you choose.

Source
Eclipse Mosquitto: What licence is it?

Eclipse Public License 2.0 alongside the Eclipse Distribution License, a weak copyleft rather than a permissive licence.

ESPHome: Does ESPHome require a subscription or license fee?

No. ESPHome is open-source software with no subscription fees, license costs, or commercial restrictions associated with its use.

Source
Eclipse Mosquitto: How many clients can it handle?

A few thousand concurrent connections on ordinary hardware; beyond that, use a clustered broker.

Eclipse Mosquitto: Does it support MQTT 5?

Yes, along with 3.1.1 and 3.1.

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