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Automation Integration · head to head

HighByte Intelligence Hub vs VerneMQ

HighByte Intelligence Hub logo

HighByte Intelligence Hub

Automation Integration

Industrial DataOps middleware that models and contextualises OT data before it reaches IT systems

From
$18500/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
VerneMQ logo

VerneMQ

Databases

Erlang MQTT broker whose source is Apache 2.0 but whose official binaries need a paid subscription

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only VerneMQ has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: HighByte Intelligence Hub it is subscription only with no perpetual licence, so the data pipelines are a permanent operating cost and stop working if the subscription lapses.; VerneMQ the official binaries and Docker images are not Apache 2.0 but sit under a EULA requiring a yearly commercial subscription, a distinction easy to miss and awkward to discover during a licence audit.
  • They diverge on capability: HighByte Intelligence Hub covers Data modelling, VerneMQ covers Erlang/OTP clustering.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which HighByte Intelligence Hub and VerneMQ actually diverge.

Attributes where HighByte Intelligence Hub and VerneMQ differ
AttributeHighByte Intelligence HubVerneMQ
Starting price$18500/yearFree
Pricing modelPer site per yearquote
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, Linux, DockerLinux, Docker, macOS, Kubernetes
CategoryAutomation IntegrationDatabases

Identical on both: 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 HighByte Intelligence Hub

  • Data modelling
  • Unified namespace
  • Pipelines
  • Connectors
  • High availability
  • Store and forward
  • Central configuration
  • REST data server

Only in VerneMQ

  • Erlang/OTP clustering
  • MQTT 5.0 support
  • Plugin system
  • Backpressure handling
  • Bridge support
  • Metrics export
  • MQTT over WebSockets
  • Pluggable auth backends

What people use each for

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

HighByte Intelligence Hub

  • A manufacturer replacing hand-written Python scripts that push historian tags to a cloud warehouse with a modelled, supportable pipelinenot VerneMQ
  • A company building a unified namespace where OT payloads must carry asset context before they reach the brokernot VerneMQ
  • A data centre operator aggregating building and power telemetry into one cloud model across a campusnot VerneMQ
  • A team that needs PI System data joined with MES and ERP context without giving IT direct access to the control networknot VerneMQ

VerneMQ

  • An industrial operator that wants an MQTT broker with predictable memory behaviour and no data integration features it will not usenot HighByte Intelligence Hub
  • A team building from source to stay strictly under Apache 2.0 terms with no vendor licence entanglementnot HighByte Intelligence Hub
  • A deployment needing custom authentication logic implemented as a plugin in Lua or over a webhooknot HighByte Intelligence Hub
  • An organisation that wants a broker maintained by a small European company rather than by a vendor that keeps changing licencesnot HighByte Intelligence Hub

Where each one falls short

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

HighByte Intelligence Hub

  • It is subscription only with no perpetual licence, so the data pipelines are a permanent operating cost and stop working if the subscription lapses.
  • Pricing is per site with a 18,500 USD floor, so a small plant or a proof of concept pays enterprise money for a handful of tags; there is no tag-scaled or starter tier.
  • The Hub does not store data. It has no historian, so a destination outage longer than the store-and-forward buffer means lost data and you still need a historian or warehouse underneath.
  • Definitions of a site and a plant are negotiated rather than published, which creates room for disagreement at renewal when a customer adds a building or a second line.
  • The product depends on a small vendor with a narrow focus; if your integration needs drift towards general ETL or streaming, you end up running HighByte alongside a separate data stack rather than instead of one.

VerneMQ

  • The official binaries and Docker images are not Apache 2.0 but sit under a EULA requiring a yearly commercial subscription, a distinction easy to miss and awkward to discover during a licence audit.
  • Octavo Labs is a very small company, so support depth, response times and the bus factor on the codebase are materially thinner than at HiveMQ or EMQ.
  • There is no data integration or rule engine layer, so routing messages into a database means writing and operating your own consumer service.
  • Operating an Erlang cluster requires runtime knowledge that most teams do not have and will use for nothing else in their stack.
  • There is no vendor-managed cloud offering, so every deployment is self-operated with the infrastructure and on-call cost that implies.

Pricing, plan by plan

HighByte Intelligence Hub

$18500/year
  • Professional$18500/year
    • Single plant or agreed coverage area
    • Unlimited data models and pipelines
    • High availability, embedded MQTT broker, PI System integration
  • Factory Starter Pack$50000/year
    • Three factories
    • Central configuration across instances
    • All premium features included
  • Data Center Starter Pack$65000/year
    • Single aggregation point in customer cloud
    • All premium features included
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Unlimited installations under one annual contract
    • Negotiated multi-year and multi-site discounts
    • Quoted pricing

VerneMQ

Free
  • Source buildFree
    • Apache 2.0 licensed source from GitHub
    • Full clustering and plugin capability
    • You compile and package it yourself
  • Binary packages and Docker images$undefined/year
    • Covered by the VerneMQ EULA, not Apache 2.0
    • Yearly usage subscription expected for commercial use
    • Official builds and Docker images
  • Commercial support$undefined/year
    • Evaluation, customisation and operations assistance
    • Custom development
    • Long-term maintenance agreements

Which should you pick?

Choose HighByte Intelligence Hub if

  • You need data modelling.
  • You work on Windows, Linux, Docker.
  • You also want unified namespace.
HighByte Intelligence Hub review

Choose VerneMQ if

  • You need erlang/otp clustering.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, macOS, Kubernetes.
  • You also want mqtt 5.0 support.
VerneMQ review

Questions people ask

Is HighByte Intelligence Hub or VerneMQ better?
Neither clearly leads. HighByte Intelligence Hub starts at $18500/year and VerneMQ at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, HighByte Intelligence Hub or VerneMQ?
VerneMQ has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $18500/year for HighByte Intelligence Hub and Free for VerneMQ.
Does HighByte Intelligence Hub or VerneMQ run on more platforms?
HighByte Intelligence Hub runs on Windows, Linux, Docker. VerneMQ runs on Linux, Docker, macOS, Kubernetes.
Can I use VerneMQ for free?
Yes. VerneMQ has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. HighByte Intelligence Hub starts at $18500/year.
What is HighByte Intelligence Hub best used for?
HighByte Intelligence Hub is most often used for a manufacturer replacing hand-written python scripts that push historian tags to a cloud warehouse with a modelled, supportable pipeline, a company building a unified namespace where ot payloads must carry asset context before they reach the broker, a data centre operator aggregating building and power telemetry into one cloud model across a campus, a team that needs pi system data joined with mes and erp context without giving it direct access to the control network. Of those, a manufacturer replacing hand-written python scripts that push historian tags to a cloud warehouse with a modelled, supportable pipeline and a company building a unified namespace where ot payloads must carry asset context before they reach the broker are not what VerneMQ is typically brought in for.
What can HighByte Intelligence Hub do that VerneMQ cannot?
HighByte Intelligence Hub covers Data modelling, Unified namespace, Pipelines, Connectors. VerneMQ covers Erlang/OTP clustering, MQTT 5.0 support, Plugin system, Backpressure handling.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

HighByte Intelligence Hub: What does a HighByte licence actually cost?

18,500 USD per year for Professional covering one plant, 50,000 USD for three factories, 65,000 USD for a cloud data centre aggregation point.

VerneMQ: Is VerneMQ free?

The source is Apache 2.0 and free. The official binary packages and Docker images are covered by a separate EULA that expects a yearly fee for commercial use.

HighByte Intelligence Hub: Is pricing based on tag count?

No. All licences include unlimited data models and pipelines; the licence covers a coverage area, not a data volume.

VerneMQ: Is the project still maintained?

Yes. Octavo Labs AG in Zurich continues to publish 2.x releases, most recently in 2026.

HighByte Intelligence Hub: Does HighByte store historical data?

No. It models and routes data in motion. You still need a historian or a warehouse as the destination.

VerneMQ: Does it have a managed cloud?

No. Every deployment is self-hosted, with commercial support available from Octavo Labs.

HighByte Intelligence Hub: Can I buy it perpetually?

No. It is an annual subscription only.

VerneMQ: How does it compare to EMQX?

Narrower in features and without a rule engine, but with a simpler licence story for source builds after EMQX moved to BSL.

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