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Cybersecurity · head to head

Kaspersky Total Security vs Soketi

Kaspersky Total Security logo

Kaspersky Total Security

Cybersecurity

Complete protection for your digital life

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Soketi logo

Soketi

Developer Tools

Self-hosted, Pusher-compatible WebSockets server with a stalled maintenance record

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Kaspersky Total Security uS sales banned since June 2024 with support ending September 29, 2024; Soketi maintenance has effectively stalled: the maintainer has said time is severely limited, releases are infrequent, and the community has been discussing whether the project is abandoned, which means security fixes may not arrive.
  • They diverge on capability: Kaspersky Total Security covers Real-time protection, Soketi covers Pusher protocol compatibility.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kaspersky Total Security and Soketi actually diverge.

Attributes where Kaspersky Total Security and Soketi differ
AttributeKaspersky Total SecuritySoketi
Pricing modelUnknownOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWindows, macOS, iOS, AndroidLinux, macOS, Windows
CategoryCybersecurityDeveloper Tools
Founded1997Unknown

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 Kaspersky Total Security

  • Real-time protection
  • Ransomware protection
  • Safe Money
  • Privacy protection
  • Parental controls
  • Password manager
  • VPN
  • File encryption

Only in Soketi

  • Pusher protocol compatibility
  • Presence and private channels
  • Horizontal scaling
  • App management backends
  • Webhooks
  • Prometheus metrics

What people use each for

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

Kaspersky Total Security

  • Antivirusnot Soketi
  • Internet Securitynot Soketi
  • Parental Controlnot Soketi

Soketi

  • A Laravel application that already uses Echo and wants to stop paying a hosted realtime providernot Kaspersky Total Security
  • Realtime notifications or presence indicators where data must not leave your own infrastructure for compliance reasonsnot Kaspersky Total Security
  • A local or CI environment that needs a Pusher-compatible server without hitting a paid accountnot Kaspersky Total Security
  • A high-connection-count application where hosted per-connection pricing has become the largest line in the infrastructure billnot Kaspersky Total Security

Where each one falls short

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

Kaspersky Total Security

  • US sales banned since June 2024 with support ending September 29, 2024
  • VPN limited to 200 MB per day and servers in only 24 countries
  • Password manager has privacy concerns with questionable terms and policies
  • VPN and password manager only included in Plus and Premium tiers, not in Standard
  • Occasionally flags legitimate files as false positives
  • Firewall leaves open ports on public networks

Soketi

  • Maintenance has effectively stalled: the maintainer has said time is severely limited, releases are infrequent, and the community has been discussing whether the project is abandoned, which means security fixes may not arrive.
  • Dependency drift on Node and uWebSockets.js will eventually force you to fork or migrate, and that cost is unbudgeted at the point you adopt it.
  • There is no commercial support to buy, so a production incident at three in the morning is entirely your problem with no escalation path.
  • Scaling beyond a single node needs Redis and careful configuration, and getting presence channels correct across nodes is a genuine source of subtle bugs.
  • It implements the Pusher protocol rather than tracking it, so any protocol feature Pusher adds later will not appear, and the compatibility guarantee slowly decays.

Pricing, plan by plan

Kaspersky Total Security

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Basic antivirus
    • No real-time protection
  • Standard$38.99/year
    • Antivirus
    • Firewall
    • Anti-phishing
  • Plus$52.99/year
    • Standard features
    • Password manager
    • VPN with limit
  • Premium$74.99/year
    • Plus features
    • Identity protection
    • Unlimited VPN

Soketi

Free
  • SoketiFree
    • MIT licensed
    • Unlimited connections subject to your own hardware
    • No vendor billing

Which should you pick?

Choose Kaspersky Total Security if

  • You need real-time protection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android.
  • You also want ransomware protection.
Kaspersky Total Security review

Choose Soketi if

  • You need pusher protocol compatibility.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want presence and private channels.
Soketi review

Questions people ask

Is Kaspersky Total Security or Soketi better?
Neither clearly leads. Kaspersky Total Security starts at Free and Soketi at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kaspersky Total Security or Soketi?
Kaspersky Total Security starts at Free and Soketi at Free.
Does Kaspersky Total Security or Soketi run on more platforms?
Kaspersky Total Security runs on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android. Soketi runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Kaspersky Total Security for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Kaspersky Total Security best used for?
Kaspersky Total Security is most often used for antivirus, internet security, parental control. Of those, antivirus and internet security are not what Soketi is typically brought in for.
What can Kaspersky Total Security do that Soketi cannot?
Kaspersky Total Security covers Real-time protection, Ransomware protection, Safe Money, Privacy protection. Soketi covers Pusher protocol compatibility, Presence and private channels, Horizontal scaling, App management backends.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Kaspersky Total Security: What does Kaspersky Total Security include?

Kaspersky Total Security (Premium tier) includes antivirus, firewall, password manager, VPN with 200 MB daily limit, parental controls (Kaspersky Safe Kids), and anti-ransomware protection.

Source
Soketi: Is Soketi still maintained?

Barely. The maintainer has stated that available time is very limited and releases have been sparse; treat it as community-maintained.

Kaspersky Total Security: How much does Kaspersky Total Security cost?

Kaspersky Standard costs $38.99/year for 3 devices. Plus tier is $52.99/year for 5 devices. Premium is $74.99/year for 10 devices. Multi-year discounts available.

Source
Soketi: Do I need to change my client code?

No. Pusher client SDKs and Laravel Echo work by changing the host, port and credentials.

Kaspersky Total Security: Is Kaspersky available in the United States?

No. The U.S. government banned Kaspersky software sales in June 2024, with support and software updates ceasing September 29, 2024, citing national security concerns regarding Russian government ties.

Source
Soketi: What does it cost?

Nothing in licence fees. It is MIT licensed; you pay for the server it runs on.

Kaspersky Total Security: Does Kaspersky have parental controls?

Yes. Premium and Plus tiers include one year free access to Kaspersky Safe Kids parental controls app, which provides activity reports, app monitoring, usage limits, and geo-fencing with location tracking.

Source
Soketi: What are people moving to?

Laravel Reverb for Laravel applications, and Sockudo, a Rust reimplementation, for others.

Kaspersky Total Security: How much does the VPN provide?

Kaspersky's free VPN (Kaspersky Secure Connection) offers only 200 MB per day of traffic, limiting data usage. Full VPN is included in Plus and Premium plans but with limited servers in only 24 countries.

Source
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