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Cloud · head to head

Longhorn vs Valkey

Longhorn logo

Longhorn

Cloud

Open source distributed block storage for Kubernetes, incubating at the CNCF

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Valkey logo

Valkey

Databases

Open-source in-memory data store forked from Redis

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Longhorn there is no vendor and no SLA, so a production incident at three in the morning is your own problem unless you buy SUSE Rancher Prime support separately.; Valkey younger project, so its track record is short even though the codebase is not
  • They diverge on capability: Longhorn covers Per-volume controllers, Valkey covers Redis-compatible.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Longhorn and Valkey actually diverge.

Attributes where Longhorn and Valkey differ
AttributeLonghornValkey
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeOpen source, no licence fee; managed cloud billed separately
PlatformsLinux, KubernetesLinux, macOS, Docker, Self-hosted
CategoryCloudDatabases

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 Longhorn

  • Per-volume controllers
  • Synchronous replication
  • Snapshots and backups
  • Volume expansion
  • Disaster recovery volumes
  • Web interface

Only in Valkey

  • Redis-compatible
  • BSD licensed
  • Rich data structures
  • Replication and persistence

What people use each for

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

Longhorn

  • An on-premises Kubernetes cluster with local disks and no SAN that needs replicated persistent volumesnot Valkey
  • Edge sites where shipping a storage array is impractical and three nodes is the whole clusternot Valkey
  • A K3s deployment where the storage layer must be light enough to run alongside the workloadsnot Valkey
  • A team that wants snapshots and S3 backups of persistent volumes without paying per-node storage licencesnot Valkey

Valkey

  • Continuing on a permissively licensed in-memory store after the Redis licence changenot Longhorn
  • Caching and session storage where a foundation-governed project is a procurement requirementnot Longhorn
  • Migrating from Redis without rewriting application codenot Longhorn

Where each one falls short

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

Longhorn

  • There is no vendor and no SLA, so a production incident at three in the morning is your own problem unless you buy SUSE Rancher Prime support separately.
  • Synchronous replication across nodes means write latency depends on the slowest replica and the network between nodes, which makes it a poor fit for latency-sensitive databases.
  • Every replica is a full copy, so three-way replication consumes three times the raw capacity, unlike erasure-coded systems that are far more space efficient.
  • It is designed for block storage on modest clusters and does not scale to the node counts or throughput that Ceph or a commercial array handles, so growth eventually forces a migration.
  • Recovery from certain degraded states, such as a volume stuck detaching or replicas failing to rebuild, requires manual intervention and knowledge of Longhorn internals that is not widely held.

Valkey

  • Younger project, so its track record is short even though the codebase is not
  • Divergence from Redis grows over time, so compatibility is strongest near the fork point and weakens as both evolve
  • Ecosystem tooling and documentation still frequently assume Redis, leaving translation work

Pricing, plan by plan

Longhorn

Free
  • LonghornFree
    • Apache 2.0 licensed, no licence fee
    • Community support via GitHub and Slack only
    • No vendor SLA or escalation path

Valkey

Free
  • ValkeyFree
    • Full functionality
    • Self-hosted
    • No usage limits

Which should you pick?

Choose Longhorn if

  • You need per-volume controllers.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Kubernetes.
  • You also want synchronous replication.
Longhorn review

Choose Valkey if

  • You need redis-compatible.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Docker, Self-hosted.
  • You also want bsd licensed.
Valkey review

Questions people ask

Is Longhorn or Valkey better?
Neither clearly leads. Longhorn starts at Free and Valkey at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Longhorn or Valkey?
Longhorn starts at Free and Valkey at Free.
Does Longhorn or Valkey run on more platforms?
Longhorn runs on Linux, Kubernetes. Valkey runs on Linux, macOS, Docker, Self-hosted.
Can I use Longhorn for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Longhorn best used for?
Longhorn is most often used for an on-premises kubernetes cluster with local disks and no san that needs replicated persistent volumes, edge sites where shipping a storage array is impractical and three nodes is the whole cluster, a k3s deployment where the storage layer must be light enough to run alongside the workloads, a team that wants snapshots and s3 backups of persistent volumes without paying per-node storage licences. Of those, an on-premises kubernetes cluster with local disks and no san that needs replicated persistent volumes and edge sites where shipping a storage array is impractical and three nodes is the whole cluster are not what Valkey is typically brought in for.
What can Longhorn do that Valkey cannot?
Longhorn covers Per-volume controllers, Synchronous replication, Snapshots and backups, Volume expansion. Valkey covers Redis-compatible, BSD licensed, Rich data structures, Replication and persistence.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Longhorn: Who do we call when it breaks?

Nobody, unless you buy SUSE Rancher Prime, which includes commercial support for Longhorn. This is the decisive question for production use.

Valkey: Is Valkey free?

Yes, BSD-licensed open source under the Linux Foundation.

Longhorn: How much capacity does replication cost?

Full copies, so three replicas means three times the raw capacity. Budget accordingly rather than assuming erasure coding efficiency.

Valkey: Why does Valkey exist?

Redis changed its licence away from BSD in 2024. Valkey is the community fork continuing under permissive terms, backed by AWS, Google Cloud and Oracle among others.

Longhorn: Is it suitable for production databases?

For modest workloads yes, but synchronous replication adds write latency and high-transaction databases usually want something faster.

Valkey: Can I switch from Redis to Valkey?

At the fork point it is drop-in compatible with existing clients and data. The further both projects move from that point, the more you should verify the specific features you use.

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