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Networking · head to head

Eclipse Mosquitto vs Palo Alto Networks

Eclipse Mosquitto logo

Eclipse Mosquitto

Networking

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Palo Alto Networks logo

Palo Alto Networks

Networking

Enterprise cybersecurity platform

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Eclipse Mosquitto has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Palo Alto Networks enterprise-focused pricing model
  • They diverge on capability: Eclipse Mosquitto covers MQTT 5.0 support, Palo Alto Networks covers Advanced threat prevention.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Eclipse Mosquitto and Palo Alto Networks actually diverge.

Attributes where Eclipse Mosquitto and Palo Alto Networks differ
AttributeEclipse MosquittoPalo Alto Networks
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Windows, macOS, DockerCloud, On-premises, Hybrid
FoundedUnknown2005

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Networking).

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 Eclipse Mosquitto

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

Only in Palo Alto Networks

  • Advanced threat prevention
  • Threat detection and response
  • Cloud security
  • Endpoint protection
  • Network security
  • API protection
  • Incident response
  • Threat intelligence

What people use each for

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

Eclipse Mosquitto

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

Palo Alto Networks

  • Enterprise network security and threat protectionnot Eclipse Mosquitto
  • Cloud-native application protectionnot Eclipse Mosquitto
  • Identity and access securitynot Eclipse Mosquitto
  • Security operations and incident responsenot Eclipse Mosquitto

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Palo Alto Networks

  • Enterprise-focused pricing model
  • Complex implementation required

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Palo Alto Networks

On request
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Threat prevention
    • Detection and response
    • Cloud security

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Palo Alto Networks if

  • You need advanced threat prevention.
  • You work on Cloud, On-premises, Hybrid.
  • You also want threat detection and response.
Palo Alto Networks review

Questions people ask

Is Eclipse Mosquitto or Palo Alto Networks better?
Neither clearly leads. Eclipse Mosquitto starts at Free and Palo Alto Networks at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Eclipse Mosquitto or Palo Alto Networks?
Eclipse Mosquitto has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Eclipse Mosquitto and On request for Palo Alto Networks.
Does Eclipse Mosquitto or Palo Alto Networks run on more platforms?
Eclipse Mosquitto runs on Linux, Windows, macOS, Docker. Palo Alto Networks runs on Cloud, On-premises, Hybrid.
Can I use Eclipse Mosquitto for free?
Yes. Eclipse Mosquitto has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Palo Alto Networks starts at On request.
What is Eclipse Mosquitto best used for?
Eclipse Mosquitto is most often used for a home or building automation stack where the broker must run on the same small computer as everything else, an industrial gateway that buffers local telemetry and bridges selected topics to a cloud broker, local development and testing of mqtt clients without provisioning a cloud iot service, an air-gapped deployment where a broker with no licence server and no phone-home behaviour is a requirement. Of those, a home or building automation stack where the broker must run on the same small computer as everything else and an industrial gateway that buffers local telemetry and bridges selected topics to a cloud broker are not what Palo Alto Networks is typically brought in for.
What can Eclipse Mosquitto do that Palo Alto Networks cannot?
Eclipse Mosquitto covers MQTT 5.0 support, Very small footprint, Bridging, WebSockets listener. Palo Alto Networks covers Advanced threat prevention, Threat detection and response, Cloud security, Endpoint protection.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Eclipse Mosquitto: Can Mosquitto be clustered?

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

Palo Alto Networks: How much do Palo Alto Networks products cost?

Palo Alto Networks does not publish pricing on their main website. Customers must request a demo, trial, or contact their sales team directly to receive custom pricing based on specific security needs and deployment scale.

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.

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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