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Networking · head to head

Eclipse Mosquitto vs Particle

Eclipse Mosquitto logo

Eclipse Mosquitto

Networking

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Particle logo

Particle

Smart Home

Edge-to-cloud IoT platform for connected devices

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • 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.; Particle paid capacity is sold in blocks of 100 devices rather than per device, so 101 devices costs the same as 200
  • They diverge on capability: Eclipse Mosquitto covers MQTT 5.0 support, Particle covers Device OS.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Eclipse Mosquitto and Particle differ
AttributeEclipse MosquittoParticle
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feesubscription
PlatformsLinux, Windows, macOS, DockerParticle devices, Custom hardware, Cloud, Mobile apps
CategoryNetworkingSmart Home
FoundedUnknown2013

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 Eclipse Mosquitto

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

Only in Particle

  • Device OS
  • Cloud Platform
  • Device Management
  • OTA Updates
  • REST API
  • WebHooks
  • Integration marketplace
  • 3rd party services

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 Particle
  • An industrial gateway that buffers local telemetry and bridges selected topics to a cloud brokernot Particle
  • Local development and testing of MQTT clients without provisioning a cloud IoT servicenot Particle
  • An air-gapped deployment where a broker with no licence server and no phone-home behaviour is a requirementnot Particle

Particle

  • Connecting cellular and wifi IoT devices to a managed cloud platformnot Eclipse Mosquitto
  • Deploying firmware updates and collecting device telemetry at fleet scalenot 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.

Particle

  • Paid capacity is sold in blocks of 100 devices rather than per device, so 101 devices costs the same as 200
  • The Basic block is $299 a month and the Plus block $599 a month
  • The free tier allows 100 devices and 100,000 data operations a month
  • Data operations are the billing unit, so chatty firmware costs more than the device count suggests
  • No overage rates are published at any tier, so exceeding an allowance has no stated cost

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

Particle

Free
  • MakerFree
    • 5 free devices
    • Cloud access
    • Basic features
  • Production$100/month
    • Unlimited devices
    • Advanced analytics
    • Enterprise support

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 Particle if

  • You need device os.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Particle devices, Custom hardware, Cloud, Mobile apps.
  • You also want cloud platform.
Particle review

Questions people ask

Is Eclipse Mosquitto or Particle better?
Neither clearly leads. Eclipse Mosquitto starts at Free and Particle at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Eclipse Mosquitto or Particle?
Eclipse Mosquitto starts at Free and Particle at Free.
Does Eclipse Mosquitto or Particle run on more platforms?
Eclipse Mosquitto runs on Linux, Windows, macOS, Docker. Particle runs on Particle devices, Custom hardware, Cloud, Mobile apps.
Can I use Eclipse Mosquitto for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
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 Particle is typically brought in for.
What can Eclipse Mosquitto do that Particle cannot?
Eclipse Mosquitto covers MQTT 5.0 support, Very small footprint, Bridging, WebSockets listener. Particle covers Device OS, Cloud Platform, Device Management, OTA Updates.

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.

Particle: What are the Particle pricing tiers and their costs?

Particle offers Free ($0, 100 devices, 100K Data Operations/month), Basic ($299/month per block), Plus ($599/month per block), Professional (custom pricing), and Enterprise (custom pricing). Each block supports 100 devices.

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.

Particle: What is a Data Operation and how is it charged?

A Data Operation is Particle's billing unit for user-controlled activities. One operation is charged per device-to-cloud message, cloud-to-device message, Location Fusion call, Ledger sync, or Logic function run. Network transmission and management tasks are included at no additional cost.

Source
Eclipse Mosquitto: How many clients can it handle?

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

Particle: What location data retention does each tier provide?

Location data retention ranges from 3 days in the Free tier up to 6+ months in Professional and Enterprise tiers.

Source
Eclipse Mosquitto: Does it support MQTT 5?

Yes, along with 3.1.1 and 3.1.

Particle: Are there additional costs for support or single sign-on?

Premium support and SSO are available as optional add-ons to all Particle plans. The pricing page does not specify the cost of these add-ons.

Source
Particle: Is there a minimum contract length or can I cancel anytime?

The Particle pricing page does not specify a minimum contract length, suggesting monthly billing without long-term lock-in.

Source
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