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Networking · head to head

Eclipse Mosquitto vs RudderStack

Eclipse Mosquitto logo

Eclipse Mosquitto

Networking

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
RudderStack logo

RudderStack

Automation Integration

The open-source customer data platform

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.; RudderStack on the free plan data processing stops after a second consecutive overage rather than being billed, so exceeding 250,000 events twice breaks the pipeline
  • They diverge on capability: Eclipse Mosquitto covers MQTT 5.0 support, RudderStack covers Data collection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Eclipse Mosquitto and RudderStack differ
AttributeEclipse MosquittoRudderStack
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feefreemium
PlatformsLinux, Windows, macOS, DockerWeb, Self-hosted
CategoryNetworkingAutomation Integration
FoundedUnknown2018

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 RudderStack

  • Data collection
  • Event tracking
  • Audience segmentation
  • Warehouse ingestion
  • Real-time sync
  • Data transformation
  • Privacy controls
  • 200+ destinations

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

RudderStack

  • Collecting event data from apps and websites and routing it to warehouses and toolsnot Eclipse Mosquitto
  • Building a warehouse first customer data pipelinenot 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.

RudderStack

  • On the free plan data processing stops after a second consecutive overage rather than being billed, so exceeding 250,000 events twice breaks the pipeline
  • The free plan allows 250,000 events a month
  • Growth starts at $265 a month for 1 million events, with volume sold in tiers up to 25 million
  • Overage is charged as the gap to the next tier's price rather than per event, so a small excess costs a full tier step

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

RudderStack

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 250K events per month
    • 16 SDK sources
    • 200+ cloud destinations
  • Growth$265/month
    • 1 million events per month (up to 25 million available)
    • Unlimited team members
    • Tracking plans
  • Enterprise$null/mo
    • 5-minute warehouse sync
    • Unlimited transformations
    • Access to Profiles & Data Apps

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 RudderStack if

  • You need data collection.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted.
  • You also want event tracking.
RudderStack review

Questions people ask

Is Eclipse Mosquitto or RudderStack better?
Neither clearly leads. Eclipse Mosquitto starts at Free and RudderStack at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Eclipse Mosquitto or RudderStack?
Eclipse Mosquitto starts at Free and RudderStack at Free.
Does Eclipse Mosquitto or RudderStack run on more platforms?
Eclipse Mosquitto runs on Linux, Windows, macOS, Docker. RudderStack runs on Web, Self-hosted.
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 RudderStack is typically brought in for.
What can Eclipse Mosquitto do that RudderStack cannot?
Eclipse Mosquitto covers MQTT 5.0 support, Very small footprint, Bridging, WebSockets listener. RudderStack covers Data collection, Event tracking, Audience segmentation, Warehouse ingestion.

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.

RudderStack: What is RudderStack's free plan limit?

RudderStack's free plan includes 250K events per month with 16 SDK sources, 200+ cloud destinations, warehouse destinations, and Reverse ETL at no cost.

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.

RudderStack: How much does RudderStack Growth plan cost?

RudderStack Growth plan costs $265 per month with annual billing discount available, providing 1 million events per month (up to 25 million available), unlimited team members, and 2 workspaces.

Source
Eclipse Mosquitto: How many clients can it handle?

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

RudderStack: What happens if I exceed my RudderStack event limit?

On the free plan, data processing stops after your second consecutive overage. Paid plan customers face overage fees calculated as the difference between the next tier's pricing and their current plan.

Source
Eclipse Mosquitto: Does it support MQTT 5?

Yes, along with 3.1.1 and 3.1.

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