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Developer Tools · head to head

RAD Studio vs Soketi

RAD Studio logo

RAD Studio

Developer Tools

Cross-platform native app development with Delphi and C++Builder

From
$2000/perpetual
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Soketi logo

Soketi

Developer Tools

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Soketi has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: RAD Studio professional edition costs $2,000 for the perpetual license plus $599 for year one maintenance, totaling $2,599 before tax; 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.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which RAD Studio and Soketi actually diverge.

Attributes where RAD Studio and Soketi differ
AttributeRAD StudioSoketi
Starting price$2000/perpetualFree
Pricing modelone-timeOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebLinux, macOS, Windows

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

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 RAD Studio

Nothing recorded that Soketi does not also cover.

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.

RAD Studio

  • Building Windows desktop applications with VCL componentsnot Soketi
  • Creating iOS and Android apps from shared Delphi codebasenot Soketi
  • Connecting to Oracle databases through FireDAC connectivitynot Soketi
  • Building REST web services that run on Linux serversnot Soketi

Soketi

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

Where each one falls short

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

RAD Studio

  • Professional edition costs $2,000 for the perpetual license plus $599 for year one maintenance, totaling $2,599 before tax
  • Enterprise edition steps up to $3,400 license plus $1,199 maintenance, and Architect edition to $4,416 license plus $2,183 maintenance
  • The perpetual license only entitles the buyer to updates for one year; continued access to new updates and upgrades requires an annually renewable Update Subscription

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

RAD Studio

$2000/perpetual
  • Professional Edition$2000/perpetual
    • Perpetual License
    • First year maintenance $599
    • Total $2,599 + Tax
  • Enterprise Edition$3400/perpetual
    • Perpetual License
    • First year maintenance $1,199
    • Total $4,599 + Tax
  • Architect Edition$4416/perpetual
    • Perpetual License
    • First year maintenance $2,183
    • Total $6,599 + Tax

Soketi

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

Which should you pick?

Choose RAD Studio if

Nothing in the data separates RAD Studio from Soketi on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

RAD Studio 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 RAD Studio or Soketi better?
Neither clearly leads. RAD Studio starts at $2000/perpetual and Soketi at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, RAD Studio or Soketi?
Soketi has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $2000/perpetual for RAD Studio and Free for Soketi.
Does RAD Studio or Soketi run on more platforms?
RAD Studio runs on Web. Soketi runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Soketi for free?
Yes. Soketi has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. RAD Studio starts at $2000/perpetual.
What is RAD Studio best used for?
RAD Studio is most often used for building windows desktop applications with vcl components, creating ios and android apps from shared delphi codebase, connecting to oracle databases through firedac connectivity, building rest web services that run on linux servers. Of those, building windows desktop applications with vcl components and creating ios and android apps from shared delphi codebase are not what Soketi is typically brought in for.
What can RAD Studio do that Soketi cannot?
Soketi covers Pusher protocol compatibility, Presence and private channels, Horizontal scaling, App management backends.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

RAD Studio: How much does RAD Studio cost?

RAD Studio uses perpetual licensing: Professional Edition $2,000 perpetual license + $599 first year maintenance ($2,599 total + tax). Enterprise Edition $3,400 license + $1,199 maintenance ($4,599 total + tax). Architect Edition $4,416 license + $2,183 maintenance ($6,599 total + tax).

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.

RAD Studio: What is the difference between RAD Studio editions?

Professional Edition ($2,599 total + tax) targets individual developers. Enterprise Edition ($4,599 total + tax) adds multi-tier app capabilities. Architect Edition ($6,599 total + tax) includes advanced database and cloud features. All three include perpetual licenses.

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.

RAD Studio: Does RAD Studio offer Kai AI integration and discounts?

Yes, adding Kai AI to any edition provides discounts: 25% off Professional ($2,136 + tax), 30% off Enterprise ($3,394 + tax), and 40% off Architect ($4,109 + tax). This promotion is active through August 31, 2026.

Source
Soketi: What does it cost?

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

Soketi: What are people moving to?

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

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