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Developer Tools · head to head

Soketi vs Valkey

Soketi logo

Soketi

Developer Tools

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

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: 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.; Valkey younger project, so its track record is short even though the codebase is not
  • They diverge on capability: Soketi covers Pusher protocol compatibility, Valkey covers Redis-compatible.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Soketi and Valkey actually diverge.

Attributes where Soketi and Valkey differ
AttributeSoketiValkey
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeOpen source, no licence fee; managed cloud billed separately
PlatformsLinux, macOS, WindowsLinux, macOS, Docker, Self-hosted
CategoryDeveloper ToolsDatabases

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 Soketi

  • Pusher protocol compatibility
  • Presence and private channels
  • Horizontal scaling
  • App management backends
  • Webhooks
  • Prometheus metrics

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.

Soketi

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

Valkey

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

Where each one falls short

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

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.

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

Soketi

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

Valkey

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

Which should you pick?

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

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 Soketi or Valkey better?
Neither clearly leads. Soketi 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, Soketi or Valkey?
Soketi starts at Free and Valkey at Free.
Does Soketi or Valkey run on more platforms?
Soketi runs on Linux, macOS, Windows. Valkey runs on Linux, macOS, Docker, Self-hosted.
Can I use Soketi for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Soketi best used for?
Soketi is most often used for a laravel application that already uses echo and wants to stop paying a hosted realtime provider, realtime notifications or presence indicators where data must not leave your own infrastructure for compliance reasons, a local or ci environment that needs a pusher-compatible server without hitting a paid account, a high-connection-count application where hosted per-connection pricing has become the largest line in the infrastructure bill. Of those, a laravel application that already uses echo and wants to stop paying a hosted realtime provider and realtime notifications or presence indicators where data must not leave your own infrastructure for compliance reasons are not what Valkey is typically brought in for.
What can Soketi do that Valkey cannot?
Soketi covers Pusher protocol compatibility, Presence and private channels, Horizontal scaling, App management backends. Valkey covers Redis-compatible, BSD licensed, Rich data structures, Replication and persistence.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Valkey: Is Valkey free?

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

Soketi: Do I need to change my client code?

No. Pusher client SDKs and Laravel Echo work by changing the host, port and credentials.

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.

Soketi: What does it cost?

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

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.

Soketi: What are people moving to?

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

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