Side by side
Amazon SQS vs Apache Pulsar
Both stand on message queue (mq) software. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.
Free plan APIWeb
Amazon SQS offers Standard and FIFO queues with distinct delivery and ordering behavior, plus batching, retention, and dead-letter handling. The Free Tier includes 1 million requests; account for the listed possible charges for S3 storage, KMS calls, and data transfer.
Visit Amazon SQS
Free plan APILinuxMac+2
Apache Pulsar combines messaging, streaming, connectors and serverless processing in a self-hosted platform. Enable and configure its security controls before relying on them, and do not use the 5.0.0-M2 milestone in production.
Visit Apache PulsarThe facts
| Amazon SQS | Apache Pulsar | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | No | Not published |
| Runs on | API, Web | API, Linux, Mac, Self-hosted, Windows |
| Lowest paid plan | Free or on request | Free or on request |
| Plans published | 5 | 1 |
| Maker | Not published | Not published |
| Website | aws.amazon.com | pulsar.apache.org |
| On message queue (mq) software | #10 of 29 | #6 of 29 |
Amazon SQS: what it does well
- Standard queues offer nearly unlimited transactions per second per API action.
- FIFO queues preserve order without introducing duplicates.
- Supports batches of up to 10 messages.
- Dead Letter Queues can receive repeatedly rejected messages.
- Server-side encryption uses AWS KMS keys.
What to know first
- Payloads are limited to 256 KB without the Java Extended Client Library and S3.
- S3 storage, KMS calls, and some data transfers may incur separate charges.
- Unused Free Tier usage does not roll over.
Apache Pulsar: what it does well
- Free, open-source software under Apache License 2.0
- Supports under 10 ms consumption latency
- Replicates across regions with automatic client failover
- Built-in connectors cover several data systems
- Tiered storage supports unlimited retention
What to know first
- Security controls are not enabled by default
- 5.0.0-M2 is not meant for production use
Alternatives to Amazon SQS Alternatives to Apache Pulsar The whole list