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Valkey

valkey.io

Free plan macOSLinuxAPISelf-hosted
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Spec score 7.4 #21 of 31 in Key-Value Databases

What it is

Valkey is a free, open-source key/value datastore for caching, message queues and primary database workloads. It handles strings, numbers, hashes, lists, sets, sorted sets, bitmaps, hyperloglogs and other data types. Deployments can run as a standalone daemon or as a cluster, with replication and high-availability options. Lua scripting and module plugins can add commands and data types. Documented uses include caching database or API results, session tokens, rendered HTML, reports, leaderboards, matchmaking and AI or ML inference outputs. Installation is available from source, Docker, Homebrew or MacPorts on macOS, and package managers for Linux and BSD. Valkey runs on Linux and macOS and can be self-hosted or accessed through an API; Windows is not officially supported, though WSL installation is described for development. The Linux Foundation backs the project, which says it will remain open source. Security guidance covers ACL authentication, optional TLS and network restrictions. Protocols include RESP, TCP and Unix sockets.

Spec sheet

What it does
Valkey is an open source, high-performance key/value datastore for caching, message queues, and use as a primary database.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Deployment
Valkey can run as a standalone daemon or in a cluster, with replication and high availability options.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Integrations
The Valkey site lists managed or compatible offerings from Amazon ElastiCache, Google Cloud Memorystore, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Cache, UpCloud, DigitalOcean, and others.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Security
Valkey recommends restricting network access to trusted clients and provides ACL-based authentication and optional TLS for client connections, replication links, and the cluster bus.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Support
The Valkey site lists Percona as offering operational support and project-based consulting for Valkey databases.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Founded
2024Read 28 Sep 2026 · valkey.io
Backing
The project is backed by the Linux Foundation, and its website says it will remain open source forever.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Client libraries
The project lists recommended clients for Python, Node.js, Java, Go, PHP, Swift, C#, and Ruby.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Data structures
Valkey supports strings, numbers, hashes, lists, sets, sorted sets, bitmaps, hyperloglogs, and other data types.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Extensibility
Valkey includes Lua scripting support and module plugins that can add commands and data types.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Installation
The installation guide describes installation from source, Docker containers, Homebrew and MacPorts on macOS, and package managers for Linux and BSD distributions.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Security limitation
The installation guide warns that Valkey binds to all interfaces without authentication by default and recommends firewalling the port, configuring bind, authentication, and TLS as appropriate.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Use cases
The quick start guide describes caching database or API results, session tokens, rendered HTML, reports, leaderboards, matchmaking, and AI or ML inference outputs.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io
Windows support
Valkey is not officially supported on Windows, but the guide says it can be installed on Windows for development using WSL.Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io

Plans and prices

Valkey Free Open source BSD datastore · self-hosted software Read 7 Oct 2026 · valkey.io

Every Valkey plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Supports many built-in data structures
  • Standalone and clustered deployment modes
  • Replication and high-availability options
  • Lua scripting and module extensions
  • ACL authentication and optional TLS

Limits

  • Windows is not officially supported
  • Unauthenticated all-interface binding is the default warning
  • Self-hosted installation and security configuration are required

Who it suits

Valkey suits developers and operators building caches, queues or database-backed applications that need clustering, replication or persistence. It is aimed at self-hosted Linux or macOS deployments and development environments.

Verdict

Valkey offers a broad datastore foundation with clustering, extensibility and multiple installation routes. Windows users have only documented WSL development support, and operators must change default network and authentication settings before exposure.

Where Specifiction places it

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