Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka vs StreamNative
Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka
aws.amazon.comStreamNative
streamnative.ioSide by side
| Figure | Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka | StreamNative |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $0.11/mo | $73/mo |
| Free plan | — | — |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 5 | 3 |
| Spec score · Event Streaming Platforms | 7.9 (#10) | 7.5 (#15) |
| Spec score · Message Queue (MQ) Software | 7.9 (#15) | 7.5 (#21) |
| Integrations | Listed integrations include Amazon S3, Amazon Redshift, Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink, AWS Lambda, AWS Glue Schema Registry, and AWS Database Migration Service. | Named technology partners include Databricks, Snowflake, Ververica, AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure. |
| Purpose | Amazon MSK manages Apache Kafka infrastructure and operations so developers and platform engineers can run Kafka on AWS without becoming experts in operating it. | The StreamNative Data Platform captures, transports, transforms, governs, and serves business data for applications, analytics, and agents in real time. |
| Security | MSK supports IAM access control, SASL/SCRAM or mutual TLS authentication for Provisioned clusters, and encryption at rest and in transit. | The pricing comparison lists multi-tenancy, authentication, authorization, audit logs, data-at-rest encryption, TLS encryption, and end-to-end encryption as security features. |
Plans
Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka
- MSK Connect$0.11 a month
- MSK Provisioned — Standard brokers$0.20 a month
- MSK Replicator$0.30 a month
- MSK Provisioned — Express brokers$0.41 a month
- MSK Serverless$0.75 a month
In their own words
Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka
Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka (MSK) manages Apache Kafka infrastructure on AWS for developers and platform engineers. It provisions and configures clusters, replaces failed servers, coordinates patches and upgrades, and handles monitoring and scaling. Provisioned clusters let customers choose broker and storage options, while Serverless clusters adjust resources to workload needs. MSK keeps compatibility with the Apache Kafka client protocol, so existing Kafka applications and tools can work without application code changes. Integrations include Amazon S3, Redshift, Managed Service for Apache Flink, Lambda, Glue Schema Registry, and Database Migration Service. Clusters span multiple Availability Zones, with three as the default, and the service-level agreement specifies three 9s of availability. Security includes IAM, SASL/SCRAM or mutual TLS for Provisioned clusters, and encryption in transit and at rest. CloudWatch supplies over 50 default metrics at no additional cost. MSK is paid, with separate charges possible for storage, processing, connectivity, and enhanced metrics.
StreamNative
StreamNative is a cloud data platform for capturing, transporting, transforming, governing, and serving business data in real time for applications, analytics, and agents. It provides native Kafka and Pulsar services powered by the Ursa engine, stream processing, schema registry support, and both listed delivery guarantees. Streams can be written directly to Iceberg and Delta tables in object storage. Universal Connect runs Kafka Connect and Pulsar IO connectors, including change-data-capture connectors, on one runtime. The platform supplies agents with governed context through open interfaces such as the StreamNative MCP Server. Deployment choices are Serverless, Dedicated, and BYOC in your cloud account, with AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure options. Serverless supports up to 100 MBps per namespace. Plans start at $73 a month for Serverless, $505 a month for Dedicated, and $365 a month for BYOC. Support is included in all plans, with 24/7 technical support available.