Apache ActiveMQ vs RabbitMQ
Apache ActiveMQ
activemq.apache.org
RabbitMQ
rabbitmq.comSide by side
| Figure | Apache ActiveMQ | RabbitMQ |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 4 |
| Spec score · Message Broker Software | 9.0 (#3) | 8.4 (#8) |
| Spec score · Message Queue (MQ) Software | 9.0 (#3) | 8.5 (#6) |
| Current release | ActiveMQ 6.3.2 was released on September 2, 2026 as a maintenance release. | The latest listed release is RabbitMQ 4.3.6, released on 16 September 2026. |
| Integrations | The site lists Spring support, JCA 1.5 resource adaptors, and testing in TomEE, Geronimo, JBoss, GlassFish, and WebLogic. | RabbitMQ provides client libraries for Java, .NET/C#, Erlang, and other languages, and offers a community Docker image and Kubernetes operators. |
| Management API | Documented JSON management endpoints expose broker, queue, topic, subscription, connector and connection metrics. | The management plugin supplies an HTTP API, browser UI and rabbitmqadmin command-line tool for administration and monitoring. |
| Messaging protocols | The site lists OpenWire, STOMP, AMQP 1.0, and MQTT 3.1 support. | RabbitMQ supports open protocols including AMQP 1.0, MQTT 5.0, STOMP and other protocol plugins. |
| Product | Apache ActiveMQ is an open source messaging and Integration Patterns server. | RabbitMQ is an open source messaging and streaming broker for application communication, including distributed microservices, real-time data, and IoT. |
| Rating on G2 | 4.3 out of 5 from 16 reviews | 4.1 out of 5 from 46 reviews |
| Security controls | Security supports JAAS authentication, XML authorization rules, LDAP-related modules, Shiro, SSL transports and message-level authorization plugins. | RabbitMQ documents authentication, authorization, topic permissions, TLS certificate mechanisms, LDAP and OAuth 2.0 backends. |
| What it does | Apache ActiveMQ is a Java-based, open-source message broker for asynchronous application communication. | RabbitMQ is an enterprise-grade messaging and streaming broker for communication among applications, microservices and IoT systems. |
Plans
RabbitMQ
- Open-source RabbitMQFree
- Open Source RabbitMQ ServerFree
- Tanzu RabbitMQPriced on request
- VMware Tanzu RabbitMQPriced on request
In their own words
Apache ActiveMQ
Apache ActiveMQ is an open-source messaging and Integration Patterns server for applications that exchange messages. It is self-hosted and supports OpenWire, STOMP, AMQP 1.0, MQTT 3.1, and REST. Listed client languages include Java, C, C++, C#, Ruby, Perl, Python, and PHP. Messaging features include message groups, virtual and composite destinations, wildcards, and enterprise integration patterns. ActiveMQ fully supports JMS 1.1 and J2EE 1.4+ messaging, including transient, persistent, transactional, and XA modes; support for Jakarta Messaging 3.1 and JMS 2.0 is partial. Transport options include in-VM, TCP, SSL, NIO, UDP, multicast, JGroups, and JXTA, with JDBC persistence and a high-performance journal. Browser access is available through a REST API and Ajax web streaming. Security options include pluggable providers, JAAS authentication, XML-configured authorization, and user, group, and destination permissions. ActiveMQ Classic costs nothing under the Apache License 2.0.
RabbitMQ
RabbitMQ is an open source messaging and streaming broker for application communication, including distributed microservices, real-time data, and IoT. Publishers can route messages to one or more consumers using routing, filtering, streaming, and federation. Message acknowledgements and replication across a cluster support delivery reliability, and delivery guarantees are configurable. Supported protocols include AMQP 0-9-1, AMQP 1.0, MQTT, STOMP, RabbitMQ Streams, HTTP, and WebSocket, including browser communication over WebSocket. Client libraries are available for Java, .NET/C#, Erlang, and other languages; the project also offers a community Docker image and Kubernetes operators. RabbitMQ can run in cloud or on-premises environments, on local machines and physical or virtual hardware, and in containers. Linux, Windows, and macOS are supported; z/OS, most mainframes, and systems with less than 100 MB of RAM are not. The free, self-managed Open Source RabbitMQ Server is offered under the Mozilla Public License 2.0 with best-effort community support. VMware Tanzu RabbitMQ is a commercial offering with 24/7 support and enterprise features; pricing is by contact.