Lightstreamer vs SocketCluster
Lightstreamer
lightstreamer.comSocketCluster
socketcluster.ioSide by side
| Figure | Lightstreamer | SocketCluster |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 5 | 1 |
| Spec score · WebSocket Tools | 8.1 (#5) | 7.7 (#9) |
| Spec score · Message Broker Software | 7.9 (#20) | 7.6 (#25) |
| Deployment | Lightstreamer can be deployed on-premises or in the cloud and supports Helm, Docker, and Kubernetes. | The CLI provides Kubernetes shortcut commands, and the maker provides Kubernetes deployment YAML files. |
| Integrations | Ready-made connectors integrate with Kafka, MQTT, and JMS; named examples include Confluent Cloud, Amazon MSK, Redpanda, AWS IoT Core, IBM MQ, and ActiveMQ. | The documentation describes running SocketCluster with frameworks such as Express and deploying it on Kubernetes inside Docker containers. |
| Support | Every license includes unlimited technical support tickets and unlimited upgrades; 24×7 support is available as an additional option. | The maker’s site links to community chat on Gitter and provides documentation and an API reference. |
Plans
Lightstreamer
- Demo LicenseFree
- Annual subscription — Per Client LicensePrice not published
- Annual subscription — Per Server LicensePrice not published
- PAYG — Per Client-Hour LicensePrice not published
- PAYG — Per Core-Hour LicensePrice not published
In their own words
Lightstreamer
Lightstreamer is an event broker for delivering real-time data to web and mobile applications, including across proxies, firewalls, disconnections, and network congestion. Intelligent Streaming adjusts data flow to network conditions and can resample or combine updates to keep users synchronized. Messaging options include publish/subscribe, request/response, client-to-server messaging, and fine-grained item and field subscriptions. StreamSense chooses WebSockets or HTTP connections for each client, including through restrictive firewalls and legacy proxies.
Ready-made connectors cover Kafka, MQTT, and JMS, with named examples including Confluent Cloud, Amazon MSK, Redpanda, AWS IoT Core, IBM MQ, and ActiveMQ. Custom adapters can be built with Java, Python, Node.js, .NET, and TCP sockets. Lightstreamer supports TLS, certificates, mutual authentication, and custom authentication and authorization. It can be deployed on-premises or in the cloud, with Helm, Docker, and Kubernetes support. Monitoring options include a web dashboard, configurable logs, JMX, Prometheus, and Grafana integrations. The free Non-Production Limited License requires a Production License and a server restart after at most 210 minutes of uptime.
SocketCluster
SocketCluster has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.