Memcached vs Varnish Enterprise
Memcached
memcached.org
Varnish Enterprise
varnish-software.comSide by side
| Figure | Memcached | Varnish Enterprise |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | — |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Caching Software | 7.9 (#10) | 7.1 (#18) |
| Founded | 2003 | 2010 |
| Purpose | Memcached is a distributed in-memory key-value cache intended to speed up dynamic web applications by reducing database load. | Varnish Enterprise is a programmable delivery layer for live video, dynamic web and API traffic, and CI/CD artifact delivery. |
| Support | The project directs users to its Discord chat, documentation, and mailing list for questions, and points to Cache Forge for business support. | The product page describes standard, 24/7, and fully managed service plans as expert support options. |
Plans
In their own words
Memcached
Memcached is a free, self-hosted in-memory key-value cache for reducing database load in dynamic web applications. It keeps small chunks of arbitrary data, such as strings, objects, and results from database calls, API calls, or page rendering. Clients use key-based hashing to choose a server, while servers operate independently without synchronization or replication. Items can expire after a specified time, and the default eviction policy is least recently used (LRU). The project describes Memcached as a developer tool, not code acceleration software or database middleware. Its API is available for most popular languages, and downloads include a source tarball and installation instructions with package prerequisites for Debian/Ubuntu and Red Hat/CentOS. TLS authentication and encryption are supported in version 1.5.13 and later when built with TLS and used with a TLS-capable client. Optional extstore moves values to external storage while keeping keys and the hash table in memory; it needs version 1.6.0 or newer. The project began in 2003. It is free and self-hosted, with no hosted plan or price listed.
Varnish Enterprise
Varnish Enterprise has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.