Best Event Streaming Platforms in 2026
Updated
Event streaming platforms connect systems that produce, process, and consume event data. Compared on deployment model, delivery guarantee, connectors, supported client languages, and maximum retention, the entries also cover schema registry and stream processing. Aiven for Apache Kafka, Confluent Cloud, and Apache Pulsar are among the options to consider for your integration and event-handling needs. Weigh free-plan availability and paid-from pricing alongside the deployment choices, retention expectations, and processing capabilities that matter to your stack.
Event Streaming Platforms, one module each.A lit port is something its maker publishes; 18 of 18 with a known API signal have a public API.
- 01 Aiven for Apache Kafka API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.4$35/mo
- 02 Confluent Cloud API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.4$385/mo
- 03 Lightstreamer API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.4Free
- 04 Apache Pulsar API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.3Free
- 05 DataStax Astra Streaming API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.3Free
- 06 Solace PubSub+ Event Broker API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.3Free
- 07 Apache Kafka API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.2Free
- 08 Apache RocketMQ API yesFREE yesDOCS 7.2Free
- 09 Pravega API yesDOCS 7.0
- 10 Redpanda API yesDOCS 6.9
- 11 RisingWave API yesDOCS 6.9$0.23/mo
- 12 StreamHouse API yesDOCS 6.9
- 13 Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka API yesFREE noDOCS 6.8$0.11/mo
- 14 AutoMQ API yesFREE noDOCS 6.8$300/mo
- 15 Keen Product Analytics API yesFREE noDOCS 6.8$149/mo
- 16 Amazon Kinesis Data Streams API yesDOCS 6.7
- 17 Instaclustr Managed PostgreSQL API yesDOCS 6.7
- 18 StreamNative API yesFREE noDOCS 6.7$73/mo
- 19 Hadron DOCS 5.5
- 20 Wisembly FREE noDOCS 5.4
- 21 Azure Event Hubs DOCS 5.2
- 22 Google Cloud Managed Service for Apache Kafka DOCS 5.2
- 23 Alibaba Cloud Message Queue for Apache Kafka DOCS 5.1
- 24 Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Streaming DOCS 5.1
Compare all 24 in a table
| # | Platform | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Deployment model | Maximum retention |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aiven for Apache Kafka | 7.4 | Free plan | $35/mo | Yes | 35 /mo | hybrid | 3 days |
| 2 | Confluent Cloud | 7.4 | Free plan | $385/mo | Yes | 385 /mo | cloud | |
| 3 | Lightstreamer | 7.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | hybrid | ||
| 4 | Apache Pulsar | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Yes | self-hosted | ||
| 5 | DataStax Astra Streaming | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Yes | cloud | ||
| 6 | Solace PubSub+ Event Broker | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | Yes | hybrid | ||
| 7 | Apache Kafka | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | self-hosted | |||
| 8 | Apache RocketMQ | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | self-hosted | |||
| 9 | Pravega | 7.0 | Yes | self-hosted | ||||
| 10 | Redpanda | 6.9 | No | hybrid | ||||
| 11 | RisingWave | 6.9 | $0.23/mo | No | hybrid | |||
| 12 | StreamHouse | 6.9 | hybrid | |||||
| 13 | Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka | 6.8 | No | $0.11/mo | cloud | |||
| 14 | AutoMQ | 6.8 | No | $300/mo | No | 300 /mo | hybrid | 90 days |
| 15 | Keen Product Analytics | 6.8 | No | $149/mo | No | 149 /mo | ||
| 16 | Amazon Kinesis Data Streams | 6.7 | No | cloud | 365 days | |||
| 17 | Instaclustr Managed PostgreSQL | 6.7 | No | hybrid | ||||
| 18 | StreamNative | 6.7 | No | $73/mo | No | 73 /mo | cloud | |
| 19 | Hadron | 5.5 | self-hosted | |||||
| 20 | Wisembly | 5.4 | No | No | ||||
| 21 | Azure Event Hubs | 5.2 | No | cloud | 1 days | |||
| 22 | Google Cloud Managed Service for Apache Kafka | 5.2 | No | cloud | ||||
| 23 | Alibaba Cloud Message Queue for Apache Kafka | 5.1 | No | cloud | ||||
| 24 | Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Streaming | 5.1 | No | cloud | 7 days |
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Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored, and a sponsored row is labelled as paid.