Best Message Broker Software in 2026
Updated
In short: RabbitMQ is ranked #1 of 38 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of Google Cloud Pub/Sub and Apache Artemis. The best-ranked option with a free plan is Google Cloud Pub/Sub. The lowest first paid tier on this page is Amazon SNS at $0.06/mo.
Message brokers pass messages between applications and services, so delivery behavior and infrastructure fit are useful points of comparison. RabbitMQ, Google Cloud Pub/Sub, and Apache Artemis appear first in the ranked entries. Compare supported protocols and deployment model, then consider delivery and ordering guarantees alongside dead-letter queue support. Maximum message size can also matter for the workloads you need to handle. The listed criteria include free-plan availability and where paid access starts, adding cost context to the technical comparison. Review these factors against the way your applications exchange messages and the requirements of your environment.
38 message broker software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
Recognised 40% · Phone app 26% · Documented 20% · Free plan 14% of the score
- 1 RabbitMQ No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 8.1Free Deployment model: hybridDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 2 Google Cloud Pub/Sub No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 8.1$40/mo Deployment model: cloudDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 3 Apache Artemis No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.8Free Deployment model: self_hostedDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 4 Amazon SQS No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.8Free Deployment model: cloudDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 5 Apache ActiveMQ No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.6Free Deployment model: self_hostedDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 6 HiveMQ MQTT Broker No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.6$299/mo Deployment model: hybridDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 7 EMQX No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.4$234/mo Deployment model: hybridDelivery guarantees: configurable
- 8 Amazon SNS No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.2$0.06/mo Deployment model: cloudDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 9 IBM MQ No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.1$1.02/mo
- 10 CloudAMQP No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.1$19/mo Deployment model: cloudDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 11 Solace PubSub+ Event Broker No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 7.0 Deployment model: hybrid
- 12 Lightstreamer iPhone + Android RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.9 Deployment model: hybrid
- 13 ZeroMQ No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.7Free Deployment model: self_hostedDelivery guarantees: configurable
- 14 Apache Kafka No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.6
- 15 KubeMQ No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.6 Deployment model: hybridDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 16 Moquette Android only RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.6 Deployment model: self_hostedDelivery guarantees: configurable
- 17 NATS No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.5Free Deployment model: hybridDelivery guarantees: configurable
- 18 Eclipse Mosquitto No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.5Free Deployment model: self_hostedDelivery guarantees: configurable
- 19 SocketCluster iPhone + Android RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.5 Deployment model: self_hosted
- 20 ApsaraMQ for MQTT iPhone + Android RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.5 Deployment model: cloudDelivery guarantees: configurableDead-letter queues: Yes
- 21 Aedes No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.4Free Deployment model: self_hostedDelivery guarantees: configurable
- 22 Upstash QStash No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.3 Deployment model: cloudDelivery guarantees: at_least_onceDead-letter queues: Yes
- 23 Apache RocketMQ No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.2
- 24 Apache Qpid Broker-J No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.2 Deployment model: self_hostedDead-letter queues: Yes
- 25 TIBCO FTL No phone app RecognisedPhone appDocumentedFree plan 6.2Free Deployment model: hybridDelivery guarantees: configurable
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | App | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Deployment model | Delivery guarantees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RabbitMQ | 8.1 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | hybrid | configurable |
| 2 | Google Cloud Pub/Sub | 8.1 | Free plan | $40/mo | Yes | — | cloud | configurable |
| 3 | Apache Artemis | 7.8 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self_hosted | configurable |
| 4 | Amazon SQS | 7.8 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | cloud | configurable |
| 5 | Apache ActiveMQ | 7.6 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self_hosted | configurable |
| 6 | HiveMQ MQTT Broker | 7.6 | Free plan | $299/mo | Yes | — | hybrid | configurable |
| 7 | EMQX | 7.4 | Free plan | $234/mo | Yes | 234 /mo | hybrid | configurable |
| 8 | Amazon SNS | 7.2 | Free plan | $0.06/mo | Yes | — | cloud | configurable |
| 9 | IBM MQ | 7.1 | No | $1.02/mo | — | — | — | — |
| 10 | CloudAMQP | 7.1 | Free plan | $19/mo | Yes | 19 /mo | cloud | configurable |
| 11 | Solace PubSub+ Event Broker | 7.0 | No | — | Yes | — | hybrid | — |
| 12 | Lightstreamer | 6.9 | No | — | Yes | — | hybrid | — |
| 13 | ZeroMQ | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | — | — | self_hosted | configurable |
| 14 | Apache Kafka | 6.6 | No | — | — | — | — | — |
| 15 | KubeMQ | 6.6 | No | — | — | — | hybrid | configurable |
| 16 | Moquette | 6.6 | No | — | Yes | — | self_hosted | configurable |
| 17 | NATS | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | — | — | hybrid | configurable |
| 18 | Eclipse Mosquitto | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | self_hosted | configurable |
| 19 | SocketCluster | 6.5 | No | — | Yes | — | self_hosted | — |
| 20 | ApsaraMQ for MQTT | 6.5 | No | — | No | — | cloud | configurable |
| 21 | Aedes | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | — | — | self_hosted | configurable |
| 22 | Upstash QStash | 6.3 | No | — | Yes | — | cloud | at_least_once |
| 23 | Apache RocketMQ | 6.2 | No | — | — | — | — | — |
| 24 | Apache Qpid Broker-J | 6.2 | No | — | — | — | self_hosted | — |
| 25 | TIBCO FTL | 6.2 | Free plan | Free | — | — | hybrid | configurable |
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which message broker software is ranked first on Samsung Mobile US Press?
RabbitMQ is ranked #1 of 38 with a score of 8.1. Google Cloud Pub/Sub is second and Apache Artemis third.
How many of these have a free plan?
14 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, Amazon SNS has the lowest first paid tier we found: $0.06/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked mobile-first: a phone app alongside the web or desktop product, a free tier and the depth of its documentation. Paid placements never change a rank.