# Amazon ElastiCache vs Memcached

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** Amazon ElastiCache

| Attribute | Amazon ElastiCache | Memcached |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 83.1 (61% (medium)) | 39.7 (36% (low)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | - | 0 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | - | 347 |
| adoption.github_stars | - | 14,294 |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"An AWS-hosted caching platform that provides ultra-low latency access to frequently used data with support for Valkey, Memcached, and Redis-compatible APIs. It automatically manages infrastructure, scales elastically to handle billions of requests per second, and eliminates downtime during maintenance. It is indexed under Key-Value Stores.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/bedrock/pricing/?nc2=h_pr_br","question":"What is Amazon ElastiCache?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Amazon ElastiCache offers a free tier, so you can start without paying. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/bedrock/pricing/?nc2=h_pr_br","question":"Is Amazon ElastiCache free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Amazon ElastiCache supports the web and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/bedrock/pricing/?nc2=h_pr_br","question":"What platforms does Amazon ElastiCache support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have only confirmed a cloud / SaaS deployment for Amazon ElastiCache, so it appears to be vendor-hosted. If a self-hosted option exists we have not found it documented publicly.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/bedrock/pricing/?nc2=h_pr_br","question":"Can Amazon ElastiCache be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed HIPAA and GDPR for Amazon ElastiCache. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Amazon ElastiCache not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/compliance/?nc2=h_dsc_aa_cmp","question":"What security certifications does Amazon ElastiCache have?","confidence":0.7},{"answer":"Amazon ElastiCache is available worldwide. The vendor is headquartered in the United States.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/bedrock/pricing/?nc2=h_pr_br","question":"Where is Amazon ElastiCache available?","confidence":0.75}]` | `[{"answer":"A free, in-memory key-value cache designed to reduce database load and improve application performance by storing temporary copies of frequently accessed data from databases, APIs, or rendered pages. It distributes cache across multiple servers in a cluster, with each piece of data stored in a single consistent location for reliable retrieval. It is indexed under Key-Value Stores.","source":"https://memcached.org","question":"What is Memcached?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Memcached is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the BSD-3-Clause licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://memcached.org","question":"Is Memcached free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Memcached supports macOS, Linux and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://memcached.org","question":"What platforms does Memcached support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Memcached can be deployed self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://memcached.org","question":"Can Memcached be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Memcached is published under the BSD-3-Clause licence, a permissive licence that generally allows commercial use and modification. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.","source":"https://github.com/memcached/memcached","question":"Is Memcached open source?","confidence":0.95}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true,"hybrid":true}` | `{"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | A fully managed caching service that removes infrastructure management overhead while delivering sub-millisecond data access. It supports Valkey, Memcached, and Redis OSS, enabling teams to use familiar APIs and migrate existing applications with minimal code changes. | Infrastructure software that enables companies to build high-performance applications by storing frequently accessed data in memory to reduce database load and latency. |
| features.capabilities | `{"clustering":"replicated","deployment":"managed","consistency":"eventual","persistence":"snapshot","eviction_ttl":true,"storage_tier":"in_memory","licence_class":"source_available","wire_protocol":"resp","pubsub_streams":true,"data_structures":"rich_types","redis_api_compat":"full"}` | `{"clustering":"sharded","deployment":"self_hosted","consistency":"strong","persistence":"none","eviction_ttl":true,"storage_tier":"in_memory","transactions":"none","licence_class":"permissive","wire_protocol":"memcached","multi_threaded":true,"pubsub_streams":false,"data_structures":"kv_only","redis_api_compat":"none"}` |
| language.primary | - | C |
| license.spdx | - | BSD-3-Clause |
| market.availability | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":["CN"]}` | `{"primaryMarkets":["US"],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"web":true}` | `{"cli":true,"mac":true,"linux":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"hybrid","plans":[{"free":false,"name":"On-Demand","summary":"Pay-as-you-go hourly pricing per instance","features":["Hourly instance pricing","No minimum fees","No upfront commitments","Auto scaling"],"contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Serverless","summary":"Usage-based billing with no minimum fees or upfront commitments","features":["Zero infrastructure management","Zero downtime maintenance","Billed per GB-hour","Minimum 1 GB data storage"],"contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Database Savings Plans","summary":"Commit to specific hourly spend for savings","features":["1-year usage commitment","Discounted hourly rates"],"commitment":"annual","contactSales":false}],"addOns":[{"name":"Backup storage","components":[{"per":{"qty":1,"unit":"gb-month"},"kind":"metered","amount":0.085,"currency":"USD"}]}],"summary":"Starting at $6/month (Valkey Serverless). Free tier: 750 hours cache.t3.micro + $100 credits.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://aws.amazon.com/elasticache/pricing/","retrievedAt":"2026-10-13T10:30:16.025Z","billingPeriods":["month"]}` | `{"type":"open_source","summary":"Open source and free","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://memcached.org","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T16:43:06.339Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | freemium | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | low | free |
| pricing.transparent | yes | yes |
| reliability.sla_pct | 99.99 | - |
| reliability.status_page | yes | - |
| security.certifications | `[{"name":"SOC 1","status":"active"},{"name":"SOC 2","status":"active"},{"name":"SOC 3","status":"active"},{"name":"ISO 27001","status":"active"},{"name":"PCI-DSS","status":"active"},{"name":"HIPAA","status":"active"},{"name":"FedRAMP","status":"active"}]` | - |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | yes |
| security.fedramp | yes | - |
| security.gdpr | yes | - |
| security.hipaa | yes | - |
| security.iso27001 | yes | - |
| security.pci | yes | - |
| security.scorecard | - | 4.5 |
| security.soc2 | yes | - |
| security.trust_center | https://aws.amazon.com/compliance/ | - |
| security.vulnerabilities | - | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=homebrew&package_name=memcached&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Key-Value Stores)

| Capability | Amazon ElastiCache | Memcached |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Storage** |  |  |
| Storage tier | In-memory | In-memory |
| Persistence | Snapshot (RDB) | None (pure cache) |
| Data structures | Rich types | KV-only |
| **Protocol** |  |  |
| Wire protocol | RESP (Redis) | Memcached |
| **Distribution** |  |  |
| Clustering | Replicated | Sharded |
| Consistency | Eventual | Strong |
| **Ops** |  |  |
| Eviction / TTL policies | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-threaded | - | ✓ |
| Pub/Sub / streams | ✓ | ✗ |
| Transactions / atomic ops | - | None |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Deployment | Managed | Self-hosted |
| **Licensing** |  |  |
| Licence class | Source-available | Permissive OSS |
| **Compatibility** |  |  |
| Redis API compatibility | Full | None |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T17:58:00.817Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*