# Amazon ElastiCache vs RocksDB

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** Amazon ElastiCache

| Attribute | Amazon ElastiCache | RocksDB |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 83.1 (61% (medium)) | 60.1 (47% (low)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | - | 80 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | - | 2,684 |
| adoption.github_stars | - | 32,198 |
| adoption.package_downloads_weekly | - | 589 |
| 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":"An embeddable C++ database library optimized for high-performance storage and retrieval on flash drives and RAM, supporting workloads from application caching to multi-terabyte data storage with configurable write and read performance tradeoffs. It is indexed under Key-Value Stores.","source":"https://rocksdb.org","question":"What is RocksDB?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"RocksDB is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the GPL-2.0 licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://rocksdb.org","question":"Is RocksDB free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"RocksDB supports Linux. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://rocksdb.org","question":"What platforms does RocksDB support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. RocksDB can be deployed self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://rocksdb.org","question":"Can RocksDB be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. RocksDB is published under the GPL-2.0 licence, a copyleft licence, so check its terms before embedding it in a closed-source product. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.","source":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb","question":"Is RocksDB open source?","confidence":0.67}]` |
| 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. | RocksDB is a library for integrating database functionality into applications, designed to persist large volumes of data with careful attention to balancing write throughput, read latency, and space efficiency. It supports parallel processing and is optimized for flash storage environments. |
| 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":"single_node","deployment":"embedded","consistency":"strong","persistence":"append_log","eviction_ttl":true,"storage_tier":"persistent","licence_class":"copyleft","multi_threaded":true,"data_structures":"kv_only"}` |
| language.primary | - | C++ |
| license.spdx | - | GPL-2.0 |
| market.availability | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":["CN"]}` | - |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"web":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","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://rocksdb.org","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T21:39:20.137Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | freemium | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | low | free |
| pricing.transparent | yes | - |
| release.cadence_days | - | 21 |
| release.history | - | `[{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v11.8.1","date":"2026-08-07T17:30:50Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.8.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v11.1.2","date":"2026-06-25T01:05:56Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.1.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v11.1.1","date":"2026-04-29T21:42:29Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.1.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v11.0.4","date":"2026-04-07T22:14:36Z","type":"stable","version":"v11.0.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.10.1","date":"2026-02-02T19:07:20Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.10.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v8.11.5","date":"2026-01-21T17:25:14Z","type":"stable","version":"v8.11.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.9.1","date":"2026-01-06T03:41:23Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.9.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.8.3","date":"2026-01-06T03:36:05Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.8.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.7.5","date":"2025-10-22T21:41:35Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.7.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.6.2","date":"2025-10-22T17:48:16Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.6.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.5.1","date":"2025-08-11T15:38:38Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.5.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.4.2","date":"2025-07-11T00:32:43Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.4.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.2.1","date":"2025-04-29T21:06:48Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.2.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.1.3","date":"2025-04-14T20:50:23Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.1.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.11.2","date":"2025-03-29T21:45:52Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.11.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v10.0.1","date":"2025-03-31T18:29:41Z","type":"stable","version":"v10.0.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.10.0","date":"2025-01-02T18:31:00Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.9.3","date":"2024-12-17T18:06:55Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.9.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.8.4","date":"2024-12-03T21:25:53Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.8.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/facebook/rocksdb/releases/tag/v9.7.4","date":"2024-11-01T16:39:27Z","type":"stable","version":"v9.7.4"}]` |
| reliability.sla_pct | 99.99 | - |
| reliability.status_page | yes | 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 | - |
| security.fedramp | yes | - |
| security.gdpr | yes | - |
| security.hipaa | yes | - |
| security.iso27001 | yes | - |
| security.pci | yes | - |
| security.scorecard | - | 7.1 |
| security.soc2 | yes | - |
| security.trust_center | https://aws.amazon.com/compliance/ | - |
| security.vulnerabilities | - | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=maven&package_name=org.rocksdb%3Arocksdbjni&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Key-Value Stores)

| Capability | Amazon ElastiCache | RocksDB |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Storage** |  |  |
| Storage tier | In-memory | Persistent |
| Persistence | Snapshot (RDB) | Append-only log |
| Data structures | Rich types | KV-only |
| **Protocol** |  |  |
| Wire protocol | RESP (Redis) | - |
| **Distribution** |  |  |
| Clustering | Replicated | Single-node |
| Consistency | Eventual | Strong |
| **Ops** |  |  |
| Eviction / TTL policies | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-threaded | - | ✓ |
| Pub/Sub / streams | ✓ | - |
| Transactions / atomic ops | - | - |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Deployment | Managed | Embedded |
| **Licensing** |  |  |
| Licence class | Source-available | Copyleft |
| **Compatibility** |  |  |
| Redis API compatibility | Full | - |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T19:02:35.236Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*
