What is Memcached?
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.
Memcached pricing
We don't have Memcached's full plan breakdown yet (its pricing page resisted automated reading). Here's what we could confirm. Always check live pricing for exact numbers.
Open source and free
What Memcached does
The capabilities that matter for key-value stores, normalised so it lines up with every alternative. “-” means we haven't confirmed it, not that it's missing.
- Storage tier
- In-memory
- Persistence
- None (pure cache)
- Data structures
- KV-only
- Wire protocol
- Memcached
- Clustering
- Sharded
- Consistency
- Strong
- Eviction / TTL policies
- ✓
- Multi-threaded
- ✓
- Pub/Sub / streams
- ✗
- Transactions / atomic ops
- None
- Deployment
- Self-hosted
- Licence class
- Permissive OSS
- Redis API compatibility
- None
Platform & deployment
Independently observed- CLI
- macOS
- Linux
- Self-hosted
Security & compliance
Known vulnerabilities: 0 (0 in the last 12 months) sourcea count reflects scale & disclosure, not quality
Memcached FAQ
Common questions about Memcached, answered from independent, dated evidence.
What is Memcached?
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
Is Memcached free to use?
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
What platforms does Memcached support?
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
Can Memcached be self-hosted?
Yes. Memcached can be deployed self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.
Source: https://memcached.org
Is Memcached open source?
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.
Memcached alternatives
Other key-value stores we track, ranked by the same independent score.
- RedisHigh-speed in-memory data store for applications requiring real-time data access with extremely low latencyhigh · 75%
- UpstashServerless data platform combining in-memory storage, vector search, messaging, and workflow orchestration in one managed servicemedium · 73%
- Amazon ElastiCacheA fully managed in-memory caching service with microsecond latency and automatic scalingmedium · 61%
- HazelcastA platform for processing and acting on live data streams with real-time SQL and caching capabilitiesmedium · 57%
- etcdA reliable distributed database for managing critical configuration and state across clustered systemslow · 44%
- RocksDBAn embeddable database library for high-performance key-value storage on flash and RAMlow · 49%
Compare Memcached
Side by side against other key-value stores, attribute by attribute, with a source on every value.
The vioscaleAI score: one lens on the evidence
Not user reviews and not a paid placement: a confidence-weighted blend of the independent signals below (adoption, activity, security posture, and more), which you can sort and re-weight yourself. Vendors can correct their listing but can never move their rank, and stars are weighted low as a vanity metric. It is one way to read the evidence for Memcached, not the verdict.
| Signal | Score | Weight | Contribution | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capabilities | 46 | 0.08 | 3.7 | ✓ |
| Stars | 78 | 0.05 | 3.7 | ✓ |
| Security score | 45 | 0.05 | 2.4 | ✓ |
| Integrations | 0 | 0.05 | 0.0 | - |
| Dependent projects | 0 | 0.05 | 0.0 | ✓ |
| Development activity | 0 | 0.14 | 0.0 | ✓ |
| Release cadence | 0 | 0.08 | 0.0 | - |
| Security posture | 5 | 0.12 | 0.0 | - |
| Package downloads | 0 | 0.04 | 0.0 | - |
| Developer Q&A activity | 0 | 0.14 | 0.0 | - |
Computed . Re-weight it by intent, or see the full method.
All data & sourcesshow ↓
Every value we hold, with its source, retrieval date, and confidence. This is the evidence behind the score: don't trust it, verify it.
Activity
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Commits last 30d | 0 | mediumsource · 2026-09-11 · 65% |
Adoption
Content
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Faq | 5 items | mediumsource · 2026-09-10 · 67% |
Features
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Capabilities | Clustering: sharded · Deployment: self_hosted · Consistency: strong · Persistence: none · Eviction ttl: Yes · Storage tier: in_memory | mediumsource · 2026-08-14 · 60% |
Language
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | C | highsource · 2026-09-11 · 90% |
License
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Spdx | BSD-3-Clause | highsource · 2026-09-11 · 95% |
Pricing
Security
| Attribute | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Disclosure policy | Yes | mediumsource · 2026-08-14 · 60% |
| Scorecard | 4.5 | highsource · 2026-09-11 · 90% |
| Vulnerabilities | Count: 0 · Source: https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=helm&package_name=cloudpirates-memcached%2Fmemcached&per_page=100 · Last 12m: 0 | highsource · 2026-09-11 · 90% |
Is Memcached the right choice for you?
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