head to head · open source
node-redis vs centrifugo
node-redis has 17,584 GitHub stars, 1,979 forks, 159 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. centrifugo has 10,771 stars, 734 forks, 23 open issues and last shipped 6 days ago. node-redis leads on adoption by 63% (17,584 vs 10,771 stars). node-redis is written in TypeScript under MIT; centrifugo is written in Go under Apache-2.0. node-redis has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, centrifugo 7%. node-redis was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (redis), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| node-redis | centrifugo | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 18K | ★ 11K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-14 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.0K | ⑂ 734 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick node-redis if
- You weight community size — 18K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick centrifugo if
- You want the centrifugo feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and centrifugo fits your workflow better
About node-redis
Node Redis is the official Redis client for Node.js, published by the Redis organization on GitHub under the redis npm package name. It is a modern, high performance client written in TypeScript and released under the MIT license, and it lives in the Node.js ecosystem, where it serves as the standard way for JavaScript and TypeScript applications to talk to a Redis server. The project has accumulated 17,581 stars and 1,974 forks over roughly sixteen years, and it remains actively maintained, with the most recent push dated 14 September 2026.
read the full node-redis overview →
About centrifugo
Centrifugo is an open source, language agnostic real time messaging server that delivers messages to online users over WebSocket, HTTP streaming, Server Sent Events, GRPC, and WebTransport, and it is built for teams that want user facing PUB/SUB without writing and operating the transport layer themselves.
read the full centrifugo overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is node-redis or centrifugo more popular?
node-redis has 17,584 GitHub stars and centrifugo has 10,771. node-redis has the larger community by that measure.
Are node-redis and centrifugo free?
Both are open source. node-redis is licensed under MIT and centrifugo under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between node-redis and centrifugo?
node-redis is written in TypeScript and centrifugo in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, node-redis or centrifugo?
Choose node-redis if you want the larger community (17,584 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose centrifugo if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.