Soketi is an open-source, Pusher-compatible WebSockets server written in TypeScript that lets developers run their own real-time channels infrastructure instead of paying for a hosted Pusher plan.

What it is

Soketi is a next-gen, Pusher-compatible, open-source WebSockets server distributed under the AGPL-3.0 licence. It lives in the Node.js and TypeScript ecosystem and is built on top of uWebSockets.js, a C application ported to Node.js. It implements the Pusher Protocol v7, and exposes app-based access in which the API and WebSockets are reached through apps defined by the operator.

The problem it solves is the cost and ceiling of hosted Pusher. Existing projects that already connect to Pusher need minimal code change to work with Soketi: the host and port are added and the credentials are swapped. It is intended for local development and benchmarking where no connection or message limits are wanted, and it is also positioned for production use, whether the socket endpoint is public for frontend applications or internal to a team.

Key capabilities

• Implements the Pusher Protocol v7, so existing Pusher clients reconnect after swapping host, port, and credentials.
• Runs on uWebSockets.js, a C application ported to Node.js, rather than on a JavaScript WebSocket stack.
• Provides app-based access, with API and WebSocket credentials scoped to apps the operator defines.
• Stores app data through static arrays, DynamoDB, or SQL-based servers such as Postgres.
• Scales horizontally with Redis across multiple active instances.
• Exposes Prometheus metrics for scraping, giving built-in monitoring without extra agents.
• Ships as the @soketi/soketi npm package and as Docker images listed on Artifact Hub.

Who uses it and how

• Developers testing against Pusher-compatible clients locally, where the hosted plan's connection and message caps would otherwise apply.
• Teams benchmarking real-time throughput without paying per-connection, using Soketi as a drop-in local or staging endpoint.
• Production deployments serving a public frontend, or internal-only deployments serving a team's own applications.
• Operators running it in containers or in monoliths, from a single instance for development up to tens of active instances at scale with hundreds or thousands of active users.
• Cost-sensitive deployments on a $5 to $10 Vultr or DigitalOcean instance, where thousands of active connections at high traffic fit inside less than 1 GB of memory and 1 CPU.

Getting started

Install the @soketi/soketi package from npm, or run the published Docker image. The installation and environment variable documentation at docs.soketi.app covers both paths.

How it compares

Pusher's $49 plan caps at 500 connections and 30 million messages, whereas Soketi on a $5 to $10 cloud instance is presented as offering virtually unlimited connections and messages. Soketi is AGPL-3.0 open source and self-hosted, so the operator holds the app data and the socket infrastructure rather than renting both. The trade is that Soketi's cost model is an instance bill plus operational time, while Pusher's is a subscription with a vendor handling uptime, support, and scaling.

When to use it — and when not to

A self-hoster must run Redis when scaling beyond one instance, and must provision either static arrays, DynamoDB, or a SQL server such as Postgres for app data, plus a Prometheus scraper for monitoring. Teams that need guaranteed release cadence, vendor support, or an SLA should not pick it: maintenance and support are described as infrequent because available time is tight, which is visible in the 142 open issues and the last push on 2025-03-03. The AGPL-3.0 licence is also a strong copyleft, which some closed-source deployments will not accept.