Garnet vs Varnish Cache(2026)
Garnet is better for teams that need microsoft research backing. Varnish Cache is the stronger choice if extremely high throughput http caching. Garnet is open-source (from $0) and Varnish Cache is open-source (from $0).
Full feature breakdown, pricing details, and pros & cons below.
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Garnet
Garnet is Microsoft Research's open-source, Redis-compatible cache store built for cloud and edge workloads — with exceptional throughput, low latency, and strong consistency options.
Starting at $0
Visit GarnetVarnish Cache
Varnish Cache is a high-performance HTTP accelerator used by the world's busiest websites. It caches HTTP responses in memory, offloading backends and serving millions of requests per second.
Starting at $0
Visit Varnish CacheHow Do Garnet and Varnish Cache Compare on Features?
| Feature | Garnet | Varnish Cache |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | open-source | open-source |
| Starting price | $0 | $0 |
| Redis API compatible | ✓ | — |
| RESP3 protocol | ✓ | — |
| Cluster mode | ✓ | — |
| Strong/eventual consistency | ✓ | — |
| Pub/sub | ✓ | — |
| Scripting | ✓ | — |
| C# native | ✓ | — |
| HTTP/HTTPS reverse proxy | — | ✓ |
| VCL configuration language | — | ✓ |
| Edge Side Includes (ESI) | — | ✓ |
| Health checks | — | ✓ |
| Grace mode | — | ✓ |
| Hit-for-pass | — | ✓ |
| Varnish Enterprise | — | ✓ |
Garnet Pros and Cons vs Varnish Cache
Garnet
Varnish Cache
Should You Use Garnet or Varnish Cache?
Choose Garnet if…
- •Microsoft Research backing
- •Excellent benchmark numbers
- •Redis compatible
Choose Varnish Cache if…
- •Extremely high throughput HTTP caching
- •Flexible VCL
- •Battle-tested at internet scale