Pusher vs Soketi(2026)
Pusher is better for teams that need simple to integrate. Soketi is the stronger choice if free self-hosted. Pusher is freemium (from $49/month) and Soketi is open-source.
Full feature breakdown, pricing details, and pros & cons below.
By Bikram Nath
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Pusher
Pusher provides hosted realtime APIs (WebSockets) for adding live features to web and mobile apps.
Starting at $49/month
Visit PusherSoketi
Soketi is an open source, Pusher protocol-compatible WebSocket server you can self-host for free.
Visit SoketiHow Do Pusher and Soketi Compare on Features?
| Feature | Pusher | Soketi |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | freemium | open-source |
| Starting price | $49/month | Free |
| WebSocket channels | ✓ | — |
| Presence channels | ✓ | — |
| Private channels | ✓ | — |
| Webhooks | ✓ | — |
| Client libraries | ✓ | — |
| Encrypted connections | ✓ | — |
| Pusher-compatible protocol | — | ✓ |
| Self-hosted | — | ✓ |
| Horizontal scaling | — | ✓ |
| Redis adapter | — | ✓ |
| HTTP API | — | ✓ |
| Multiple apps | — | ✓ |
Pusher Pros and Cons vs Soketi
Pusher
Soketi
Should You Use Pusher or Soketi?
For most teams, Soketi is the better default: it offers free self-hosted and is open-source. Choose Pusher instead if simple to integrate matters more than self-hosting overhead. There is no universal winner — the right pick depends on your budget, team size, and whether you value simple to integrate or free self-hosted more.
Choose Pusher if…
- •Simple to integrate
- •Battle-tested reliability
- •Multiple language SDKs
Choose Soketi if…
- •Free self-hosted
- •Pusher drop-in replacement
- •Low latency