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What's the Difference Between Amazon MemoryDB and Amazon MemoryDB for Valkey?

Compare Amazon MemoryDB and Amazon MemoryDB for Valkey side by side — features, pricing, and ideal use cases to help you choose the right product.

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Comparisons
Amazon MemoryDB
Amazon MemoryDB for Valkey
Category

Database, In-Memory

Database, In-Memory
Description

Fully managed, in-memory database with Valkey- and Redis OSS-compatibility

Durable, Valkey and Redis OSS-compatible in-memory database for ultra-fast performance.
Best for
  • Session stores
  • Real-time leaderboards
  • Streaming data
  • Caching with durability
  • Session stores
  • Caching with durability
  • Real-time applications
  • Leaderboards
Key features
  • Redis compatible
  • Multi-AZ durability
  • Microsecond reads
  • Transaction support
  • Auto scaling
  • Valkey compatible
  • Multi-AZ durability
  • Microsecond reads
  • Data tiering
  • Vector search
Pricing model

On-Demand or Reserved nodes + data storage

Pay per node hour + data stored
Free tier

No

No
Expert take

“MemoryDB is Redis with built-in durability via a transaction log. Choose it over ElastiCache when you need Redis as your primary database (not just a cache) and cannot afford data loss on failover. The trade-off is slightly higher write latency for durability guarantees.”
— Didier Durand, re:Post Top Contributor [profile]

“Amazon MemoryDB for Valkey provides a Valkey-compatible in-memory database with durability. It is an open-source alternative to Redis with the same API compatibility.”
— Oleksii Bebych, re:Post Top Contributor [profile]
Product page

Learn more about Amazon MemoryDB »

Learn more about Amazon MemoryDB for Valkey »

When to use Amazon MemoryDB or Amazon MemoryDB for Valkey

Use Amazon MemoryDB when:

  • Session stores
  • Real-time leaderboards
  • Streaming data
  • Caching with durability

Learn more about Amazon MemoryDB »

Use Amazon MemoryDB for Valkey when:

  • Session stores
  • Caching with durability
  • Real-time applications
  • Leaderboards

Learn more about Amazon MemoryDB for Valkey »

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