kafkajs vs kafka-node vs node-rdkafka
Node.js Kafka Client Libraries Comparison
Search packages..
1 Year
kafkajskafka-nodenode-rdkafka
What's Node.js Kafka Client Libraries?

Kafka client libraries for Node.js provide developers with the tools to interact with Apache Kafka, a distributed streaming platform. These libraries facilitate the production and consumption of messages, enabling real-time data processing and event-driven architectures. Each library offers unique features, performance characteristics, and design philosophies, allowing developers to choose the best fit for their specific use cases and application requirements.

Package Weekly Downloads Trend
Github Stars Ranking
Stat Detail
Package
Downloads
Stars
Size
Issues
Publish
License
kafkajs1,329,6273,815732 kB3732 years agoMIT
kafka-node131,7912,664-4495 years agoMIT
node-rdkafka64,5632,13714.1 MB1123 months agoMIT
Feature Comparison: kafkajs vs kafka-node vs node-rdkafka

Performance

  • kafkajs:

    kafkajs is optimized for performance, providing a promise-based API that allows for efficient asynchronous operations. It supports batching and high concurrency, making it suitable for applications that demand high throughput and low latency.

  • kafka-node:

    kafka-node is designed for simplicity and ease of use, but it may not offer the best performance for high-throughput scenarios. It is suitable for smaller applications or those with less stringent performance requirements.

  • node-rdkafka:

    node-rdkafka is built on top of the native librdkafka library, offering superior performance and efficiency. It is capable of handling high message volumes and low latency, making it ideal for performance-critical applications.

Ease of Use

  • kafkajs:

    kafkajs provides a modern and intuitive API that is easy to work with, especially for developers familiar with JavaScript promises and async/await syntax. Its design focuses on usability and developer experience, making it a popular choice among Node.js developers.

  • kafka-node:

    kafka-node is straightforward to set up and use, making it a good choice for developers who are new to Kafka or need to implement basic functionality quickly. Its API is simple and easy to understand, which can speed up development time.

  • node-rdkafka:

    node-rdkafka has a steeper learning curve due to its reliance on the underlying librdkafka library. While it offers powerful features, developers may need to invest more time in understanding its API and configuration options.

Feature Set

  • kafkajs:

    kafkajs supports a comprehensive set of Kafka features, including transactions, consumer groups, and schema registry integration. This makes it suitable for a wide range of applications, from simple to complex event-driven architectures.

  • kafka-node:

    kafka-node offers basic Kafka functionalities such as producing and consuming messages, but it lacks some advanced features like transactional messaging and consumer group management, which may limit its use in more complex scenarios.

  • node-rdkafka:

    node-rdkafka provides access to advanced Kafka features through its low-level API, including support for high-level consumer and producer APIs, transactions, and message compression. This makes it a powerful choice for applications that require fine-grained control over Kafka interactions.

Community and Support

  • kafkajs:

    kafkajs has gained significant popularity and has a vibrant community, providing ample resources, documentation, and community support. This can be beneficial for developers seeking help or looking for best practices.

  • kafka-node:

    kafka-node has a smaller community compared to other Kafka clients, which may result in limited support and fewer resources for troubleshooting. However, it is still actively maintained and has a decent amount of documentation available.

  • node-rdkafka:

    node-rdkafka benefits from the robust support of the librdkafka community, which is well-established and has extensive documentation. However, the Node.js-specific support may not be as comprehensive as that of other libraries.

Compatibility

  • kafkajs:

    kafkajs is designed to work with the latest versions of Kafka, ensuring compatibility with new features and improvements. This makes it a suitable choice for modern applications that aim to leverage the full capabilities of Kafka.

  • kafka-node:

    kafka-node is compatible with older versions of Kafka, making it a good choice for legacy systems. However, it may not support the latest Kafka features, which could be a limitation for new projects.

  • node-rdkafka:

    node-rdkafka is closely tied to the librdkafka library, which is actively maintained and updated. This ensures that it remains compatible with the latest Kafka features, but developers need to ensure they are using a compatible version of librdkafka.

How to Choose: kafkajs vs kafka-node vs node-rdkafka
  • kafkajs:

    Choose kafkajs for a modern, feature-rich Kafka client that supports the latest Kafka features and provides a promise-based API. It is well-suited for applications requiring high performance, strong error handling, and a focus on developer experience.

  • kafka-node:

    Choose kafka-node if you need a simple and lightweight solution for basic Kafka operations. It is easy to set up and use, making it suitable for smaller projects or when you want to quickly integrate Kafka without extensive configuration.

  • node-rdkafka:

    Choose node-rdkafka if you need a high-performance Kafka client that leverages the native librdkafka C library. It is ideal for applications that require low latency and high throughput, but it may involve a steeper learning curve due to its more complex setup.

Similar Npm Packages to kafkajs

kafkajs is a modern and lightweight client for Apache Kafka, written in JavaScript. It is designed to be easy to use and provides a rich set of features for interacting with Kafka, including support for producing and consuming messages, managing topics, and handling errors. Kafkajs is particularly well-suited for Node.js applications, offering a promise-based API that allows developers to work with Kafka in a more intuitive manner. Its robust design and comprehensive documentation make it a popular choice for building scalable and resilient applications that rely on Kafka for messaging and event streaming.

An alternative to Kafkajs is node-rdkafka. This library is a Node.js binding for the C library librdkafka, which is known for its high performance and reliability. Node-rdkafka provides a more low-level interface to Kafka, allowing developers to leverage the full capabilities of the underlying C library. While it can be more complex to set up and use compared to Kafkajs, it may be the preferred choice for applications that require maximum performance and fine-grained control over Kafka interactions.

To see how Kafkajs compares with node-rdkafka, check out the comparison: Comparing kafkajs vs node-rdkafka.

Similar Npm Packages to kafka-node

kafka-node is a popular Node.js client for Apache Kafka, designed to provide a simple and effective way to interact with Kafka clusters. It allows developers to produce and consume messages, manage topics, and handle Kafka's partitioning and replication features. While kafka-node is widely used, there are other libraries in the Node.js ecosystem that also facilitate interaction with Kafka. Here are a few alternatives:

  • kafkajs is a modern and lightweight Kafka client for Node.js. It is designed to be easy to use and provides a rich set of features, including support for Kafka's latest features, automatic partition assignment, and consumer group management. Kafkajs emphasizes performance and reliability, making it a great choice for applications that require efficient message processing. Its promise-based API and built-in support for TypeScript make it a popular option among developers looking for a robust Kafka client.
  • node-rdkafka is another Kafka client for Node.js, built on top of the C/C++ librdkafka library. This library provides a high-performance interface to Kafka, leveraging the efficiency of native code. Node-rdkafka supports a wide range of Kafka features, including high throughput and low latency message processing. If your application demands maximum performance and you are comfortable with the additional complexity of a native binding, node-rdkafka is a strong candidate.

To see how kafka-node compares with kafkajs and node-rdkafka, check out the comparison: Comparing kafka-node vs kafkajs vs node-rdkafka.

Similar Npm Packages to node-rdkafka

node-rdkafka is a Node.js client for Apache Kafka that provides a high-performance interface for producing and consuming messages. Built on top of the native C library librdkafka, it offers a rich set of features, including support for Kafka's latest protocols, high throughput, low latency, and advanced configuration options. This makes node-rdkafka an excellent choice for applications that require robust and efficient message processing capabilities.

While node-rdkafka is a powerful option, there are alternatives available in the Node.js ecosystem. One notable alternative is:

  • kafka-node, which is a pure JavaScript client for Apache Kafka. It provides a simple and straightforward API for interacting with Kafka, making it easy to produce and consume messages. While kafka-node may not offer the same level of performance as node-rdkafka due to its pure JavaScript implementation, it is often easier to set up and use, especially for smaller applications or for developers who prefer a fully JavaScript-based solution. It also has a good community support and documentation, making it a viable option for many use cases.

To see how node-rdkafka compares with kafka-node, check out the comparison: Comparing node-rdkafka vs kafka-node.

README for kafkajs

npm version npm pre-release version Build Status Slack Channel

Logo

KafkaJS

A modern Apache Kafka® client for Node.js
Get Started »

Read the Docs · Report Bug · Request Feature

Table of Contents

About the Project

KafkaJS is a modern Apache Kafka client for Node.js. It is compatible with Kafka 0.10+ and offers native support for 0.11 features.

KAFKA is a registered trademark of The Apache Software Foundation and has been licensed for use by KafkaJS. KafkaJS has no affiliation with and is not endorsed by The Apache Software Foundation.

Sponsors ❤️

Upstash: Serverless Kafka

  • True Serverless Kafka with per-request-pricing
  • Managed Apache Kafka, works with all Kafka clients
  • Built-in REST API designed for serverless and edge functions
  • Start for free in 30 seconds!
Logo

Get help directly from a KafkaJS developer

  • Become a Github Sponsor to have a video call with a KafkaJS developer
  • Receive personalized support, validate ideas or accelerate your learning
  • Save time and get productive sooner, while supporting KafkaJS!
  • See support options!

To become a sponsor, reach out in our Slack community to get in touch with one of the maintainers. Also consider becoming a Github Sponsor by following any of the links under "Sponsor this project" in the sidebar.

Features

  • Producer
  • Consumer groups with pause, resume, and seek
  • Transactional support for producers and consumers
  • Message headers
  • GZIP compression
    • Snappy, LZ4 and ZSTD compression through pluggable codecs
  • Plain, SSL and SASL_SSL implementations
  • Support for SCRAM-SHA-256 and SCRAM-SHA-512
  • Support for AWS IAM authentication
  • Admin client

Getting Started

npm install kafkajs
# yarn add kafkajs

Usage

const { Kafka } = require('kafkajs')

const kafka = new Kafka({
  clientId: 'my-app',
  brokers: ['kafka1:9092', 'kafka2:9092']
})

const producer = kafka.producer()
const consumer = kafka.consumer({ groupId: 'test-group' })

const run = async () => {
  // Producing
  await producer.connect()
  await producer.send({
    topic: 'test-topic',
    messages: [
      { value: 'Hello KafkaJS user!' },
    ],
  })

  // Consuming
  await consumer.connect()
  await consumer.subscribe({ topic: 'test-topic', fromBeginning: true })

  await consumer.run({
    eachMessage: async ({ topic, partition, message }) => {
      console.log({
        partition,
        offset: message.offset,
        value: message.value.toString(),
      })
    },
  })
}

run().catch(console.error)

Learn more about using KafkaJS on the official site!

Read something on the website that didn't work with the latest stable version?
Check the pre-release versions - the website is updated on every merge to master.

Contributing

KafkaJS is an open-source project where development takes place in the open on GitHub. Although the project is maintained by a small group of dedicated volunteers, we are grateful to the community for bug fixes, feature development and other contributions.

See Developing KafkaJS for information on how to run and develop KafkaJS.

Help wanted 🤝

We welcome contributions to KafkaJS, but we also want to see a thriving third-party ecosystem. If you would like to create an open-source project that builds on top of KafkaJS, please get in touch and we'd be happy to provide feedback and support.

Here are some projects that we would like to build, but haven't yet been able to prioritize:

Contact 💬

Join our Slack community

License

See LICENSE for more details.

Acknowledgements

Apache Kafka and Kafka are either registered trademarks or trademarks of The Apache Software Foundation in the United States and other countries. KafkaJS has no affiliation with the Apache Software Foundation.

npm-compare.com is an independent website designed to help developers choose the most suitable npm packages. We are not affiliated with npm, Inc or npmjs.com, the official website for the npm registry. Please note that npm is a registered trademark of npm, Inc. For more details, please refer to our Terms & Privacy.