The Best Stream Processing Software in 2026

• 25 tools ranked
• Updated Oct 2026
• Researched from official sources
• Compare tools in this directory
• Sponsor this list

We researched stream processing software from official vendor websites, including pricing pages, plan tables, and product documentation. Products were ranked on their core real-time processing capabilities, value for money, and verified features for transforming and aggregating continuous event streams.

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

The full ranking 25 tools, best first

1. 1
   
   Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink 9.3

   Best forAWS teams wanting managed Flink

   A managed Flink service for AWS teams building stateful real-time data pipelines.

   • SQL processing
   • Event-time windows
   • Stateful processing

   Our Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink verdict → + Compare Visit AWSFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #1 · $149/mo →
   9.3/10★★★★★

   Visit AWS
2. 2
   
   Apache Flink 9.2

   Best forTeams needing a full-featured open stream engine

   A free, self-hosted engine for complex stateful stream-processing workloads.

   • SQL processing
   • Event-time windows
   • Stateful processing

   Free plan Our Apache Flink verdict → + Compare Visit Apache FlinkFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #2 · $99/mo →
   9.2/10★★★★★

   Visit Apache Flink
3. 3
   
   Azure Stream Analytics 9.1

   Best forAzure users preferring managed SQL streaming

   A strong Azure-native choice for SQL-based, stateful stream processing.

   • SQL processing
   • Event-time windows
   • Stateful processing

   Our Azure Stream Analytics verdict → + Compare Visit siteFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #3 · $79/mo →
   9.1/10★★★★★

   Visit site
4. 4
   
   Google Cloud Dataflow 9.0

   Best forGoogle Cloud teams running managed pipelines

   A broad managed service for Apache Beam pipelines, CDC, and cloud data integration.

   Our Google Cloud Dataflow verdict → + Compare Visit Google CloudFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #4 · $69/mo →
   9.0/10★★★★☆

   Visit Google Cloud
5. 5
   
   Kafka Streams 8.9

   Best forKafka-native Java and Scala applications

   A free, Kafka-native stream-processing library for Java and Scala applications.

   • Event-time windows
   • Stateful processing

   Free plan Our Kafka Streams verdict → + Compare Visit Kafka StreamsFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #5 · $59/mo →
   8.9/10★★★★☆

   Visit Kafka Streams
6. 6
   
   Confluent Cloud 8.8

   Best forEnterprises needing managed Kafka and streaming

   A broad managed Kafka service with connectors, governance, Flink, and enterprise controls.

   Free plan · 30-day trial Our Confluent Cloud verdict → + Compare Try Confluent Cloud
   8.8/10★★★★☆

   Try Confluent Cloud
7. 7
   
   Apache Beam 8.7

   Best forPortable batch and streaming pipelines

   A portable framework for teams building batch and streaming pipelines across multiple runners.

   Open source Our Apache Beam verdict → + Compare Visit Apache Beam
   8.7/10★★★★☆

   Visit Apache Beam
8. 8
   
   Apache Spark 8.6

   Best forMature teams combining batch and streaming

   A mature, broad engine for teams combining batch pipelines with incremental streaming.

   Free plan Our Apache Spark verdict → + Compare Visit Apache Spark
   8.6/10★★★★☆

   Visit Apache Spark
9. 9
   
   Apache NiFi 8.5

   Best forVisual self-hosted dataflows

   A visual, self-hosted dataflow system for routing, transforming, and delivering data.

   Open source Our Apache NiFi verdict → + Compare Visit Apache NiFi
   8.5/10★★★★☆

   Visit Apache NiFi
10. 10
    
    Hazelcast Platform 8.3

    Best forTeams needing streaming plus distributed state

    A strong fit for teams combining streaming, SQL, state, and distributed storage.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Free plan Our Hazelcast Platform verdict → + Compare Visit Hazelcast
    8.3/10★★★★☆

    Visit Hazelcast
11. 11
    
    ksqlDB 8.1

    Best forTeams processing Kafka streams directly with SQL

    A Kafka-focused SQL engine for continuous queries, joins, windows, and aggregations.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Free plan Our ksqlDB verdict → + Compare Visit Confluent
    8.1/10★★★★☆

    Visit Confluent
12. 12
    
    RisingWave 8.0

    Best forTeams wanting SQL streams with many connectors

    A SQL-first stream processor with materialized views, CDC, and 31 listed connectors.

    7-day trial Our RisingWave verdict → + Compare Visit RisingWave
    8.0/10★★★★☆

    Visit RisingWave
13. 13
    
    Apache Samza 7.9

    Best forJava teams using Kafka-centered stream processing

    A free, Kafka-centered stream processor for Java and Scala teams building stateful pipelines.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Free plan Our Apache Samza verdict → + Compare Visit Apache Samza
    7.9/10★★★★☆

    Visit Apache Samza
14. 14
    AS
    Apache Storm 7.8

    Best forDevelopers using topology-based stream processing

    A self-hosted choice for developers building fault-tolerant stream-processing topologies.

    • Stateful processing

    Free plan Our Apache Storm verdict → + Compare Visit Apache Storm
    7.8/10★★★★☆

    Visit Apache Storm
15. 15
    
    Apache Heron 7.8

    Best forTeams extending existing Storm-compatible systems

    Storm-compatible, self-hosted stream processing with fault tolerance, but the project is retired.

    Open source Our Apache Heron verdict → + Compare Visit Apache Heron
    7.8/10★★★★☆

    Visit Apache Heron
16. 16
    
    Siddhi 7.8

    Best forTeams needing event patterns and many adapters

    A flexible choice for teams building event patterns across many data sources.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Open source Our Siddhi verdict → + Compare Visit Siddhi
    7.8/10★★★★☆

    Visit Siddhi
17. 17
    
    Materialize 7.7

    Best forSQL teams building real-time materialized views

    A SQL-first live data layer for continuously updated views and applications.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Free plan · 7-day trial Our Materialize verdict → + Compare Visit Materialize
    7.7/10★★★★☆

    Visit Materialize
18. 18
    
    Timeplus 7.6

    Best forTeams needing streaming analytics and dashboards

    A SQL-first streaming platform with broad ingestion, dashboards, and hybrid query support.

    14-day trial Our Timeplus verdict → + Compare Visit Timeplus
    7.6/10★★★★☆

    Visit Timeplus
19. 19
    
    Arroyo 7.5

    Best forModern teams wanting SQL and Rust streaming

    A Rust-based stream processor for SQL pipelines, event-time logic, and stateful workloads.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Open source Our Arroyo verdict → + Compare Visit Arroyo
    7.5/10★★★★☆

    Visit Arroyo
20. 20
    
    Feldera 7.4

    Best forSQL-first streaming and incremental views

    A SQL-first engine for maintaining continuously updated views and pipelines.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Free plan Our Feldera verdict → + Compare Visit Feldera
    7.4/10★★★★☆

    Visit Feldera
21. 21
    
    Pathway Live Data Framework 7.3

    Best forPython teams building flexible live-data pipelines

    A flexible framework for teams building stateful real-time pipelines in Python or SQL.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Free plan Our Pathway Live Data Framework verdict → + Compare Visit Pathway
    7.3/10★★★★☆

    Visit Pathway
22. 22
    E
    Esper 7.2

    Best forJava or C# teams using event-processing SQL

    A mature, self-hosted choice for Java and C# teams building event-driven applications.

    • SQL processing
    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Free plan Our Esper verdict → + Compare Visit Esper
    7.2/10★★★★☆

    Visit Esper
23. 23
    
    Quix Streams 6.9

    Best forPython teams processing Kafka streams

    A focused open-source choice for Python teams building stateful Kafka stream applications.

    • Event-time windows
    • Stateful processing

    Open source Our Quix Streams verdict → + Compare Visit Quix Streams
    6.9/10★★★☆☆

    Visit Quix Streams
24. 24
    
    Timely Dataflow 6.8

    Best forRust developers building low-level dataflows

    A low-level Rust framework for stateful, cyclic, distributed dataflows.

    • Stateful processing

    Open source Our Timely Dataflow verdict → + Compare Try Timely Dataflow
    6.8/10★★★☆☆

    Try Timely Dataflow
25. 25
    A
    AFL++ 1.0

    Best forSecurity teams fuzzing software targets

    A capable software fuzzer, but a poor fit for stream processing workloads.

    Free plan Our AFL++ verdict → + Compare Visit AFL++
    1.0/10☆☆☆☆☆

    Visit AFL++

No tools match those filters.

Compare at a glance

#	Tool	Free plan	Paid from	Deployment model	SQL processing	Stateful processing	Event-time windows	Score
1	Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink	No	$0.11/unit usage-based	Cloud	Yes	Yes	Yes	9.3
2	Apache Flink	Yes	Free	Self-hosted	Yes	Yes	Yes	9.2
3	Azure Stream Analytics	No		Hybrid	Yes	Yes	Yes	9.1
4	Google Cloud Dataflow	No						9.0
5	Kafka Streams	Yes	Free	Self-hosted	No	Yes	Yes	8.9
6	Confluent Cloud	Yes	$385/mo	Cloud				8.8
7	Apache Beam		Free					8.7
8	Apache Spark	Yes	Free					8.6
9	Apache NiFi		Free					8.5
10	Hazelcast Platform	Yes		Hybrid	Yes	Yes	Yes	8.3
11	ksqlDB	Yes		Hybrid	Yes	Yes	Yes	8.1
12	RisingWave	No	$0.23/unit usage-based	Hybrid				8.0
13	Apache Samza	Yes	Free	Self-hosted	Yes	Yes	Yes	7.9
14	ASApache Storm	Yes	Free	Self-hosted		Yes		7.8
15	Apache Heron		Free					7.8
16	Siddhi		Free	Self-hosted	Yes	Yes	Yes	7.8
17	Materialize	Yes	$1.50/unit usage-based	Hybrid	Yes	Yes	Yes	7.7
18	Timeplus	No	$199/mo					7.6
19	Arroyo		Free	Hybrid	Yes	Yes	Yes	7.5
20	Feldera	Yes		Hybrid	Yes	Yes	Yes	7.4
21	Pathway Live Data Framework	Yes		Hybrid	Yes	Yes	Yes	7.3
22	EEsper	Yes	Free	Self-hosted	Yes	Yes	Yes	7.2
23	Quix Streams		Free	Hybrid	No	Yes	Yes	6.9
24	Timely Dataflow		Free	Self-hosted		Yes		6.8
25	AAFL++	Yes	Free					1.0

Head-to-head All 27 comparisons →

• Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink vs Apache Flink
• Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink vs Azure Stream Analytics
• Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink vs Google Cloud Dataflow
• Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink vs Kafka Streams
• Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink vs Confluent Cloud
• Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink vs Apache Beam
• Amazon Managed Service for Apache Flink vs Apache Spark
• Apache Flink vs Azure Stream Analytics
• Apache Flink vs Google Cloud Dataflow

How we rank stream processing software

Every tool on this page was researched by iTechGuides Editors from its official website — pricing pages, plan tables and product documentation. We rank on how well each one does this category's core job, what the free or entry plan includes, and where it falls short. Where we have enough verified facts, the score out of 10 is a rubric — job fit, value and how much we could verify — shown with its breakdown on every tool's page; a tool we have not verified enough to score yet shows its rank without a number. Scores are re-checked when a product changes its plans. Read the full editorial policy, or submit a tool we missed.

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated 7 Oct 2026 · How we research and update