vs

Chronicle Map vs Hazelcast

Chronicle Map: Off-heap, memory-mapped key-value store for Java with microsecond latency and cross-process sharing. Hazelcast: A Java in-memory data grid and stream processor that embeds in your app or runs as a cluster.

key differences

  • Horizontal scaling is none in Chronicle Map and native in Hazelcast.
  • Only Hazelcast has transactions, joins, secondary indexes, vector search, json.

choose chronicle-map for

  • +Low-latency reference data and order-book state in trading systems
  • +Sharing state between JVM processes on one host
  • +Large off-heap caches that survive restarts

best at · Cache, Tick data, Embedded

choose hazelcast for

  • +Shared low-latency state for microservices
  • +Fraud detection and payment stream processing
  • +Web session clustering for Java app servers
  • +Distributed caching in front of RDBMS

best at · Cache, Sessions, Streaming

overview
Primary model
Key-Value
Key-Value
Also supports
–
Document, Vector
Type
Embedded library
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
Chronicle Software
Hazelcast, Inc.
First release
2014
2008
Latest version
2026.1 (Jan 29, 2026)
5.7.0 (May 12, 2026)
License
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0
Open source (permissive)Apache 2.0 (Community); Hazelcast Community License for some modules
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
8.7
33.5
Rank
#321
#63
GitHub stars
3K
6.6K
Stack Overflow questions
122
2.9K
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Horizontal scaling
None
Native
Multi-region
None
Active active
ACID
Limited
Limited
Consistency
Strong
Eventual, Strong
Schema
Flexible
Flexible
Architecture
Embedded, In memory
In memory, Distributed, Embedded, Client server
deployment
Self-hosted
✓
✓
Vendor-managed cloud
—
—
Serverless
—
—
Embedded
✓
✓
Edge
—
—
Clouds
–
AWS, Google Cloud, Azure
capabilities
Transactions
—
✓
Joins
—
✓
Secondary indexes
—
✓
Full-text search
—
—
Vector search
—
✓
Geospatial
—
—
JSON
—
✓
Change data capture
—
✓
Triggers
—
—
Stored procedures
—
✓
Materialized views
—
—
TTL / expiry
—
✓
Pub/Sub
—
✓
Columnar storage
—
—
In-memory
✓
✓
Durable persistence
✓
✓
Compression
—
✓
Encryption at rest
—
—
Role-based access
—
—
Time travel
—
—
Branching
—
—
Online schema changes
—
—
Streaming ingest
—
✓
Offline sync
—
—
Runs in WebAssembly
—
—
interfaces
Query languages
Java Map API
SQL, Predicate API, Jet Pipeline API
Client languages
Java
Java, C#, C++, Python, JavaScript, Go
Best for
Cache, Tick data, Embedded
Cache, Sessions, Streaming, Real-time analytics

Chronicle Map vs Hazelcast: FAQ

What is the difference between Chronicle Map and Hazelcast?

Chronicle Map: Off-heap, memory-mapped key-value store for Java with microsecond latency and cross-process sharing. Hazelcast: A Java in-memory data grid and stream processor that embeds in your app or runs as a cluster. Horizontal scaling is none in Chronicle Map and native in Hazelcast. Only Hazelcast has transactions, joins, secondary indexes, vector search, json.

When should I choose Chronicle Map over Hazelcast?

Choose Chronicle Map for low-latency reference data and order-book state in trading systems; sharing state between JVM processes on one host; and large off-heap caches that survive restarts. Choose Hazelcast for shared low-latency state for microservices; fraud detection and payment stream processing; and web session clustering for Java app servers.

Is Chronicle Map or Hazelcast more popular?

Hazelcast ranks #63 on the WhichDB Score (33.5/100) and Chronicle Map ranks #321 (8.7/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are Chronicle Map and Hazelcast open source?

Yes. Chronicle Map is open source. License: Apache License 2.0. Yes. Hazelcast is open source. License: Apache 2.0 (Community); Hazelcast Community License for some modules.