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Hazelcast vs VMware Tanzu GemFire

Hazelcast: A Java in-memory data grid and stream processor that embeds in your app or runs as a cluster. VMware Tanzu GemFire: Broadcom's commercial in-memory data grid, the enterprise build of Apache Geode.

key differences

  • Licensing: Hazelcast is open source (permissive) (Apache 2.0 (Community); Hazelcast Community License for some modules); VMware Tanzu GemFire is proprietary (Broadcom commercial license).
  • Only Hazelcast has joins, vector search, json, change data capture, compression.
  • Only VMware Tanzu GemFire has role-based access.
  • Hazelcast can run embedded in your application process.

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

choose vmware-tanzu-gemfire for

  • +Low-latency reference and session data for Spring apps
  • +Mainframe offload caches
  • +Event-driven processing with continuous queries

best at · Cache, Sessions, OLTP

HazelcastA Java in-memory data grid and stream processor that embeds in your app or runs as a cluster.
VMware Tanzu GemFireBroadcom's commercial in-memory data grid, the enterprise build of Apache Geode.
overview
Primary model
Key-Value
Key-Value
Also supports
Document, Vector
Object
Type
Database engine
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
Hazelcast, Inc.
Broadcom (VMware Tanzu)
First release
2008
2002
Latest version
5.7.0 (May 12, 2026)
10.2.3 (May 7, 2026)
License
Open source (permissive)Apache 2.0 (Community); Hazelcast Community License for some modules
ProprietaryBroadcom commercial license
Free tier
✓
—
popularity
WhichDB Score
33.5
4.7
Rank
#63
#399
GitHub stars
6.6K
–
Stack Overflow questions
2.9K
501
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
Native
Multi-region
Active active
Active active
ACID
Limited
Limited
Consistency
Eventual, Strong
Strong
Schema
Flexible
Flexible
Architecture
In memory, Distributed, Embedded, Client server
In memory, Distributed, 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
SQL, Predicate API, Jet Pipeline API
OQL
Client languages
Java, C#, C++, Python, JavaScript, Go
Java, C++, C#
Best for
Cache, Sessions, Streaming, Real-time analytics
Cache, Sessions, OLTP, Real-time analytics
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

Hazelcast vs VMware Tanzu GemFire: FAQ

What is the difference between Hazelcast and VMware Tanzu GemFire?

Hazelcast: A Java in-memory data grid and stream processor that embeds in your app or runs as a cluster. VMware Tanzu GemFire: Broadcom's commercial in-memory data grid, the enterprise build of Apache Geode. Licensing: Hazelcast is open source (permissive) (Apache 2.0 (Community); Hazelcast Community License for some modules); VMware Tanzu GemFire is proprietary (Broadcom commercial license). Only Hazelcast has joins, vector search, json, change data capture, compression. Only VMware Tanzu GemFire has role-based access.

When should I choose Hazelcast over VMware Tanzu GemFire?

Choose Hazelcast for shared low-latency state for microservices; fraud detection and payment stream processing; and web session clustering for Java app servers. Choose VMware Tanzu GemFire for low-latency reference and session data for Spring apps; mainframe offload caches; and event-driven processing with continuous queries.

Is Hazelcast or VMware Tanzu GemFire more popular?

Hazelcast ranks #63 on the WhichDB Score (33.5/100) and VMware Tanzu GemFire ranks #399 (4.7/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are Hazelcast and VMware Tanzu GemFire open source?

Yes. Hazelcast is open source. License: Apache 2.0 (Community); Hazelcast Community License for some modules. No. VMware Tanzu GemFire is proprietary, closed-source software. License: Broadcom commercial license.