Valkey vs Redis in 2025: What You Need to Know

In March 2024, Redis Labs changed Redis from BSD to a dual license (RSALv2 + SSPLv1). Within weeks, the Linux Foundation announced Valkey - a community fork of Redis 7.2.4.

If you're running Redis in production, you're probably wondering: does this affect me?

Short answer: probably not immediately, but you should understand the landscape.

What Actually Changed

Redis Licensing (Before)

Redis was BSD-3-Clause licensed. You could:

• Use it anywhere
• Modify it freely
• Build commercial products with it
• Offer it as a managed service

Redis Licensing (After)

Redis is now dual-licensed under RSALv2 and SSPLv1. You can still:

• Use it in your applications (commercial or not)
• Modify it for internal use
• Self-host it

You cannot:

• Offer Redis as a managed database service (competing with Redis Cloud)
• Bundle it as part of a commercial DBaaS offering

Who's Actually Affected?

Use Case	Affected?
Self-hosted Redis for your app	No
Using Redis Cloud	No
Using AWS ElastiCache (Redis)	Complicated
Using Azure Cache for Redis	Complicated
Building a Redis-as-a-service product	Yes
Contributing to Redis	Different terms now

Most developers using Redis for caching, sessions, or queues? Nothing changes.

Enter Valkey

Valkey is Redis 7.2.4 with BSD-3-Clause license maintained by the Linux Foundation. Contributors include AWS, Google Cloud, Oracle, Ericsson, and Snap.

Key points:

• 100% compatible with Redis 7.2 protocol
• Same commands, same data structures
• BSD license (truly open source)
• Backed by major cloud providers

Valkey Roadmap

Valkey isn't just frozen Redis. Active development includes:

• Performance improvements
• New features (potentially diverging from Redis)
• Community-driven roadmap

As of early 2025, Valkey 8.0 has been released with new features not present in Redis OSS.

Compatibility: What Works

Commands

All Redis commands work in Valkey. If your code uses:

• GET/SET/MGET/MSET
• Hashes (HSET, HGET, etc.)
• Lists, Sets, Sorted Sets
• Streams
• Pub/Sub
• Transactions
• Lua scripting

It works identically.

Client Libraries

Redis clients work with Valkey:

• redis-py (Python)
• ioredis / redis (Node.js)
• Jedis / Lettuce (Java)
• go-redis (Go)
• StackExchange.Redis (.NET)

Most clients don't care - they speak the RESP protocol, which is the same.

Tools

Redis tools generally work:

• redis-cli (connect to Valkey server)
• Redis GUIs (including Redimo)
• Monitoring tools expecting Redis metrics

Redimo auto-detects whether you're connected to Redis or Valkey and shows it in the status bar.

Differences to Watch

1. Module Ecosystem

Redis modules (RedisJSON, RedisSearch, RedisGraph) are Redis Ltd. products with their own licensing. They may not be available for Valkey.

Valkey approach:

• Core functionality in the main project
• Community-developed module alternatives
• Some modules may be reimplemented

If you depend heavily on Redis modules, evaluate alternatives before migrating.

2. Enterprise Features

Redis Enterprise features aren't in open source Redis either:

• Active-Active geo-replication
• Advanced clustering
• Tiered storage

Valkey won't have these. If you need them, you're looking at Redis Enterprise or managed services anyway.

3. Future Divergence

As both projects evolve, commands may diverge:

• Valkey might add features Redis doesn't have
• Redis might add features Valkey doesn't adopt
• Behavior might differ in edge cases

For now (2025), they're essentially identical. In 3 years? Check the docs.

Cloud Provider Stance

AWS

ElastiCache and MemoryDB are transitioning to Valkey. New managed offerings are Valkey-based.

Google Cloud

Memorystore supports both. Likely to favor Valkey for new development.

Azure

Azure Cache for Redis continues with Redis licensing terms. Watch for Valkey options.

Other Providers

Aiven, Upstash, and others are adding Valkey support alongside Redis.

Should You Migrate?

Stay on Redis If:

• You're using Redis Cloud (no benefit to switching)
• You depend on Redis modules without Valkey alternatives
• Your managed provider only offers Redis
• Everything works and licensing doesn't affect you

Consider Valkey If:

• You self-host and prefer true open source
• You're starting a new project
• You want to align with Linux Foundation governance
• Your cloud provider is migrating anyway

Migration Path

If you decide to switch:

1. Test compatibility: Point your staging app at Valkey
2. Check modules: Identify alternatives or workarounds
3. Update client config: Change hostname/port
4. Monitor: Watch for any behavioral differences

For most applications, it's literally just changing the connection string.

Redimo and Valkey

Redimo works with both. Connect to either:

redis://localhost:6379    # Redis
valkey://localhost:6379   # Valkey (same protocol)

The status bar shows which you're connected to. All features work identically because the underlying protocol is the same.

Pattern monitors, key browsing, bulk operations, Safe Mode - everything works on Valkey.

The Bigger Picture

This isn't unique to Redis. Open source projects changing licenses (or being forked) has happened with:

• MySQL → MariaDB
• Elasticsearch → OpenSearch
• Terraform → OpenTofu
• MongoDB → DocumentDB (different approach)

The pattern:

1. Successful open source project
2. Company tightens licensing for business reasons
3. Community forks with permissive license
4. Both continue, sometimes diverging

Usually, both versions remain viable for years. Choose based on your specific needs, not ideology.

Practical Advice

1. Don't panic: Your Redis deployment isn't suddenly illegal
2. Don't rush: Valkey is stable, but so is Redis
3. Evaluate for new projects: Consider Valkey if starting fresh
4. Watch your providers: See what AWS/GCP/Azure offer
5. Test before migrating: 99% compatible isn't 100%

Summary

Aspect	Redis	Valkey
License	RSALv2 / SSPL	BSD-3-Clause
Governance	Redis Ltd.	Linux Foundation
Compatibility	-	Redis 7.2 compatible
Modules	Full ecosystem	Growing alternatives
Cloud support	All major	Growing
Protocol	RESP	RESP (identical)

For most developers, this is a non-event. Your apps work either way. Pick based on licensing philosophy, cloud provider support, and specific feature needs.

And if you're using Redimo to manage your data - it doesn't matter which one you choose. We support both.

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Questions about Valkey compatibility? Check our docs or connect and see for yourself.