NoLag vs PubNub
PubNub is a realtime messaging platform known for pub/sub at scale, presence, and serverless Functions for handling events. NoLag shares the realtime pub/sub foundation, but it is open-source software you run yourself rather than a hosted platform, with blueprint SDKs for common app patterns.
Short version: if you want large-scale messaging run for you, with serverless event handlers, PubNub is a strong fit. If you want realtime on your own infrastructure, and higher-level SDKs to ship common features quickly, NoLag is built for that.
At a glance
| NoLag | PubNub | |
|---|---|---|
| Core model | Realtime pub/sub over WebSocket | Realtime pub/sub messaging |
| Hosting | Self-hosted: one kraken container plus your auth | Managed platform |
| High-level SDKs | Blueprints for chat, notify, feed, dashboards, tracking, sync, and more | Pub/sub, presence, Functions |
| Server-side logic | Hydration and trigger webhooks to your own services | Serverless Functions |
| Authentication | Actor tokens with per-topic ACL; short-lived browser JWTs with @nolag/core | Access Manager grants |
| SDKs | JavaScript/TypeScript (including React Native), Go, Python | Client and server libraries across many languages |
Where NoLag is different
- Open source, on your own infrastructure. kraken is Apache-2.0 and runs as a single container, so messages stay on your servers and there is no vendor lock-in. The trade is that you operate it.
- Blueprint SDKs. Ship chat, notifications, dashboards, and tracking with a domain-specific API instead of assembling primitives.
- Actor-based auth. Permissions attach to a typed actor as per-topic ACL and are enforced at the broker. With @nolag/core, your backend mints short-lived browser JWTs signed with a project signing key.
Where PubNub is a strong fit
- Proven at very large messaging scale, with nothing for you to operate.
- Serverless Functions for in-stream event processing.
- Broad official SDK coverage.
When to choose NoLag
- You want realtime on infrastructure you control, under an open-source licence.
- You want higher-level SDKs to move faster on common patterns.
- You are comfortable running a broker yourself.
Try it
Follow the 5-minute quick start, read the self-hosting guide, then explore the high-level SDKs.