Feature Comparison: Reliable Queue for Valkey & Redis vs. Amazon SQS

Amazon SQS (Simple Queue Service) is a fully managed message queuing service within the AWS ecosystem. SQS has become popular because of its simplicity, scalability, and ability to integrate with other AWS services. Even on its free tier, SQS offers many enterprise-grade features, such as reliable message delivery and a dead-letter queue (DLQ).

Redisson is a Java client for Valkey & Redis. One of its key features is its own queuing service, Reliable Queue. It shares many features with SQS, but Reliable Queue outdoes Amazon’s offering in several ways. Below, we'll compare the features and capabilities of Redisson PRO Reliable Queue and Amazon SQS to help you determine which is better suited for your Java-based enterprise applications.

Features of Reliable Queue
and How They Compare to Amazon SQS

Durability

Redisson PRO Reliable Queue is highly durable, offering synchronous replication and Valkey/Redis persistence (AOF and RDB). As part of AWS, Amazon SQS uses the Multi-AZ (Availability Zones) deployment strategy.

Queue Size Limit

Reliable Queue allows you to configure a queue size limit with the maxSize parameter. Amazon SQS offers an unlimited queue size.

Use cases: Systems with memory or processing limitations, or where backpressure is required to protect downstream services.

Message Size Limit

Limits on the size of messages are configurable with Reliable Queue via the maxMessageSize variable. In Amazon SQS, the size limit is 256 KB per message.

Dead-Letter Queue (DLQ)

Both Reliable Queue and Amazon SQS provide a DLQ.

Message Visibility Timeout

Redisson PRO's Reliable Queue includes a configurable visibility timeout per message or queue. This timeout avoids processing messages multiple times by temporarily making them invisible until further inspection. Amazon SQS also has a message visibility timeout, configurable per message, with a maximum timeout of 12 hours.

Delivery Attempts and Limit

Reliable Queue allows you to configure the number of delivery attempts using the deliveryLimit parameter. Messages are sent to the DLQ after the maximum number of delivery attempts. Amazon SQS offers similar features, as delivery attempts are configurable with the maxReceiveCount parameter. SQS also has a DLQ for failed deliveries.

Message Expiration (TTL)

Messages in Reliable Queue can be set to expire after a configurable time-to-live (TTL). Amazon SQS takes a different approach, offering message retention for up to 14 days.

Message Headers (Metadata)

Rich message metadata allows for advanced routing, filtering, or processing logic. Both Reliable Queue and Amazon SQS support metadata in message headers. 

Use cases: Microservices architectures where headers can carry tracing, routing, or other contextual information for downstream consumers

Message Priority

A priority setting allows critical messages to be processed ahead of less important ones for more fine-grained control over processing order. You can set priority levels from 0 to 9 in Reliable Queue. Amazon SQS does not offer a way to set message priority.

Use case: Real-time alerts, financial transactions, or any workflow where particular messages must be handled with a higher priority than others in the queue.

Message Delay/Scheduling

Reliable Queue supports delaying or scheduling messages, and it is configurable per message with millisecond precision. Amazon SQS allows messages to be delayed by up to 15 minutes per message.

Use cases: High-volume trading, controlling IoT devices, or any application requiring more precise timing for message processing than SQS's 15-minute limit.

Deduplication

Reliable Queue compares message IDs or payload hashes within a configurable timeframe to avoid message duplication. Amazon SQS performs deduplication via FIFO queues by ID within a five-minute window.

Acknowledgments

Redisson PRO’s Reliable Queue ensures exactly-once delivery by removing messages only upon successful acknowledgment. It offers both manual and automatic message acknowledgment options. Amazon SQS also supports acknowledgments.

Negative Acknowledgments

For negative acknowledgments, Reliable Queue allows failed messages to be retried or rejected and sent to the DLQ. Amazon SQS does not support negative acknowledgments.

Use cases: For complex workflows that use specific retry schedules, scenarios that require the isolation of certain failure types for dedicated analysis.

Bulk Operations

Both Reliable Queue and Amazon SQS support several bulk operations. Reliable Queue can do batch add, poll, ack, nack, remove, and move. Amazon SQS supports up to ten batch send, receive, or delete operations.

Use cases: High-throughput systems where minimizing round-trips is critical for performance.

Polling

Short and long polling are available in both Reliable Queue and Amazon SQS, although the maximum polling time in SQS is 20 seconds.

Persistence/Replication

Both Reliable Queue and Amazon SQS provide persistence through replication. However, Reliable Queue offers true synchronous replication with per-operation control. In contrast, SQS only achieves persistence via multi-AZ replication.

Use cases: Mission-critical applications where data loss is unacceptable.

Custom Codecs and Data Types

Reliable Queue can process messages with custom codecs and various data types, with support for custom serialization. Amazon SQS only supports string and binary payloads with limited attributes.

Use cases: Applications that must queue complex objects or binary data structures that cannot be easily represented as plain strings.

Management Options

Reliable Queue can be used anywhere Valkey or Redis can be installed, which means it can be self-hosted or fully managed. Since Amazon SQS is part of AWS, fully managed is your only option.

Cost & Control

Cost savings and operational control of running queues on existing Valkey or Redis infrastructure, avoiding SQS’s per-request charges and vendor lock-in.

Redisson Reliable Queue can use self-hosted or any Valkey or Redis vendor, giving teams full control over data residency and compliance.

Reliable Queue vs. Amazon SQS: Who’s the Winner?

As this feature comparison shows, both Reliable Queue and Amazon SQS are durable message queuing services with numerous features aimed at enterprise application developers. However, Reliable Queue has some features that have no equivalent in Amazon SQS, such as message priorities and negative acknowledgments. For many shared features, Reliable Queue offers greater configurability, giving Java developers more control and flexibility.

In addition, Redisson PRO’s Reliable Queue is built on top of Valkey or Redis. If you want to install Valkey and Redisson PRO on your own hardware, you can get Reliable Queue on-premise, an option that’s not available with Amazon SQS and other AWS services. For its added flexibility and wide-ranging use cases, Reliable Queue is the clear winner here.