Why Redis 8.0 Is Overrated, Valkey 7.2 Is the Better Open Source In-Memory Cache

The in-memory caching landscape shifted dramatically in 2024 with Redis Inc.’s license change for Redis 7.4+ and the subsequent fork that became Valkey. With Redis 8.0 now generally available, many teams are re-evaluating their caching stack, only to find that Redis’s latest release is more hype than substance, while Valkey 7.2 delivers on the open source promise Redis once held.

Redis 8.0: Bloat Over Utility

Redis 8.0’s headline features—native vector search, enhanced JSON support, and integrated Redis Query Engine—target a narrow set of enterprise use cases, but add significant bloat for the majority of teams using Redis as a simple key-value cache or session store.…