Compare Sequin

Sequin is a change data capture (CDC) tool that makes it easy to stream changes from your Postgres database to streaming platforms, queues, and other destinations.

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Sequin vs Debezium

Debezium is an open-source platform for change data capture (CDC), built on Apache Kafka. While both Sequin and Debezium excel at capturing changes from Postgres, they differ in significant ways:

1. Infrastructure requirements: Debezium requires Kafka and Zookeeper to operate. Sequin is a standalone Docker container that works directly with your Postgres database.

2. Destination support: Debezium sends changes to Kafka, requiring Kafka Connect to route to other destinations. Sequin streams directly to popular destinations like Kafka, SQS, Redis Streams, and HTTP endpoints. This means less setup, transforms, and maintenance.

3. Web console: Sequin has a full-featured web console for setup, monitoring, and observability.

4. Operational simplicity: With Sequin, you don’t need to be a Kafka expert, learn Zookeeper, or manage complex configuration. Just point Sequin at your database and desired destination.

5. Cloud option: Sequin offers a fully managed cloud option with Sequin Cloud.

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Sequin vs Fivetran/Airbyte

Fivetran and Airbyte are ETL tools primarily designed for data warehouse ingestion. While they can capture changes from databases, they differ from Sequin in key ways:

1. Real-time vs batch: Fivetran and Airbyte typically operate in batch intervals (minutes to hours). Sequin streams changes in real-time as they occur.

2. Use case focus: These tools excel at analytical use cases and data warehouse loading. Sequin is purpose-built for operational use cases like triggering workflows, maintaining caches, and keeping services in sync.

3. Destination types: Fivetran and Airbyte primarily support data warehouse destinations. Sequin focuses on operational destinations like queues, streams, and webhooks.

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Sequin vs Postgres Triggers

Postgres triggers are database functions that execute in response to database events. While useful for simple operations, they have limitations:

1. Language constraints: Triggers must be written in PL/pgSQL. With Sequin, you can handle changes in your application code using any programming language.

2. Processing guarantees: Triggers execute synchronously with the transaction. Sequin provides exactly-once processing with automatic retries and failure handling outside the transaction.

3. Scalability: Complex trigger logic can impact database performance. Sequin offloads processing to external services while maintaining exactly-once processing guarantees.

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Sequin vs LISTEN/NOTIFY

Postgres’ LISTEN/NOTIFY is a built-in pub/sub system. While lightweight, it has important limitations:

1. Delivery guarantees: LISTEN/NOTIFY offers at-most-once delivery. If a consumer is offline or fails to process a notification, it’s lost forever. Sequin guarantees exactly-once processing.

2. Persistence: Notifications are ephemeral and cannot be replayed. Sequin can backfill historical data.

3. Scale: LISTEN/NOTIFY is best suited for simple, low-volume use cases. Sequin is built to handle high-throughput scenarios with multiple consumers.

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Sequin vs Prisma Pulse

Prisma Pulse is a managed change data capture (CDC) service that’s part of the Prisma ecosystem. While both Prisma Pulse and Sequin enable real-time database change subscriptions, they differ in several ways:

1. Integration model: Prisma Pulse is tightly integrated with Prisma ORM and requires using Prisma Client (which only supports JavaScript). Sequin works with any programming language or framework.

2. Destination support: Sequin streams directly to multiple destinations (Kafka, SQS, Redis Streams, HTTP) and as a result can be used for a wider range of use cases. Prisma Pulse delivers changes to the Prisma SDK / ORM via a black-box streaming mechanism and JavaScript callbacks in the client. It is primarily designed for in-application features.

3. Guarantees: Sequin provides exactly-once processing with automatic retries and strict ordering that you can configure. You can enable exactly-once processing with Prisma Pulse by turning on persistence.

4. Infrastructure: Prisma Pulse is a fully managed service requiring a Prisma Data Platform account. You can run Sequin locally with a single Docker command for development and testing, self-host in production, or use as a managed service via Sequin Cloud.

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Why Choose Sequin?

Sequin brings together the best aspects of these tools while eliminating complexity:

• Performance: Sequin is the fastest change data capture tool. See our benchmark.
• Simple setup: Deploy a single Docker container - no Kafka or Zookeeper required
• Flexible destinations: Stream directly to Kafka, SQS, Redis, or HTTP endpoints
• Exactly-once processing: Never miss a change or process it twice
• Real-time operation: Stream changes as they happen, not in batches
• Developer experience: Modern web console and simple configuration

For most operational change data capture use cases, Sequin provides the ideal balance of functionality and simplicity.