Kafka vs NATS:Which is more popular?
In September 2026, Kafka had more branded searches than NATS among message queue services worldwide. Kafka had about 880 branded searches, while NATS had 720. Kafka made up 0.7% of all message queue service searches we track, and NATS accounted for 0.57%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about message queue services, Kafka appeared in all five answers and NATS in three. Kafka was mentioned before NATS in four out of five answers.
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Top message queue services in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews
In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Kafka appeared in all five answers. NATS was mentioned in three out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Kafka was listed before NATS in four out of five answers.
Most recommended by AI
Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.
Mentioned by AI
Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.
RabbitMQ5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
Kafka5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
Azure Service Bus4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
Google Cloud Pub/Sub4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
Amazon SQS4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
NATS3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
ActiveMQ0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
ZeroMQ0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
Redis Streams0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers- Google Pub/Sub0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers
See every answer about message queue services
5 answers
Asked ChatGPT
“Which message queue service should I use?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What are the best message queue services?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What's the best message queue service for service-to-service messaging?”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“message queue services”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“message broker service”
Not named in any answer:
Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 21, 2026.
Is Kafka or NATS more popular in search?
This chart shows how often people search Google for Kafka and NATS by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all ten message queue services we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.
Share of searches by month for Kafka, NATS. The figures are in the table below the chart.
View monthly share of searches table
| Month | RabbitMQ | Azure Service Bus | Google Cloud Pub/Sub | ActiveMQ | Amazon SQS | ZeroMQ | Redis Streams | Google Pub/Sub | Kafka | NATS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 62.3% | 6.8% | 5% | 6.8% | 5.6% | 6.8% | 3.7% | 2% | 0.46% | 0.41% |
| Nov 2025 | 59.6% | 6.6% | 6.1% | 6.6% | 5.4% | 8% | 4.4% | 2.4% | 0.54% | 0.48% |
| Dec 2025 | 63.3% | 5.7% | 7% | 5.7% | 4.7% | 7% | 3.8% | 2.1% | 0.51% | 0.41% |
| Jan 2026 | 61.2% | 6.7% | 5.3% | 5.5% | 5.5% | 8.2% | 4.5% | 2% | 0.56% | 0.4% |
| Feb 2026 | 62% | 6.8% | 6.4% | 5.6% | 5.6% | 6.8% | 3.7% | 2% | 0.56% | 0.41% |
| Mar 2026 | 57.8% | 6.4% | 8.8% | 6.4% | 5.2% | 7.8% | 4.3% | 2.3% | 0.68% | 0.46% |
| Apr 2026 | 53.1% | 7.1% | 9.3% | 10.6% | 5.8% | 7.1% | 3.9% | 2.1% | 0.59% | 0.42% |
| May 2026 | 57.9% | 6.3% | 8.3% | 6.3% | 6.3% | 7.7% | 4.2% | 1.9% | 0.56% | 0.46% |
| Jun 2026 | 60.2% | 8% | 6.8% | 6.6% | 5.4% | 6.6% | 3.6% | 1.9% | 0.48% | 0.48% |
| Jul 2026 | 61.4% | 6.7% | 6.2% | 6.7% | 5.5% | 6.7% | 3.7% | 2% | 0.6% | 0.49% |
| Aug 2026 | 58.7% | 7.9% | 6.7% | 6.4% | 6.4% | 6.4% | 4.3% | 1.9% | 0.7% | 0.57% |
| Sep 2026 | 58.6% | 7.8% | 6.9% | 6.4% | 6.4% | 6.4% | 4.3% | 1.9% | 0.7% | 0.57% |
How has the Kafka and NATS comparison changed over the last 12 months?
3 findings
- Kafka was ahead of NATS in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Kafka’s share of searches among message queue services worldwide moved from 0.46% to 0.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1K to 880.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, NATS’s share of searches among message queue services worldwide moved from 0.41% to 0.57%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 880 to 720.
How did search popularity change for message queue services worldwide in September 2026?
2 changes
How are branded searches counted?
2 search terms
Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Kafka’s and NATS’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.
Other head-to-heads among message queue services
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