ElastiCache vs Momento: connecting clients and controlling capacity

Choose ElastiCache for Valkey when you want AWS-native caching with Serverless or node-based deployments. Choose Momento Cache when a growing application fleet needs dedicated, high-performance Valkey with stable standalone-client integration. Its gateway scales to millions of clients while Momento manages the cluster underneath. Both Cluster and Flex include built-in autoscaling, with different ways to select capacity.

At a glance

About Amazon ElastiCache

Amazon ElastiCache is an AWS-managed caching service with Serverless and node-based deployment options. ElastiCache for Valkey runs the Valkey engine, while Redis OSS is a related offering. AWS manages infrastructure maintenance. Customers choose the deployment model and, for node-based clusters, the capacity and topology.

Recent updates

September 2, 2026 - Momento introduced Cluster and Flex capacity for Momento Cache. Both provide dedicated, managed Valkey resources. Cluster exposes topology choices, while Flex selects topology within capacity bounds, giving teams a choice in how they configure capacity while Momento operates the cluster.

June 2, 2026 - AWS announced optional ElastiCache durability. It gives supported node-based Valkey 9 deployments another persistence choice. Current eligibility requires cluster mode, Multi-AZ, and a replica per shard, selected at creation. Serverless and in-place conversion of existing non-durable clusters are excluded, so decide whether durability matters before selecting the deployment.

Managing complexity at scale

Node-based ElastiCache in standalone mode, with cluster mode disabled, has one shard. The dataset must fit on one primary node. Its largest listed Valkey node, cache.r5.24xlarge, provides about 636 GiB of RAM before reserves and overhead. Replicas preserve additional copies of the same dataset. Growing beyond that ceiling means moving to a sharded, cluster-mode-enabled deployment and using cluster-aware clients.

Momento’s gateway keeps standalone-client integration stable as the backend cluster grows. It presents dedicated Valkey capacity as a single standalone node and handles node discovery and routing, so application clients do not track topology changes. The Momento Cache gateway also handles connections, authentication, and TLS termination, supporting millions of clients while Momento manages the cluster underneath.

Autoscaling performance matters

ElastiCache Serverless has built-in autoscaling. Node-based ElastiCache also supports autoscaling, configured through CloudWatch and Application Auto Scaling. For an anticipated traffic increase that exceeds Serverless scaling pace, AWS recommends pre-scaling at least 60 minutes ahead.

Momento Cluster and Flex have the same built-in autoscaling capability. Cluster lets you select instances, shards, replicas, and zones. Flex lets you set capacity and replication bounds while Momento selects the topology. With either option, Momento manages dedicated capacity and handles cluster health, failover, rolling updates, and security patches. Choose the capacity interface that fits your team while handing cluster operations to the service.

Try Momento Cache

Momento Cache puts dedicated, high-performance Valkey behind a managed gateway that keeps client integration stable as your application grows. Choose Cluster for direct control over instance types, shards, and replicas, or Flex to set capacity and replication bounds while Momento selects the topology. Both include built-in autoscaling and fully managed cluster operations.

Talk to a Momento solution engineer to evaluate the capacity model and configuration that fit your workload.

Frequently asked questions

How should I compare the bills?

The table lists starting prices of $24.67/GB-month for ElastiCache and $20.70/GB-month for Momento. Compare these capacity rates alongside the resources your application needs.

Can applications outside AWS use ElastiCache?

Yes, through supported networking arrangements, including production VPN access. ElastiCache clusters have no public IP.

What uptime and support commitments are available?

ElastiCache offers a 99.99% uptime SLA and support response from 5 minutes.

Momento offers a 99.99% uptime SLA and support response from 15 minutes. One Momento support plan covers all products and accounts in your organization.

Does ElastiCache Serverless work with a standalone-only client?

No. ElastiCache Serverless requires a cluster-capable client and TLS. Momento presents standalone-mode access through its gateway. Check that the client mode fits the deployment before moving the application.