# Valkey vs Zero-K

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Valkey | Zero-K |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 81/100 ✓ | 62/100 |
| Rank in category | #3 of 38 in Databases | #2 of 23 in Gaming |
| GitHub stars | 27 552 ✓ | 877 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +265 ✓ | +26 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 22 ✓ | 0 |
| Latest release | 9.0.7 · 27 Oct 2026 | — |
| Setup | Easy | Easy ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes ✓ | No |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | GPL-2.0 |
| Main language | C | Lua |

## Which one should you pick?

Valkey scores 81/100 against 62/100 for Zero-K, so it is the safer default.

Valkey ships more often: 22 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for Zero-K.

Valkey is growing faster right now (+265 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Valkey](https://selfhost.directory/project/valkey) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/valkey.md)
- [Zero-K](https://selfhost.directory/project/zero-k) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/zero-k.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/valkey-vs-zero-k