Runtimes & workflows
Durabull vs Upstash QStash
QStash pushes messages to your HTTPS endpoints. Upstash Workflow adds durable steps at $1 per 100K steps. Neither product reads BullMQ.
Choose QStash for serverless or edge HTTP handlers, scheduled calls, and fan-out to URLs without running Redis.
Choose Durabull when your existing BullMQ runtime meets your needs and you want queue inspection, alerts, and MCP without changing the delivery model.
Capabilities
The details that change the decision
| Feature | Durabull | QStash |
|---|---|---|
| Broker | Your Redis + BullMQ | Upstash HTTP push |
| 1M messages, pay-as-you-go | Free to start + your infrastructure | $10 (one delivery each) |
| 10M messages | Free to start + your infrastructure | $100 |
| 100M messages | Free to start + your infrastructure | $1,000 |
Setup
How QStash connects
HTTP publish to QStash; QStash calls your URL. No Redis queue keys.
Application changes. Yes if you leave BullMQ.
- Queue discovery
- N/A.
- Environments
- Upstash projects, not Redis connections.
- Alerts
- Not a BullMQ alerter. The Prod Pack add-on (+$200/mo) adds Prometheus and Datadog integrations.
- AI & MCP
- No official QStash operations MCP found. Upstash publishes machine-readable pricing markdown.
Economics
Understand what you are paying for
- QStash pricing
- As of 2026-10-20: pay-as-you-go $1 per 100K messages. Free: 1,000 messages/day. Fixed plans: 1M messages/day for $180/mo, 10M/day for $420/mo. The pricing FAQ says each delivery attempt, including each retry, is billed as a message; the pricing markdown also says retries are free. Confirm with Upstash before budgeting retry-heavy workloads.
- QStash license
- Managed service.
- Durabull
- Hosted dashboard is free to start. Redis, worker compute, and infrastructure operations remain your costs. Check the pricing page for current terms. Apache License 2.0 (OSI-approved open source). Self-host on your own infrastructure.
| Volume | Runtime / product charges | Durabull hosted fee | Unit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1M messages | $10 | Free to start + your infrastructure | published message |
| 10M messages | $100 | Free to start + your infrastructure | published message |
| 100M messages | $1,000 | Free to start + your infrastructure | published message |
QStash pay-as-you-go at $1 per 100K billable messages (pricing as of 2026-10-20): one endpoint, successful first delivery, no fan-out or retries. Bandwidth, handler compute, and add-ons excluded. Retries would add billable messages under the pricing FAQ. Durabull’s free-to-start hosted dashboard excludes Redis, workers, and operations.
Questions about QStash and Durabull
Are QStash retries free?
Budget for them. The QStash pricing FAQ says each delivery attempt counts as one message, so a retry that succeeds bills two messages. The machine-readable pricing markdown also contains a “retries are free” line, so confirm the terms with Upstash. Our illustration assumes successful first delivery to one endpoint and does not depend on a retry rate.
Evidence
Sources & methodology
Durabull details: product documentation, pricing, and MCP reference. Found a change? Send a correction.
Continue your research
- Durabull vsInngestReplaces BullMQ. Cloud bills executions (run + each step). Official MCP inspects Inngest runs, not Redis queues.
- Durabull vsCloudflare QueuesQueue for Cloudflare Workers. Typically 3 operations per message; $0.40 per million after 1M included on Workers Paid.
- Durabull vsAmazon SQS + Step FunctionsManaged AWS queue plus optional orchestrator. Low per-request prices, but every API call bills, including empty receives. Not BullMQ.
Practical guides
Connect Redis. Queues appear.
Inspect your Redis-backed BullMQ queues in one place. Hosted Durabull is free to start.