WebSockets vs. Modern Alternatives: Choosing the Best for Real-Time Chat

WebSockets have long been touted as the go-to solution for building real-time, bidirectional communication applications on the web. They provided a persistent, low-latency connection between the client and server, enabling instant data exchange without the need for constant polling.

However, as real-time applications have become increasingly sophisticated, with growing demands for scalability, reliability, and advanced features, the limitations of WebSockets have become more apparent.

One area where the shortcomings of WebSockets are particularly evident is in the realm of real-time chat applications. Modern chat experiences require a host of advanced features, such as typing indicators, read receipts, online presence, and robust offline support.

Building these features on top of the raw WebSocket protocol can be complex and resource-intensive, often requiring significant custom development effort.

In this blog post, we'll explore some of the most promising alternatives to WebSockets for building real-time chat applications. We'll also discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each approach, and help you determine which solution might be the best fit for your specific use case and requirements.

1. Lack of out-of-the-box chat features

WebSockets only provides the underlying real-time communication layer to handle basic message exchanges. Building a fully-featured chat application on top of them requires significant custom development effort. Features like typing indicators, read receipts, online presence, offline support, and message history need to be built from scratch on top of WebSockets.

2. Challenging to scale

For very large-scale chat applications with a massive user base, WebSockets can become resource-intensive on the server side due to the constant open connections for each client. Using alternatives like a dedicated chat infrastructure platform can be more efficient for managing numerous connections, especially when many users are idle.

3. Increased development time and effort

Building a chat application from scratch using WebSockets requires significant development effort. Developers need to handle connection management, message delivery, and other essential chat capabilities all by themselves which are available natively in dedicated chat SDKs and APIs.

4. Connection stability and reliability

Ensuring reliable message delivery, especially in the face of network interruptions or server failures, requires additional implementation effort.

5. High costs

Building a chat application with WebSockets requires maintaining your own server infrastructure. This translates to ongoing costs for hardware, software licenses, and a dedicated DevOps team. Scaling the infrastructure to handle increasing user volume adds another layer of complexity and expense.

While WebSockets provide a powerful foundation for building real-time applications, there are several alternatives that can be broadly categorized into three types:

Dedicated chat SDKs and APIs

Dedicated chat SDKs and APIs like CometChat, Sendbird and Stream Chat provide a comprehensive, scalable, and feature-rich solution for building real-time chat applications. They offer pre-built features like message delivery, read receipts, user presence, authentication, and security, significantly reducing development time.

They also come with their own SDKs and UI kits for specific frameworks, making them easy to integrate and offer an excellent developer experience. They require fewer resources to build a full-featured chat application compared to rolling your own solution with WebSockets.

Best suited for

Ideal for applications requiring robust chat experiences, such as real-time messaging apps, collaboration tools, in-app chat for gaming and community and customer support.

When to use

Pub/Sub Messaging Systems

Pub/Sub messaging systems like Pubnub, Ably and Pusher allow for real-time data synchronization between clients by decoupling the publisher and subscriber. In pub-sub systems, messages are sent (published) to a central broker and then delivered to subscribers.

While they can be used as the underlying infrastructure for building chat applications, they require more development time and resources compared to dedicated chat APIs.

Pub/Sub systems are more complex to build and integrate into your application. They often lack the expansive out-of-the-box features and rapid development experience provided by dedicated chat SDKs.

Best suited for

Pub/Sub excels in scenarios requiring real-time updates for a large number of clients, such as stock tickers, live feeds, or social media notifications.

When to use

Firebase chat

Firebase Realtime Database and Firestore are NoSQL document databases that provide real-time data synchronization capabilities. They can be used to build basic chat applications with low traffic volume that are not very sophisticated.

However, Firebase's offerings have limited features compared to dedicated chat APIs. They may not scale as well for high-traffic, complex chat applications. Building advanced features on top of Firebase's real-time capabilities requires significant custom development effort.

Best suited for

Low-traffic, non-sophisticated chat applications where a quick and easy solution is needed.

When to use

Unlike WebSockets, CometChat is purpose-built to help developers seamlessly integrate chat functionality into their applications. With SDKs, UI kits, and sample apps tailored for all popular front-end frameworks, we make it easier for developers to rapidly build chat features in a relatively short time compared to other options listed above.

Here are some of the key capabilities that set CometChat apart -

1. Out-of-the-box features

CometChat offers a wide range of pre-built features, including file sharing, read receipts, typing indicators, voice and video calls, media sharing, real-time translation, and push notifications. These features are ready to use out-of-the-box, significantly reducing the time and effort required for implementation.

2. Best-in-class UI kits

Our UI kits come with embedded business logic, allowing developers to focus on customization rather than core functionality. Highly adaptable and customizable, enabling developers to tailor the chat interface to match their application’s design and branding seamlessly.

3. Scalability and reliability

Our infrastructure is supported by global servers, ensuring fast and reliable connectivity for users around the world. We guarantee 99.999% uptime, providing a highly reliable service that ensures users have continuous access to chat functionalities.

4. Security and compliance

All communications happening in our systems are secure with end-to-end encryption, protecting user data from unauthorized access. We comply with industry standards and regulations such as HIPAA, GDPR and CCPA, providing peace of mind for all your data privacy and security worries.

5. Exceptional developer support

Extensive documentation, sample codes, and tutorials, making it easier for developers to integrate and customize chat features.

Aarathy Sundaresan

Content Marketer , CometChat

Aarathy is a B2B SaaS Content Marketer at CometChat, excited about the convergence of technology and writing. Aarathy is eager to explore and harness the power of tech-driven storytelling to create compelling narratives that captivate readers. Outside of her professional pursuits, she enjoys the art of dance, finding joy and personal fulfillment.