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kcat vs kaf: catalog facts
kcat	kaf
Free Free and open source under the BSD-2-Clause license.	Free Free and open source under the Apache 2.0 licence.
Command line	Windows, macOS, Linux, Command line
Produces to and consumes from Kafka topics Displays cluster and topic metadata	Familiar kubectl-style commands Single Go binary
Requires access to an Apache Kafka cluster	Command-line only, no graphical interface Requires access to a running Kafka cluster
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: BSD-2-Clause	License: Apache-2.0
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 8, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.