Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Ably VS Matter

Compare Ably VS Matter and see what are their differences

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Ably logo Ably

The realtime platform that just works. We power more WebSocket connections than any other pub/sub platform, serving over 2 billion devices monthly.

Matter logo Matter

Create a feedback-focused culture in Slack with Matter!
  • Ably Ably homepage
    Ably homepage //
    2024-08-05

We help teams deliver resilient AI UX and high-performance live experiences that stay fast and in sync worldwide. We provide the global realtime layer for AI agents, chat, notifications, live dashboards, and collaboration - engineered to handle peak demand without self-managed infrastructure.

Teams like HubSpot and Intercom use Ably to avoid the cost and complexity of building and operating realtime systems, while still getting predictable performance at serious scale, handling 2T+ API operations per month. Ablyโ€™s Pub/Sub, Chat, and AI Transport products are unified by design, with developer-friendly APIs and SDKs that integrate across your stack.

  • Matter Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-10

Recognize team members with Kudos, rewards, and feedback in Slack.

Matter is: - Free Forever - Easy Set Up - Unlimited Members - No Credit Card Required

Start #FeedbackFriday today!

Ably

Website
ably.com
$ Details
freemium
Release Date
2016 January
Startup details
Country
United Kingdom
Founder(s)
Matthew O'Riordan, Dr. Paddy Byers
Employees
50 - 99

Ably features and specs

  • Scalability
    Ably is designed to handle a massive number of concurrent connections and messages, making it scalable for both small and large applications.
  • Real-time Messaging
    Ably provides robust real-time messaging capabilities with low latency, supporting use-cases like live chat, gaming, and real-time data streaming.
  • Global Presence
    Ably has a globally distributed network, ensuring low latency and high availability for users around the world.
  • Advanced Features
    It offers advanced features such as message history, presence, and push notifications, which can enhance the functionality of real-time applications.
  • Security
    Ably includes built-in security features such as TLS encryption, token-based authentication, and private channels to ensure secure communication.
  • Extensive Documentation
    The service provides extensive and well-organized documentation, making it easier for developers to integrate and utilize its features.
  • SDKs and Libraries
    Ably offers a wide range of SDKs and libraries for different programming languages and platforms, easing the development process.
  • Reliable Delivery
    It ensures reliable message delivery with features like message queuing and message de-duplication.

Possible disadvantages of Ably

  • Complexity
    Due to its wide range of advanced features, the initial learning curve can be steep for new users.
  • Cost
    For large-scale applications or extensive use of advanced features, the costs can add up, making it potentially expensive.
  • Vendor Lock-in
    Relying heavily on Ablyโ€™s platform-specific features may result in vendor lock-in, making it challenging to switch to other services in the future.
  • Dependence on Internet Connection
    As a cloud-based service, Ablyโ€™s performance is highly dependent on the quality and reliability of the internet connection.
  • Third-party Integration
    While Ably offers various integration options, integrating certain third-party services may require additional custom development or may not be as seamless.

Matter features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    Matter features an intuitive design that simplifies navigation, enabling users to easily provide and receive feedback.
  • Customizable Feedback
    Users can tailor feedback templates to fit their unique needs and organizational culture, enhancing the relevance of the feedback.
  • Real-Time Notifications
    The app provides instant notifications, keeping users updated on feedback as soon as it is given.
  • Anonymous Feedback
    Matter allows for the submission of anonymous feedback, promoting honesty and reducing the fear of retribution.
  • Integration with Collaboration Tools
    Matter integrates seamlessly with popular collaboration tools like Slack and Microsoft Teams, facilitating easy adoption into existing workflows.

Possible disadvantages of Matter

  • Limited Free Features
    The free version of Matter offers limited functionalities, which may necessitate a subscription to access more advanced features.
  • Learning Curve
    Although the interface is user-friendly, some users may initially find it challenging to understand how to make the most out of all the available features.
  • Dependency on User Participation
    The effectiveness of the app is highly dependent on active user participation, which may be inconsistent across teams.
  • Feedback Overload
    Users might become overwhelmed by the volume of feedback, making it difficult to prioritize and act on the most critical pieces of information.
  • Privacy Concerns
    Despite efforts to anonymize feedback, there may still be concerns about data privacy and the potential for identifying anonymous contributors.

Analysis of Ably

Overall verdict

  • Ably is a reliable and efficient real-time messaging platform, well-suited for applications requiring high performance and scalability. It is generally well-regarded within the developer community for its ease of use and robust feature set.

Why this product is good

  • Features
    Ably provides a comprehensive suite of features such as pub/sub messaging, presence, and history.
  • Security
    It implements robust security practices including TLS encryption, token-based authentication, and private channels.
  • Integration
    Supports numerous protocols and provides SDKs for various programming languages, making it easy to integrate with different systems.
  • Reliability
    Ably offers high availability and low latency, ensuring messages are delivered in real-time.
  • Scalability
    The platform can handle millions of active connections and is designed for horizontal scaling.

Recommended for

  • developers building real-time applications like chat apps, dashboards, or multiplayer games
  • businesses in need of a scalable solution for live updates and notifications
  • teams looking for a platform with strong security and compliance credentials
  • organizations requiring integration with existing development workflows and tools

Analysis of Matter

Overall verdict

  • Matter is considered a good tool for teams that prioritize effective communication and continuous improvement. Its focus on feedback and recognition can help foster a more transparent and supportive work culture.

Why this product is good

  • Matter (matterapp.com) is a feedback and development tool designed to enhance team communication and personal growth. It is praised for its user-friendly interface, ability to facilitate constructive feedback, and promote a positive team culture. The platform allows users to send and receive feedback, track personal development progress, and recognize peers' achievements, making it a valuable tool for both individual and team development.

Recommended for

  • Teams seeking to improve communication and feedback processes
  • Managers looking to promote a culture of recognition and growth
  • Individuals who are focused on personal development and skill enhancement
  • Organizations aiming to build a positive and engaged workplace environment

Ably videos

How to build a collaborative environment around your product

More videos:

  • Demo - How to build an avatar stack with Ably Spaces
  • Demo - Ably 101: Serverless WebSockets at scale

Matter videos

Matter Compilation: Crash Course Kids

More videos:

  • Review - What's Matter? - Crash Course Kids #3.1
  • Review - Matter | Review in 2 Minutes

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Ably and Matter)
Developer Tools
100 100%
0% 0
Productivity
0 0%
100% 100
Realtime Backend / API
100 100%
0% 0
Tech
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Ably and Matter

Ably Reviews

We have no reviews of Ably yet.
Be the first one to post

Matter Reviews

10 Workleap Competitors: Pricing & Reviews [2025 Guide]
About Matter: Matter is a versatile employee recognition technology that smoothly interacts with Slack and Microsoft Teams, making it ideal for companies looking to enhance employee engagement directly within their daily workflows. Designed as a Slack-first and Teams-first application, Matter enables peer-to-peer recognition with beautiful, customizable kudos cards, allowing...
Source: matterapp.com
7+ Assembly Alternatives: Pricing & Reviews [2024 Guide]
About Matter: Matter is a cutting-edge employee recognition platform that prioritizes peer-to-peer recognition and immediate feedback. Designed to integrate seamlessly with tools like Slack and Microsoft Teams, Matter allows teams to easily celebrate achievements and recognize each other's contributions. This focus on real-time interaction helps foster a culture of...
Source: matterapp.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Ably seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 26 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Ably mentions (26)

  • AWS us-east-1 outage: How Ablyโ€™s multi-region architecture held up
    During this weekโ€™s AWS us-east-1 outage, Ably maintained full service continuity with no customer impact. This was our multi-region architecture working exactly as designed; error rates were negligibly low and unchanged throughout. Any additional round trip latency was limited to 12ms, which is below the typical variance in any client-to-endpoint connection, and well below our 40โ€“50ms global median; this is... - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
  • Real-Time Sync Alternatives: Vaultrice vs. localStorage, DIY, Firebase, Pusher
    Services like Pusher and Ably are experts in real-time messaging. They provide robust APIs for pub/sub channels, allowing you to broadcast events to clients reliably. - Source: dev.to / 12 months ago
  • CometChat Alternatives โ€“ Comparing the Top 10 Competitors
    Ably is a real-time infrastructure platform that focuses on delivering low-latency, reliable messaging across global distributed systems. It's designed for developers building event-driven applications, including chat, but also supports broader use cases like live dashboards, GPS tracking, and collaborative tools. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Real-Time Authorization in a Chat Application with Permit.io and WebSockets
    For our web socket-based application, weโ€™ll be using Next.js and Ably, a service that allows us to easily integrate and manage real-time capabilities in our apps powered by web socket. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Curiosity: Using Ably.io Realtime Messaging as a Lightweight Database
    Ably offers various solutions for developers, with their most popular being realtime messaging based on the pub/sub model. When you publish a message to a channel, all devices connected to that channel receive it instantly. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
View more

Matter mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Matter yet. Tracking of Matter recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Ably and Matter, you can also consider the following products

Pusher - Pusher is a hosted API for quickly, easily and securely adding scalable realtime functionality via WebSockets to web and mobile apps.

Readwise - Effortlessly rediscover and organize your Kindle highlights

Socket.io - Realtime application framework (Node.JS server)

Raindrop.io - All your articles, photos, video & content from web & apps in one place.

PubNub - PubNub is a real-time messaging system for web and mobile apps that can handle API for all platforms and push messages to any device anywhere in the world in a fraction of a second without having to worry about proxies, firewalls or mobile drop-offs.

Instapaper - Instapaper is a simple tool to save web pages for reading later.