Head to head
Expo Push vs Knock
As a push notification API, Knock rates higher on the APIbenchmarks Index, 83.6 to 79, a 4.6-point gap. Here is how they compare on each criterion.
Criterion by criterion
| Criterion | Expo Push | Knock |
|---|---|---|
| Documentation & DX | ||
| Reliability | ||
| Ecosystem & SDKs | ||
| Accessibility | ||
| APIbenchmarks Index | 79.0 | 83.6 |
Specifications
| Expo Push | Knock | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Free push for React Native | Notification infra + in-app inbox |
| Free tier | Free (600 notif/sec/project) | 10k messages/mo |
| Pricing | Free (transport) | Per message (MAU/message tiers) |
| Official SDKs | 9 languages | 12 languages |
Is Expo Push better than Knock?
On the APIbenchmarks Index, Knock rates higher (83.6 vs 79). It leads on the four weighted criteria, but price is reported separately, so the best choice still depends on your budget.
Verdict in one line
Knock leads by 4.6 points (83.6 vs 79) and wins 3 of 4 criteria; Expo Push wins 1.
Winner by criterion
| Criterion | Winner | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Documentation & DX | 80 | 90 | |
| Reliability | 78 | 80 | |
| Ecosystem & SDKs | 70 | 76 | |
| Accessibility | 90 | 88 |
Choose Expo Push if… / choose Knock if…
- →accessibility matters most to you (90 vs 88)
- →your use case matches its focus: free push for react native
- →documentation & dx matters most to you (90 vs 80)
- →reliability matters most to you (80 vs 78)
- →ecosystem & sdks matters most to you (76 vs 70)
- →you need broad SDK coverage (12 official SDKs vs 9)
- →your use case matches its focus: notification infra + in-app inbox
Pricing side by side
- Model
- Free (transport)
- Free tier
- Free (600 notif/sec/project)
- Push notification serviceFree
- Free (EAS platform)$0/month
- Production (EAS)$99/month
- Enterprise (EAS)$999/month
- Model
- Per message (MAU/message tiers)
- Free tier
- 10k messages/mo
- Developer$0/month
- Starter$250/month
- EnterpriseContact sales
Vendor-published pricing, verified 2026-06-27 (Expo Push) and 2026-06-27 (Knock).
SDK and language coverage
Both · 5
Python (community, expo-server-sdk-python)PHP (community)Ruby (community)Elixir (community)Java (community)
Only Expo Push · 4
Node.js (official, expo-server-sdk-node)Rust (community)Go / Golang (community)REST HTTP API (direct, any language)
Only Knock · 7
Node.js / TypeScriptGoC# / .NETReactReact NativeiOS (Swift)Android (Kotlin)
Strengths and weaknesses
- +Push notification service is completely free with no per-message charges
- +Single unified API abstracts away both APNs and FCM, cutting cross-platform integration work
- +Tight integration with the React Native / Expo / EAS toolchain
- –No SLA and no uptime guarantee for the push service
- –Hard rate limit of 600 notifications/second per project constrains large-scale blasts
- –At-least-once best-effort delivery means notifications can be duplicated or dropped
- +Single API orchestrates email, push, SMS, in-app feed, and chat channels so teams stop building bespoke notification pipelines
- +Visual workflow builder with batching, delays, branching, and channel fallbacks out of the box
- +Production-ready front-end components (React, React Native, iOS, Android, Flutter, Expo) for real-time in-app feeds, badge counts, toasts, and preference centers
- –Steep price jump from free to the $250/month Starter plan can be hard to justify for small workloads
- –Key enterprise features (per-customer branding, i18n, SCIM, SAML, HIPAA/BAA, data-warehouse analytics) are locked behind Contact-sales Enterprise pricing
- –Reviewers note the lack of a declarative / Terraform-style way to define workflows as code
Expo Push vs Knock: questions
- Which has better documentation, Expo Push or Knock?
- Knock scores higher on documentation and developer experience: 90 vs 80 out of 100.
- Which is more reliable, Expo Push or Knock?
- Knock scores higher on reliability: 80 vs 78 out of 100.
- Do Expo Push and Knock have a free tier?
- Expo Push: yes (Free (600 notif/sec/project)). Knock: yes (10k messages/mo).
- How are Expo Push and Knock priced?
- Expo Push: Free (transport). Knock: Per message (MAU/message tiers).
- Which has more official SDKs?
- Knock lists 12 official SDKs, Expo Push lists 9.