Source-backed version compatibility
Apache Kafka Java version compatibility. Apache Kafka 4.4 fully supports Java 17, Java 21, and Java 25 across its modules.
Quick answer
Supported and tested versions have compatibility evidence. Recommended and bundled versions describe upstream choices without establishing compatibility. Versions outside the documented coverage are unknown, not necessarily incompatible.
Supported Java versions
Apache Kafka 4.4 fully supports Java 17, Java 21, and Java 25 across its modules.
Java versions newer than the most recent LTS release receive only best-effort support and are not modeled.
high confidence · verified 2026-10-31 · broker, Connect, and command-line tools runtime
Supported Java versions
Apache Kafka 4.3 fully supports Java 17, Java 21, and Java 25 across its modules.
Java versions newer than the most recent LTS release receive only best-effort support and are not modeled.
high confidence · verified 2026-10-31 · broker, Connect, and command-line tools runtime
Supported Java versions
Apache Kafka 4.2 fully supports Java 17, Java 21, and Java 25 across its modules.
Java versions newer than the most recent LTS release receive only best-effort support and are not modeled.
high confidence · verified 2026-10-31 · broker, Connect, and command-line tools runtime
Primary evidence
Every constraint above is backed by upstream documentation, tagged source, release notes, or another project-owned primary source.
compatibility.fyi