Backend · 7 min · 2026-08-22
Redis Caching Patterns That Survive Production
TTL strategy, stampede control, and when not to cache — lessons from real APIs.
Caching fails when TTLs and invalidation are afterthoughts.
Prefer explicit keys tied to domain events. Guard stampedes with locks or probabilistic early refresh. Never cache authorization decisions without a clear expiry story.
Measure hit rate and p99 together — a high hit rate with worse tail latency is not a win.