leaderboard-system

To build a real-time leaderboard, combine Redis ZSETs for fast all-time rankings with a MySQL metrics table for time-filtered data, applying deterministic pagination for ties. This hybrid approach ensures fast global queries while maintaining scoped historical data.

Deterministic pagination for tied rankings resolves equal scores consistently by combining the user's score with a unique identifier from the per-user row. This ensures users sharing the same XP value appear in a stable order across paginated requests.

Yes, you need Redis and MySQL to handle scoped leaderboards effectively. Redis ZSETs provide fast all-time global rankings, while MySQL stores the time-filtered metrics table required to query country, state, and city scopes accurately.

The best way to implement privacy rules in a per-user leaderboard is to use dedicated services that build per-user rows and enforce privacy-aware formatting before returning data. This ensures user data is protected across all team and location scopes.

Redis ZSETs are used for all-time rankings because they provide highly scalable, real-time sorted sets that outperform relational databases in global ranking queries. MySQL is then paired with Redis specifically to handle time-filtered historical data.