The main difference between commitSync() and commitAsync() in Kafka’s Consumer API lies in how each method handles retries and response guarantees during the commit process. The commitSync() function will continue retrying the commit until it either succeeds or encounters a non-retriable error, like an offset out-of-range issue. This provides a reliable commit by handling any temporary issues. However, it may cause the consumer to hang if there’s a network or broker delay, potentially impacting performance and leading to a timeout. In contrast, commitAsync() doesn’t wait for confirmation from the broker and won’t retry if a commit fails. The method simply sends the commit request and moves on, making it faster and non-blocking. However, because commitAsync() doesn’t retry, there’s a chance that the offset may not be committed in the event of a network issue or a broker failure, which can lead to potential offset inconsistencies. This might be acceptable in use cases where occasional duplicate processing is tolerable. Although commitAsync() doesn’t guarantee the commit (since it won’t retry failures), it’s a better fit for lower latency