Django Signals vs Celery: Which to Use?

What are Django signals and how do they work?

Django signals are a way to allow decoupled applications to get notified when certain actions occur elsewhere in the application. They are used to trigger actions based on events, like saving a model instance.

How does Celery differ from Django signals?

Celery is an asynchronous task queue/job queue based on distributed message passing. Unlike Django signals, which are synchronous and tied to the request/response cycle, Celery allows you to run tasks in the background, making it suitable for long-running processes.

When should I use Django signals instead of Celery?

Use Django signals for simple, quick actions that need to happen immediately after an event, like logging or sending notifications. Use Celery for tasks that are time-consuming or need to be processed asynchronously.

Can I use both Django signals and Celery together?

Yes, you can use both together! For example, you can trigger a Celery task from a Django signal to handle a long-running process after an event.