Best Search Databases in 2026
Updated
In short: Chroma is ranked #1 of 29 as of 5 October 2026, ahead of Qdrant and Typesense. The best-ranked option with a free plan is Qdrant. The lowest first paid tier on this page is Vespa at $0.05/mo.
Applications that search indexed collections depend on choices about query behavior, capacity and deployment. Compared on primary search mode and query interface, these entries can also be weighed for faceted search and vector search. Index limits offer another point of comparison, while deployment details help you consider how a database may run in your environment. Chroma, Qdrant and Typesense are among the options to examine. Check free-plan availability and paid-from pricing alongside the listed search capabilities to see which details fit the needs of your application.
29 search databases ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
14 of the 25 here have a free tier you can use, 0 have open-source code on record, and 0 have full bars: free, open, on most of your devices and documented.
| # | App | Signal | Free tier | Open code | Devices | From | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ChromaWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux · Android · iPhone · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 6 of 6 | $250/mo | 6.8 | |
| 2 | QdrantWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 4 of 6 | Free | 6.7 | |
| 3 | TypesenseWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 4 of 6 | $22/mo | 6.7 | |
| 4 | VespaWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 4 of 6 | $0.05/mo | 6.7 | |
| 5 | AlgoliaWeb · Android · iPhone · API | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | $0.50/mo | 6.6 | |
| 6 | DatafariWeb · Windows · Linux · Self-hosted | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | $825/mo | 6.6 | |
| 7 | MeilisearchWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 4 of 6 | $20/mo | 6.6 | |
| 8 | Apache SolrWindows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 6.5 | |
| 9 | OpenSearchWeb · Windows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 4 of 6 | Free | 6.5 | |
| 10 | WeaviateWeb · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Two bars | — | 2 of 6 | $45/mo | 6.5 | |
| 11 | MilvusLinux · Self-hosted · API | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 12 | PineconeWeb · API | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 13 | Zilliz CloudWeb · API | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 14 | LanceDBLinux · Self-hosted · API | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.3 | |
| 15 | ElasticsearchWeb · Linux · Self-hosted · API | One bar | — | — | 2 of 6 | — | 5.5 |
| 16 | ConstructorWeb · Android · iPhone | One bar | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 5.4 |
| 17 | Manticore SearchWindows · Mac · Linux | One bar | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 5.4 |
| 18 | Glean Agent BuilderWeb | One bar | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.3 |
| 19 | CoveoWeb | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.2 |
| 20 | Bloomreach ContentWeb · Android · iPhone | Two bars | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 5.1 |
| 21 | ParadeDBNo platforms listed | No signal | — | — | 0 of 6 | — | 5.1 |
| 22 | SonicSelf-hosted | No signal | — | — | 0 of 6 | — | 5.1 |
| 23 | QuickwitWeb · Mac · Linux | One bar | — | — | 3 of 6 | — | 4.9 |
| 24 | ValdNo platforms listed | No signal | — | — | 0 of 6 | — | 4.9 |
| 25 | Amazon CloudSearchWeb | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 4.8 |
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | App | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Primary search mode | Vector search |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chroma | 6.8 | Free plan | $250/mo | Yes | 250 /mo | — | — |
| 2 | Qdrant | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | — |
| 3 | Typesense | 6.7 | Free plan | $22/mo | Yes | 22 /mo | full-text | Yes |
| 4 | Vespa | 6.7 | No | $0.05/mo | No | — | — | — |
| 5 | Algolia | 6.6 | Free plan | $0.50/mo | Yes | — | hybrid | Yes |
| 6 | Datafari | 6.6 | Free plan | $825/mo | Yes | — | hybrid | Yes |
| 7 | Meilisearch | 6.6 | Free plan | $20/mo | Yes | 20 /mo | full-text | Yes |
| 8 | Apache Solr | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | hybrid | Yes |
| 9 | OpenSearch | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | — | — | — | — |
| 10 | Weaviate | 6.5 | Free plan | $45/mo | Yes | 45 /mo | — | — |
| 11 | Milvus | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | — |
| 12 | Pinecone | 6.4 | Free plan | — | Yes | 20 /mo | — | — |
| 13 | Zilliz Cloud | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | — |
| 14 | LanceDB | 6.3 | Free plan | Free | — | — | — | — |
| 15 | Elasticsearch | 5.5 | No | — | Yes | 99 /mo | hybrid | Yes |
| 16 | Constructor | 5.4 | No | — | — | — | hybrid | Yes |
| 17 | Manticore Search | 5.4 | No | — | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 18 | Glean Agent Builder | 5.3 | No | — | — | — | — | — |
| 19 | Coveo | 5.2 | No | — | — | — | hybrid | Yes |
| 20 | Bloomreach Content | 5.1 | No | — | — | 3,000 /mo | full-text | Yes |
| 21 | ParadeDB | 5.1 | No | — | Yes | — | full-text | Yes |
| 22 | Sonic | 5.1 | No | — | — | — | full-text | — |
| 23 | Quickwit | 4.9 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 24 | Vald | 4.9 | No | — | — | — | — | — |
| 25 | Amazon CloudSearch | 4.8 | No | — | No | — | full-text | — |
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored, and a sponsored row is labelled as paid.
Questions about this list
Which search database is ranked first on Freedom251?
Chroma is ranked #1 of 29 with a score of 6.8. Qdrant is second and Typesense third.
How many of these have a free plan?
13 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, Vespa has the lowest first paid tier we found: $0.05/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked free-and-open first: a usable free tier and open-source code, then the platforms it runs on and its documentation.