Side by side
Vald vs Zvec
Both stand on vector databases. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.
Free plan APILinuxSelf-hosted
Vald offers distributed dense-vector search with asynchronous indexing, scaling, and index backup options. Deployment requires Kubernetes, Helm, and Go according to its getting-started requirements.
Visit Vald
Free plan AndroidAPIiPhone+4
Zvec offers local vector storage and search with a broad set of search, index, and SDK options. Its single-writer constraint is worth considering for applications that need concurrent writes.
Visit ZvecThe facts
| Vald | Zvec | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Not published | Not published |
| Runs on | API, Linux, Self-hosted | Android, API, iPhone, Linux, Mac, Self-hosted, Windows |
| Lowest paid plan | Free or on request | Free or on request |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Maker | Not published | Not published |
| Website | vald.vdaas.org | zvec.org |
| On vector databases | #15 of 27 | #19 of 27 |
Vald: what it does well
- Free and open-source self-deployed software.
- Asynchronous indexing continues while searches are served.
- Supports replica rebalancing when an agent goes down.
- Official libraries cover Go, Java, Python, and Node.js.
- Backups can use Persistent Volumes or S3-compatible storage.
What to know first
- Getting started requires a Kubernetes cluster.
- Helm v3 or later is required.
- Go v1.15 or later is required.
- Filter components must implement Vald’s gRPC interface.
Zvec: what it does well
- Runs locally without a server or external infrastructure.
- Supports dense and sparse vectors, full-text, and hybrid retrieval.
- Provides multiple index and quantization options.
- Write-ahead logging supports persistence after failures.
- SDKs and prebuilt binaries cover multiple languages and platforms.
What to know first
- Writes are exclusive to one process at a time.
- Self-hosted deployment requires managing the runtime environment.
- No security certification or compliance standard is stated.