SHSelfHostIndex

4get vs Websurfx

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted search engines options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
4G 4get Lightweight privacy-friendly metasearch proxy VS WE Websurfx Privacy-respecting metasearch engine written in Rust
Feature4getWebsurfx
Deploy effortUnder-an-hour setupUnder-an-hour setup
CategorySearch EnginesSearch Engines
LicenseAGPL-3.0AGPL-3.0
LanguagePHPRust
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM128 MB128 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metaldocker, binary
GitHub stars★ 800★ 1,200
First released20222023
ReplacesGoogle Search, BingGoogle Search

What are 4get and Websurfx?

4get

4get is a free and open-source metasearch engine that proxies results from many providers with a focus on privacy and a clean, minimal interface. It requires no JavaScript and stores no user data.

  • JavaScript-free metasearch
  • Image, video and news search
  • No tracking or logging
  • Clean minimal interface

Websurfx

Websurfx is an open-source, privacy-respecting, fast metasearch engine written in Rust that aggregates results from multiple search engines. It is self-hosted with a hot-reloadable theming engine.

  • Rust metasearch engine
  • Privacy-respecting
  • Hot-reloadable themes
  • Lightweight

4get vs Websurfx: key differences

4get is written in PHP, while Websurfx is built with Rust.

Why pick each one

Choose 4get if…

  • Very lightweight
  • No JavaScript needed

Watch out for

  • Less known, fewer public instances
4get details

Choose Websurfx if…

  • Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
  • Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Active community (1.2k GitHub stars)
Websurfx details

Frequently asked questions

Is 4get or Websurfx better?

Neither is universally better. Websurfx has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are 4get and Websurfx free and open-source?

Yes. 4get is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Websurfx under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run 4get and Websurfx with Docker?

4get: yes. Websurfx: yes.

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