Ambar vs Mayan EDMS
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted document management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Mayan EDMS
Free electronic document management with workflows
| Feature | Ambar | Mayan EDMS |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Document Management | Document Management |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,943 | ★ 1,100 |
| First released | 2017 | 2011 |
| Replaces | DocuWare, M-Files | DocuWare, M-Files |
What are Ambar and Mayan EDMS?
Ambar
Ambar is an open-source document search engine that automatically crawls, OCRs, and indexes documents from configured sources. It provides a fast unified search across many file types.
- Automatic document crawling
- OCR on images and PDFs
- Unified full-text search
- Tagging and labels
Mayan EDMS
Mayan EDMS is an open-source electronic document management system for storing, indexing, and organizing documents with OCR. It includes workflows, document versioning, and granular permissions.
- OCR and full-text search
- Document workflows
- Versioning and history
- Granular access control
Ambar vs Mayan EDMS: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Ambar's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Mayan EDMS is actively maintained. Ambar is written in JavaScript, while Mayan EDMS is built with Python. Mayan EDMS is the more established project (first released 2011), while Ambar arrived in 2017.
Why pick each one
Choose Ambar if…
- Fast search across many sources
- Good OCR coverage
Watch out for
- Development has slowed
- Elasticsearch increases memory needs
Choose Mayan EDMS if…
- Powerful workflow engine
- Enterprise-grade features
Watch out for
- Complex to configure
- Resource intensive
Frequently asked questions
Is Ambar or Mayan EDMS better?
Ambar is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Ambar if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Ambar and Mayan EDMS free and open-source?
Yes. Ambar is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Mayan EDMS under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ambar and Mayan EDMS with Docker?
Ambar: yes. Mayan EDMS: yes.