lnx vs Pagefind
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted search engines options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | lnx | Pagefind |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 34 · At risk | 88 · Excellent |
| Category | Search Engines | Search Engines |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Rust | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | source, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,454 | ★ 5,481 |
| First released | 2021 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Elasticsearch, Algolia | Algolia, Elasticsearch |
What are lnx and Pagefind?
lnx
lnx is an open-source search engine server built on top of the Tantivy library that exposes a simple REST API for indexing and querying documents. It aims to be a fast, easy-to-deploy alternative for full-text search.
- Built on Tantivy
- Simple REST API
- Fast full-text search
- Typo-tolerant queries
Pagefind
Pagefind is a fully static search library that indexes a built website and serves search entirely from the browser without a backend. It is designed to be low-bandwidth and easy to add to any static site.
- Browser-side search index
- No backend required
- Low bandwidth
- Multilingual support
lnx vs Pagefind: key differences
Both projects are written in Rust. Pagefind is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 512 MB for lnx. Pagefind has the considerably larger community, at 5,481 GitHub stars versus 1,454. Lnx lists first-class Docker deployment; Pagefind does not.
Why pick each one
Choose lnx if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.5k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
Choose Pagefind if…
- Zero server cost
- Trivial to deploy
Watch out for
- Static content only
- Index rebuild on changes
Frequently asked questions
Is lnx or Pagefind better?
Pagefind is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider lnx if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are lnx and Pagefind free and open-source?
Yes. lnx is licensed under MIT and Pagefind under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run lnx and Pagefind with Docker?
lnx: yes. Pagefind: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, lnx or Pagefind?
Pagefind has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for lnx. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.