lnx vs ParadeDB
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted search engines options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | lnx | ParadeDB |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | ≈5-minute setup |
| Health score | 34 · At risk | 92 · Excellent |
| Category | Search Engines | Search Engines |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Rust | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,454 | ★ 9,301 |
| First released | 2021 | 2023 |
| Replaces | Elasticsearch, Algolia | Elasticsearch |
What are lnx and ParadeDB?
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
ParadeDB
ParadeDB is an open-source PostgreSQL-based platform that adds Elasticsearch-grade full-text search and analytics directly inside the database. It uses BM25 indexing so search can run alongside existing relational data.
- Search inside Postgres
- BM25 full-text indexing
- Analytical queries
- No separate search cluster
lnx vs ParadeDB: key differences
Both projects are written in Rust. Licensing differs — MIT for lnx versus AGPL-3.0 for ParadeDB. Lnx is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for ParadeDB. Lnx is the more established project (first released 2021), while ParadeDB arrived in 2023. ParadeDB has the considerably larger community, at 9,301 GitHub stars versus 1,454.
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 ParadeDB if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 9.3k GitHub stars
- Written in Rust
Frequently asked questions
Is lnx or ParadeDB better?
Neither is universally better. ParadeDB has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are lnx and ParadeDB free and open-source?
Yes. lnx is licensed under MIT and ParadeDB under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run lnx and ParadeDB with Docker?
lnx: yes. ParadeDB: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, lnx or ParadeDB?
lnx has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for ParadeDB. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.