Manticore Search vs Quickwit
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted search engines options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Quickwit
Cloud-native search engine for logs and traces
| Feature | Manticore Search | Quickwit |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 94 · Excellent | 93 · Excellent |
| Category | Search Engines | Search Engines |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | C++ | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal | docker, kubernetes, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 12,035 | ★ 11,670 |
| First released | 2017 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Elasticsearch, Algolia | Splunk, Elasticsearch |
What are Manticore Search and Quickwit?
Manticore Search
Manticore Search is an open-source, easy-to-use database designed for search. It offers full-text, faceted and vector search with a small memory footprint and SQL-like query syntax.
- Full-text and vector search
- SQL and HTTP query interfaces
- Low memory footprint
- Real-time indexing
Quickwit
Quickwit is an open-source, cloud-native search engine optimized for log management, distributed tracing and analytics on large datasets stored in object storage. It is designed to be cost efficient at scale.
- Search directly on object storage
- Optimized for logs and traces
- Decoupled compute and storage
- Elasticsearch-compatible API
Manticore Search vs Quickwit: key differences
Manticore Search is written in C++, while Quickwit is built with Rust. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Manticore Search versus Apache-2.0 for Quickwit. Manticore Search is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Quickwit. Manticore Search is the more established project (first released 2017), while Quickwit arrived in 2021.
Why pick each one
Choose Manticore Search if…
- Lightweight and fast
- SQL-friendly
Watch out for
- Smaller community than Elasticsearch
Choose Quickwit if…
- Very cost effective at scale
- Modern Rust codebase
Watch out for
- Focused on append-only data
Frequently asked questions
Is Manticore Search or Quickwit better?
Neither is universally better. Manticore Search has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Manticore Search and Quickwit free and open-source?
Yes. Manticore Search is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Quickwit under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Manticore Search and Quickwit with Docker?
Manticore Search: yes. Quickwit: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Manticore Search or Quickwit?
Manticore Search has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Quickwit. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.