Marker vs RAGFlow
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted self-hosted ai options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Marker
Convert PDFs and documents to Markdown with AI
VS
RAGFlow
RAG engine with deep document understanding
| Feature | Marker | RAGFlow |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Self-Hosted AI | Self-Hosted AI |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Python | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 4,096 MB | 8,192 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, kubernetes |
| GitHub stars | ★ 38,532 | ★ 87,057 |
| First released | 2023 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Adobe Acrobat | NotebookLM |
Why pick each one
Choose Marker if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Mature project with 38.5k GitHub stars
- Written in Python
Choose RAGFlow if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 87.1k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is Marker or RAGFlow better?
Neither is universally better. RAGFlow has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Marker and RAGFlow free and open-source?
Yes. Marker is licensed under GPL-3.0 and RAGFlow under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Marker and RAGFlow with Docker?
Marker: check the project docs for container support. RAGFlow: yes.