Recoll vs SearXNG
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted search engines options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Recoll
Full-text desktop and server search for your documents
VS
SearXNG
Privacy-respecting metasearch engine aggregating many sources
| Feature | Recoll | SearXNG |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Search Engines | Search Engines |
| License | GPL-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | C++ | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, binary, source | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 300 | ★ 35,091 |
| First released | 2005 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Google Desktop | Google Search, Bing |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Recoll or SearXNG better?
SearXNG is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Recoll if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Recoll and SearXNG free and open-source?
Yes. Recoll is licensed under GPL-2.0 and SearXNG under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Recoll and SearXNG with Docker?
Recoll: check the project docs for container support. SearXNG: yes.