RediSearch vs tinysearch
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted search engines options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | RediSearch | tinysearch |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 90 · Excellent | 87 · Excellent |
| Category | Search Engines | Search Engines |
| License | RSALv2 | MIT |
| Language | Rust | Rust |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, binary | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 6,242 | ★ 2,972 |
| First released | 2017 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Elasticsearch, Algolia | Algolia |
What are RediSearch and tinysearch?
RediSearch
RediSearch, part of the Redis Query Engine, adds full-text search, secondary indexing and vector search capabilities to Redis. It enables fast querying over data already stored in Redis.
- Full-text search inside Redis
- Secondary indexing of Redis data
- Vector similarity search
- Aggregations and queries
tinysearch
tinysearch is a lightweight full-text search engine that compiles a static site's content into a small WebAssembly module for client-side search. It is designed for blogs and documentation where a search server would be overkill.
- WebAssembly search module
- No backend required
- Tiny index size
- Client-side full-text search
RediSearch vs tinysearch: key differences
Both projects are written in Rust. Licensing differs — RSALv2 for RediSearch versus MIT for tinysearch. Tinysearch is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 512 MB for RediSearch. RediSearch is the more established project (first released 2017), while tinysearch arrived in 2019. RediSearch has the considerably larger community, at 6,242 GitHub stars versus 2,972. RediSearch lists first-class Docker deployment; tinysearch does not.
Why pick each one
Choose RediSearch if…
- Very fast, in-memory
- Reuses existing Redis
Watch out for
- Source-available, not OSI licensed
Choose tinysearch if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (3k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is RediSearch or tinysearch better?
Neither is universally better. RediSearch has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are RediSearch and tinysearch free and open-source?
Yes. RediSearch is licensed under RSALv2 and tinysearch under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run RediSearch and tinysearch with Docker?
RediSearch: yes. tinysearch: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, RediSearch or tinysearch?
tinysearch has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for RediSearch. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.