MetaGer vs Vane
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted search engines options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | MetaGer | Vane |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | ≈5-minute setup |
| Category | Search Engines | Search Engines |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 200 | ★ 36,903 |
| First released | 1996 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Google Search, Bing | Google Search |
What are MetaGer and Vane?
MetaGer
MetaGer is an open-source metasearch engine that aggregates results from multiple sources while protecting user privacy. Its core software can be deployed to run a self-hosted private search portal.
- Aggregated metasearch
- Privacy protection
- Result anonymization
- Configurable sources
Vane
Perplexica is an open-source AI-powered answer engine that searches the web and uses language models to provide sourced answers. It can run fully self-hosted alongside SearXNG and local LLMs.
- AI answers with cited sources
- Works with local LLMs
- Multiple focus modes
- Uses SearXNG as a backend
MetaGer vs Vane: key differences
MetaGer is written in PHP, while Vane is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for MetaGer versus MIT for Vane. MetaGer is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Vane. MetaGer is the more established project (first released 1996), while Vane arrived in 2024. Vane has the considerably larger community, at 36,903 GitHub stars versus 200.
Why pick each one
Choose MetaGer if…
- Strong privacy stance
- Long-running project
Watch out for
- Heavier than minimal metasearch
- PHP stack
Choose Vane if…
- Self-hosted AI search
- Simple Docker deployment
- Free and open source
Watch out for
- LLM backend required
- Young project
Frequently asked questions
Is MetaGer or Vane better?
Neither is universally better. Vane has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are MetaGer and Vane free and open-source?
Yes. MetaGer is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Vane under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run MetaGer and Vane with Docker?
MetaGer: yes. Vane: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, MetaGer or Vane?
MetaGer has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Vane. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.