Stork vs ZincSearch

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?
FeatureStorkZincSearch
CategorySearch EnginesSearch Engines
LicenseApache-2.0Apache-2.0
LanguageRustGo
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM64 MB256 MB
Deploymentbinary, sourcedocker, kubernetes, binary
GitHub stars★ 2,758★ 17,884
First released20192021
ReplacesAlgoliaElasticsearch, Algolia

Why pick each one

Choose Stork if…

  • Instant client-side results
  • Easy integration
Stork details

Choose ZincSearch if…

  • Simple to run
  • Much lighter than Elasticsearch
ZincSearch details

Frequently asked questions

Is Stork or ZincSearch better?

Neither is universally better. ZincSearch has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Stork and ZincSearch free and open-source?

Yes. Stork is licensed under Apache-2.0 and ZincSearch under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Stork and ZincSearch with Docker?

Stork: check the project docs for container support. ZincSearch: yes.

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