head to head · open source
Meilisearch vs OpenSearch
Meilisearch has 59,317 GitHub stars, 2,710 forks, 321 open issues and last shipped yesterday. OpenSearch has 13,726 stars, 2,958 forks, 3,167 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Meilisearch leads on adoption by 332% (59,317 vs 13,726 stars). Meilisearch is written in Rust under a custom or non-standard licence; OpenSearch is written in Java under Apache-2.0. Meilisearch has attracted 5% as many forks as stars, OpenSearch 22%. OpenSearch was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (search), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Meilisearch | OpenSearch | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 59K | ★ 14K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Rust | Java |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.7K | ⑂ 3.0K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Meilisearch if
- You weight community size — 59K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick OpenSearch if
- You want the OpenSearch feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and OpenSearch fits your workflow better
About Meilisearch
Meilisearch is an open source search engine built in Rust that delivers fast, relevant search results for applications and websites. It operates as a standalone service with a RESTful HTTP API, designed to integrate directly into existing data pipelines without requiring major architectural changes.
read the full Meilisearch overview →
About OpenSearch
OpenSearch is an open source, distributed, and RESTful search engine, described in its README as an enterprise grade search and observability suite. It lives in the open source search and analytics ecosystem, is written in Java, and is licensed under Apache 2.0. The project states that it includes certain Apache licensed Elasticsearch code from Elasticsearch B.V., and that OpenSearch is a registered trademark of LF Projects, LLC.
read the full OpenSearch overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Meilisearch or OpenSearch more popular?
Meilisearch has 59,317 GitHub stars and OpenSearch has 13,726. Meilisearch has the larger community by that measure.
Are Meilisearch and OpenSearch free?
Both are open source. Meilisearch has no licence declared in this registry, and OpenSearch is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Meilisearch and OpenSearch?
Meilisearch is written in Rust and OpenSearch in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Meilisearch or OpenSearch?
Choose Meilisearch if you want the larger community (59,317 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose OpenSearch if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.