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Meilisearch

Open-source search engine with a simple API, available self-hosted or as a managed cloud.

Open sourceSelf-hostableSite and app search engines

Updated · AppBreakup editorial · Self-hosted, Web

Visit MeilisearchSee 3 alternatives

Is Meilisearch free?

Yes, free and open source

Cloud starting price:
$20/month
License:
MIT

Checked on Meilisearch's site Nov 8, 2026

Full Meilisearch pricing and plans

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Verified facts
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About Meilisearch

Meilisearch is an open-source search engine written in Rust that aims to make fast, relevant search easy to add to a site or app. You push JSON documents to its API and get typo-tolerant, as-you-type results with filtering, faceting, sorting and sensible ranking defaults, so it works well with little configuration. Newer versions add vector and hybrid search, federated search across indexes, and tools for AI retrieval and conversational search. The core engine can be self-hosted for free under the MIT licence with no usage limits, while Meilisearch Cloud handles hosting, upgrades and backups for a monthly fee after a free trial; enterprise customers can also get support for self-hosted setups. It is a common choice for documentation sites, SaaS dashboards and smaller stores that want Algolia-like search without per-request bills. Very large or analytics-heavy workloads are usually better served by Elasticsearch.

Best for: Developers who want good search defaults with free self-hosting or a simple managed cloud.

Meilisearch pricing (checked Nov 8, 2026)

Each line is quoted from Meilisearch's own site, with the page it came from.

Plan or termWhat it saysCheckedSource
Cloud starting price$20/monthNov 8, 2026meilisearch.com
Free trial14 daysNov 8, 2026meilisearch.com
Full Meilisearch pricing and cheaper alternatives

Pros and cons

What works

  • Free to self-host under MIT with no usage limits
  • Works well with very little configuration
  • Supports keyword, vector and hybrid search

Why people leave

  • Managed cloud has no free tier beyond the trial
  • Less suited to log analytics or huge datasets than Elasticsearch
  • Some advanced features are reserved for the enterprise edition

Meilisearch vs Typesense, Algolia and Elasticsearch

From each app's listing and the prices verified on its own site. A dash means we haven't verified it yet.

AttributeMeilisearchTypesenseAlgoliaElasticsearch
PricingOpen sourceOpen sourceFree plan + paidOpen source
Verified price$20/month—$0.50 per 1K extra searches—
Free planFree appFree app10K searches and 50K records a monthFree app
Open sourceYesYesNoYes
Self-hostableYesYesNoYes
PlatformsSelf-hosted, WebSelf-hosted, WebWebSelf-hosted, Web

Top Meilisearch alternatives

See all 3
  1. 1Typesense logo
    Typesense

    Another open-source, typo-tolerant engine with cluster-based cloud pricing and a strong Algolia migration story.

    68.8
  2. 2Algolia logo
    Algolia

    Fully managed with mature UI libraries and ecommerce tools if you would rather not run servers.

    64.8
  3. 3Elasticsearch logo
    Elasticsearch

    Better for very large datasets, complex queries and log analytics.

    61.8

Why people left Meilisearch

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

No switching stories yet. If you moved away from Meilisearch, review the app you switched to and tell us why.

Reviews

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Meilisearch: common questions

What is Meilisearch?

Meilisearch: Open-source search engine with a simple API, available self-hosted or as a managed cloud. Best for developers who want good search defaults with free self-hosting or a simple managed cloud. Available for Web, and you can host it yourself.

Is Meilisearch free?

Yes. Meilisearch is free, open-source software that you can host yourself.

How much does Meilisearch cost?

Meilisearch is free and open source. Cloud starting price: $20/month; Free trial: 14 days. Checked on Meilisearch's own site, November 2026.

Does Meilisearch have a free trial or refund?

Free trial: 14 days. Source: Meilisearch's own site.

Is Meilisearch open source?

Yes. The source code is on GitHub at meilisearch/meilisearch. You can also run it on your own server.

What platforms does Meilisearch run on?

Meilisearch is available for Self-hosted and Web.

What are the best alternatives to Meilisearch?

The highest-ranked Meilisearch alternatives right now are Typesense, Algolia and Elasticsearch. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

Meilisearch vs Typesense: what's the difference?

Both Meilisearch and Typesense are free and open source. Both run on Web.

See all 3 Meilisearch alternatives