Best Self-Hosted Search Tools in 2026

Tools for building and running full-text search engines and intelligent search experiences across data sources.

The top-rated pick is SearXNG with 35,235 GitHub stars.

6 self-hosted search tools — ranked by GitHub stars. Browse all

SearXNG

A free internet metasearch engine which aggregates results from various search services without tracking or profiling users.

Alternative to:

Google Search

Langfuse

Open source LLM engineering platform for tracing, evaluating, monitoring, and managing prompts as an alternative to LangSmith and Helicone.

Alternative to:

LangSmith

Onyx

Onyx is an open-source AI chat and enterprise search platform with RAG that works with every LLM. Bring your own model and unify all your team's knowledge.

Alternative to:

Glean

Typesense

Fast, typo-tolerant open-source search engine and a simpler, cheaper alternative to Algolia.

Alternative to:

Algolia

Hister

Private, self-hosted search engine that indexes the pages you visit and the files you keep for full-text and semantic search.

Alternative to:

Google Search

degoog

Open-source, self-hosted search engine aggregator with a comprehensive plugin system.

Alternative to:

Google Search

Why self-host?

Self-hosting puts you in control. You own your data, avoid vendor lock-in, and eliminate recurring subscription costs. For teams handling sensitive data or operating under strict compliance requirements, running your own infrastructure is often the only viable option.