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OpenSearch

OpenSearch

OpenSearch is an open source search engine software project that is based on Elasticsearch and Apache 2.0 licensed. It provides RESTful search and analytics APIs suitable for building search applications.
Search & Information Retrieval Search Engines
opensource elasticsearch apache restful analytics
OpenSearch screenshot
Features Reviews Alternatives

OpenSearch: Open Source Search Engine Software

OpenSearch is an open source search engine software project based on Elasticsearch, Apache 2.0 licensed, providing RESTful search and analytics APIs for building search applications.

What is OpenSearch?

What Is OpenSearch?

OpenSearch is an open-source search and analytics engine forked from Elasticsearch 7.10 by Amazon Web Services. It provides full-text search, log analytics, application monitoring, and data visualization capabilities.

Key Features

OpenSearch supports full-text search with relevance scoring, aggregations for analytics, and near-real-time indexing. It includes OpenSearch Dashboards (forked from Kibana) for data visualization and exploration. The engine handles structured and unstructured data at scale.

Built-in security features include encryption, authentication, role-based access control, and audit logging. OpenSearch also includes anomaly detection, alerting, and SQL query support. It is fully compatible with the Elasticsearch 7.10 API.

OpenSearch vs Elasticsearch

OpenSearch was created after Elastic changed Elasticsearch's license from Apache 2.0 to a more restrictive dual license. OpenSearch remains Apache 2.0 licensed. Feature-wise they have diverged since the fork, with each adding different capabilities. OpenSearch is the default choice for AWS users; Elasticsearch remains popular with Elastic Cloud users.

OpenSearch Features

Features

  1. Open source
  2. Based on Elasticsearch
  3. Supports full-text search
  4. Provides analytics APIs
  5. Scalable and distributed search engine
  6. Plugin architecture to extend functionality
  7. Works with variety of data stores

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Free and open source

Powerful search capabilities

Horizontally scalable

Easy to deploy

Extensible via plugins

Compatible with Elasticsearch APIs

Active community support

Cons

Steep learning curve

Limited documentation and guides

Not as feature rich as Elasticsearch

Lacks some advanced Elasticsearch features

Not ideal for complex search needs

Less flexible than building custom search with Elasticsearch

Official Links

Official Website
https://opensearch.org

Reviews & Ratings

Login to Review
3.8
★ ★ ★ ★ ★

54 reviews

Rating Breakdown
Ease of Use
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3.5
Features
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4.0
Value for Money
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4.8
Customer Support
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2.8
Overall Experience
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3.7
Recent Reviews
M
Marcus Young
May 05, 2026
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A Solid, Open-Source Foundation for Search

As a developer needing a powerful search engine without licensing headaches, OpenSearch has been a great fit. Setting it up was straightforward, and the familiar Elasticsearch-like APIs meant our team was productive from day one. The fact that it's truly …

S
Skyler King
May 03, 2026
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A Solid, Truly Open Source Search Foundation

OpenSearch has been a fantastic solution for our internal log analytics platform. Migrating from Elasticsearch was straightforward, and having the full power of the search and analytics APIs under the Apache 2.0 license gives us complete peace of mind. The …

O
Oliver Chen
May 01, 2026
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A decent open-source alternative, but still needs polish

As an open-source fork of Elasticsearch, OpenSearch is fantastic for avoiding licensing headaches, and the core search and analytics APIs are solid and familiar. However, the ecosystem of plugins and client libraries feels a step behind the official project, and …

R
Reese Hill
Apr 29, 2026
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
A Solid Open-Source Search Foundation

As a developer migrating a project from Elasticsearch, OpenSearch has been a fantastic, frictionless successor. The familiar RESTful APIs meant our existing code required minimal changes, and the performance for our search and analytics workloads has been rock solid. Being …

O
Oliver Anderson
Apr 29, 2026
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Community-driven but frustratingly incomplete

While I appreciate the open-source, Apache 2.0 ethos behind OpenSearch, migrating from Elasticsearch has been a headache. The documentation feels fragmented and lags behind the main branch, making even basic cluster configuration more complex than it should be. For production …

View All Reviews (54)
Rating Distribution
5
17
4
28
3
6
2
3
1
0

The Best OpenSearch Alternatives

View all OpenSearch alternatives with detailed comparison →

Top Search & Information Retrieval and Search Engines and other similar apps like OpenSearch

Here are some alternatives to OpenSearch:

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elasticsearch
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Kibana icon
Kibana
Apache Lucene icon
Apache Lucene
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