Milvus vs Qdrant (2026)

A detailed comparison of Milvus and Qdrant covering features, pricing, platform support, and more.

Verdict

Both Milvus and Qdrant are strong options. Milvus stands out for open-source and free, while Qdrant excels at open-source available. Your choice depends on your team's workflow and priorities.

Feature Comparison

FeatureMilvusQdrant
Vector search engineYesNo
CRUD operationsYesNo
Similarity searchYesNo
Scalable distributedYesYes
Multi-language supportYesNo
YAML configurationYesNo
Kubernetes readyYesNo
Vector searchNoYes
Full-text search hybridNoYes
Filtering and facetingNoYes
Python and REST APIsNoYes
GPU supportNoYes
Multi-tenancyNoYes

Pricing Comparison

DetailMilvusQdrant
Free TierYesYes
Free Tier DetailsOpen-source self-hostedSelf-hosted or cloud trial
Starting PriceFreeFree
Plan 1Zilliz Cloud Starter: $0/monthCloud Starter: $50/month
Plan 2Zilliz Cloud Pro: $null/customCloud Pro: $null/custom

Pros & Cons

Milvus

Strengths

  • +Open-source and free
  • +Highly scalable
  • +Cloud option available
  • +Enterprise features

Limitations

  • -Steeper learning curve
  • -Smaller community than competitors
  • -Complex deployment

Platforms

apilinux
Qdrant

Strengths

  • +Open-source available
  • +Excellent performance
  • +Hybrid search capability
  • +Easy integration

Limitations

  • -Smaller ecosystem than Pinecone
  • -Cloud tier pricing
  • -Steeper setup curve

Platforms

apilinux

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