// rag · devflowinc/trieve

trieve

All-in-one API platform for search, recommendations, RAG and analytics — self-hostable

★ 2.7k stars⑂ 254 forksMITupdated 2026-01
▦ visual — this project's README ships no embeddable screenshot,
so here's a placeholder. The guide below is complete regardless.
// project facts

Project facts

trieve is an open-source rag & knowledge project by devflowinc (devflowinc/trieve on GitHub). It has 2,719 GitHub stars and 254 forks, is released under the MIT license, and was last updated on GitHub on 25 January 2026.

GitHub stars
2,719
Forks
254
License
MIT
Last updated on GitHub
25 January 2026
Listing
Full install guide
Official site
Official site
// how it works

How it works

  1. Clarify your goal

    Decide between the hosted API for speed or self-hosting for control, and what you'll index — docs, products or content chunks.

  2. Get Trieve

    Sign up for the hosted API, or clone the repo for self-hosting/local development.

  3. Install and configure

    For local dev, install system deps, Rust and Node/Yarn, copy the .env files, set your OPENAI_API_KEY/LLM_API_KEY, and start the Docker services and embedding servers.

  4. Run your first search

    Create a dataset, upload chunks, and run a semantic or hybrid search from the dashboard or SDK.

// features

Why people love it

Semantic vector search

Dense vector search using OpenAI or Jina embeddings stored in Qdrant.

Typo-tolerant neural search

Every chunk is also indexed with a SPLADE sparse-vector model for quality full-text/neural search.

Hybrid search + reranking

Combine dense and sparse with BAAI/bge-reranker-large cross-encoder reranking; bring your own embedding, SPLADE, reranker or LLM models.

Recommendations API

Find similar chunks or grouped files — useful where users favorite, bookmark or upvote content.

Managed RAG routes

RAG endpoints via OpenRouter with topic-based memory management, or bring your own context.

Tuning and analytics

Recency biasing, merchandising signals (clicks, add-to-carts, citations), rich filters, grouping, and sub-sentence highlighting.

Advertisement
// run it

Run it yourself

  1. Clone the repo

    Clone Trieve for self-hosting or local development; hosted users can skip to the dashboard.

    git clone https://github.com/devflowinc/trieve.git
    cd trieve
  2. Set up environment files

    Copy the example env files as the local-development section shows, and set your keys in server/.env.

    cp .env.example ./server/.env
    # set OPENAI_API_KEY and LLM_API_KEY in ./server/.env
  3. Start the backing services

    Bring up the Docker services and the CPU embedding stack, then run the server and frontends per the README.

    ./convenience.sh -l
    docker compose -f docker-compose-cpu-embeddings.yml up -d
// use cases

What you can build

Advertisement
// faq

Questions, answered

Who maintains Trieve?

devflowinc (the Trieve company) maintains it, with documentation at docs.trieve.ai.

Is Trieve free?

The code is MIT-licensed and self-hostable for free. The hosted service is commercial — the README links a sign-up with 1k chunks free.

Does it need a paid API key?

RAG and embedding flows use model providers: the local-dev guide sets OPENAI_API_KEY/LLM_API_KEY, and you can bring your own models instead.

How does it compare to SWIRL?

SWIRL federates live queries across your existing sources without copying data. Trieve is an indexed search/RAG platform you push chunks into, with recommendations and analytics built in.

How do I get started?

Sign up at dashboard.trieve.ai for the hosted API, or follow the README's local-development and self-hosting guides.

// keep exploring

Similar tools

RAG & Knowledge

rag.computer

Rag.computer — self-hostable rag platform - document ingestion, embedd, open-source.

★ 100 starsMIT
View guide →
RAG & Knowledge

txtai

All-in-one AI framework for semantic search, LLM orchestration and language model workflows.

★ 13.0k starsApache-2.0
View guide →
RAG & Knowledge

OpenDocuments

Self-hosted RAG search across GitHub, Drive, Notion, and local files.

★ 115 starsMIT
View guide →
RAG & Knowledge

ezdata

AI-native data platform: 60+ connectors, ETL, scheduling, and RAG search.

★ 293 starsMIT
View guide →
RAG & Knowledge

docs-mcp

Self-hosted rag & knowledge: cometchat docs search + implementation bundles: add cha.

★ 97 starsApache-2.0
View guide →
RAG & Knowledge

WeKnora

Open-source LLM knowledge platform: turn raw documents into a queryable RAG, an autonomous reasoning agent, and a self-maintaining Wiki.

★ 31.9k starsUnknown
View guide →
// alternatives

Alternatives in RAG & Knowledge

The most-starred other RAG & Knowledge projects in the LibreAI catalogue — the realistic shortlist if trieve is not the right fit.

Get trieve

Free and open — grab the source, star the repo, and start creating.