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Databases · head to head

Amazon Redshift vs Apache Solr

Amazon Redshift logo

Amazon Redshift

Databases

Fast, scalable cloud data warehouse from AWS

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Apache Solr logo

Apache Solr

Databases

Enterprise search platform built on Apache Lucene

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Amazon Redshift on-demand pricing runs up to 75% higher than competitors like Snowflake and BigQuery; Apache Solr xML-heavy configuration and a developer experience that feels dated beside newer engines
  • They diverge on capability: Amazon Redshift covers Columnar Storage, Apache Solr covers Lucene-based indexing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amazon Redshift and Apache Solr actually diverge.

Attributes where Amazon Redshift and Apache Solr differ
AttributeAmazon RedshiftApache Solr
Pricing modelusage-basedOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWebLinux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted
Founded2012Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Databases).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Amazon Redshift

  • Columnar Storage
  • Massively Parallel
  • Machine Learning
  • AQUA Acceleration
  • Data Sharing
  • Federated Query
  • Concurrency Scaling
  • S3

Only in Apache Solr

  • Lucene-based indexing
  • Faceted search
  • SolrCloud
  • Schema control

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Amazon Redshift

  • Business intelligencenot Apache Solr
  • Data warehousingnot Apache Solr
  • Real-time analyticsnot Apache Solr
  • Reportingnot Apache Solr
  • Machine learningnot Apache Solr

Apache Solr

  • Library, archive and catalogue search where faceting is centralnot Amazon Redshift
  • Long-lived enterprise deployments valuing stability over noveltynot Amazon Redshift
  • Search requiring precise, explicitly configured relevance tuningnot Amazon Redshift

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Amazon Redshift

  • On-demand pricing runs up to 75% higher than competitors like Snowflake and BigQuery
  • Requires significant manual tuning including managing concurrency scaling costs and configuring Workload Management queues
  • Performance degrades without proper design of distribution keys and sort keys
  • Limited elastic resize options - can only halve or double current cluster size
  • AWS lock-in makes it unsuitable for multi-cloud architectures

Apache Solr

  • XML-heavy configuration and a developer experience that feels dated beside newer engines
  • SolrCloud depends on ZooKeeper, adding a component Elasticsearch removed years ago
  • Smaller mindshare now, so newer tutorials, hiring and integrations favour Elasticsearch
  • Considerably heavier than a purpose-built application search engine

Pricing, plan by plan

Amazon Redshift

Free
  • Free TrialFree
    • 750 DC2.Large hours
    • 2 months free
    • Full features
  • On-Demand$0.25/hour
    • Pay per node hour
    • All features
    • Standard support

Apache Solr

Free
  • Apache SolrFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose Amazon Redshift if

  • You need columnar storage.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want massively parallel.
Amazon Redshift review

Choose Apache Solr if

  • You need lucene-based indexing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
  • You also want faceted search.
Apache Solr review

Questions people ask

Is Amazon Redshift or Apache Solr better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon Redshift starts at Free and Apache Solr at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon Redshift or Apache Solr?
Amazon Redshift starts at Free and Apache Solr at Free.
Does Amazon Redshift or Apache Solr run on more platforms?
Amazon Redshift runs on Web. Apache Solr runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
Can I use Amazon Redshift for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Amazon Redshift best used for?
Amazon Redshift is most often used for business intelligence, data warehousing, real-time analytics, reporting. Of those, business intelligence and data warehousing are not what Apache Solr is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon Redshift do that Apache Solr cannot?
Amazon Redshift covers Columnar Storage, Massively Parallel, Machine Learning, AQUA Acceleration. Apache Solr covers Lucene-based indexing, Faceted search, SolrCloud, Schema control.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon Redshift: What deployment options does Amazon Redshift offer?

Redshift offers Provisioned Cluster (with RA3 or DC2 nodes) and Serverless options to match varying workloads. The new Redshift RG instance family, powered by Graviton, delivers 2.4x faster performance than RA3 at 30% lower cost per vCPU.

Source
Apache Solr: Is Apache Solr free?

Yes, open source under the Apache Software Foundation.

Amazon Redshift: What does Amazon Redshift cost?

Provisioned cluster pricing: RA3 on-demand starts at $1.086/hour for ra3.xlplus. Serverless costs approximately $0.375 per RPU-hour with 4-RPU minimum (roughly $1.50/hour active workload). Managed storage costs $0.024/GB-month.

Source
Apache Solr: Solr or Elasticsearch?

Both are built on Lucene. Elasticsearch has the larger ecosystem and a friendlier API; Solr is very mature and strong on faceted search, and remains common in library and catalogue systems.

Amazon Redshift: Does Redshift work with data lakes?

Yes, Redshift's integrated data lake query engine processes workloads on Apache Iceberg tables and other supported formats in Amazon S3, allowing you to run SQL analytics across your data warehouse and data lake from the same engine.

Source
Apache Solr: Is Solr still maintained?

Yes, actively, as a top-level Apache project.

Amazon Redshift: Is there a free tier for Amazon Redshift?

AWS offers a free trial with $300 USD in Serverless credits valid for 90 days, but Redshift is not part of the permanent AWS Free Tier.

Source
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