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Spreadsheets · head to head

Equals vs OpenSearch

Equals logo

Equals

Spreadsheets

A real spreadsheet with SQL result sets landing in its cells, now sold only on annual contracts starting at 24,000 USD

From
$24000/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
OpenSearch logo

OpenSearch

Databases

Open-source search and analytics suite forked from Elasticsearch

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only OpenSearch has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Equals the price list now starts at 24,000 USD a year with no monthly billing and no self-serve signup, having offered a free plan in 2023 and 39 USD per seat in 2024, so any team that evaluated it previously is looking at a different product commercially.; OpenSearch diverged from Elasticsearch since 7.10, so clients, plugins and features no longer map one to one
  • They diverge on capability: Equals covers Connected sheets, OpenSearch covers Full-text search.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Equals and OpenSearch actually diverge.

Attributes where Equals and OpenSearch differ
AttributeEqualsOpenSearch
Starting price$24000/yearFree
Pricing modelPer year by connector count and refresh frequencyOpen source, no licence fee; managed services billed separately
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, APILinux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted
CategorySpreadsheetsDatabases

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Equals

  • Connected sheets
  • Real spreadsheet mechanics
  • Cell references into SQL
  • Equals Warehouse
  • Views
  • Writeback

Only in OpenSearch

  • Full-text search
  • OpenSearch Dashboards
  • Log analytics
  • Vector search

What people use each for

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

Equals

  • A revenue operations team that wants software metrics computed in a spreadsheet rather than defined in a BI semantic layernot OpenSearch
  • Analysts who need a SQL result and manual assumptions in the same file, with the assumptions visible as cellsnot OpenSearch
  • Joining Stripe, Salesforce and a production database without building a warehouse and pipeline firstnot OpenSearch
  • Distributing a recurring numbers pack to Slack, email or a wall display without rebuilding it as a dashboardnot OpenSearch

OpenSearch

  • Log and observability storage where an Apache-2.0 licence is a requirementnot Equals
  • Replacing Elasticsearch after the licence change without changing architecturenot Equals
  • Search plus analytics on one cluster rather than two systemsnot Equals

Where each one falls short

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

Equals

  • The price list now starts at 24,000 USD a year with no monthly billing and no self-serve signup, having offered a free plan in 2023 and 39 USD per seat in 2024, so any team that evaluated it previously is looking at a different product commercially.
  • Your data is copied out of your infrastructure by design, into a Snowflake warehouse that Equals operates, with Fivetran holding non-SQL source data in transit, and no self-hosted or bring-your-own-warehouse option is documented.
  • The financial function category contains only IRR, NPV and PMT, with no XIRR, XNPV, FV, PV, RATE or NPER, and there is no LAMBDA, LET, OFFSET or INDIRECT, so a substantial class of existing spreadsheet models cannot be ported without rework.
  • No documentation of importing or exporting Excel files exists anywhere in the docs index; the supported file sources are CSV and Google Sheets and the only documented export is dashboards as PDF, which is a notable gap for a product positioning itself as a successor to Excel.
  • Data freshness is a pricing lever rather than a setting, at six hours on Essential, one hour on Business and fifteen minutes on Enterprise, and the feature that removes row limits is itself gated above the entry tier, so the Essential row ceiling is neither published nor unlimited.

OpenSearch

  • Diverged from Elasticsearch since 7.10, so clients, plugins and features no longer map one to one
  • Operationally heavy in the way Elasticsearch is: cluster sizing, shard strategy and JVM tuning are ongoing work
  • Smaller ecosystem of third-party tooling than Elasticsearch, which most integrations still target first
  • Overkill for plain application search, where a dedicated search engine is far simpler

Pricing, plan by plan

Equals

$24000/year
  • Essential$24000/year
    • Unlimited viewers and unlimited editors
    • 3 connectors
    • Data sync every 6 hours
  • Business$36000/year
    • Unlimited viewers and unlimited editors
    • 5 connectors or a warehouse connection
    • Data sync every hour
  • Enterprise$60000/year
    • Unlimited viewers and unlimited editors
    • Unlimited connectors or a warehouse connection
    • Data sync every 15 minutes
  • Connector add-ons$199/month
    • 199 USD per month for each additional database or import script connector
    • 699 USD per month for each additional connector of any other type
    • Available on Business and Enterprise

OpenSearch

Free
  • OpenSearchFree
    • Full functionality
    • Self-hosted
    • No usage limits

Which should you pick?

Choose Equals if

  • You need connected sheets.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want real spreadsheet mechanics.
Equals review

Choose OpenSearch if

  • You need full-text search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
  • You also want opensearch dashboards.
OpenSearch review

Questions people ask

Is Equals or OpenSearch better?
Neither clearly leads. Equals starts at $24000/year and OpenSearch at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Equals or OpenSearch?
OpenSearch has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $24000/year for Equals and Free for OpenSearch.
Does Equals or OpenSearch run on more platforms?
Equals runs on Web, API. OpenSearch runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
Can I use OpenSearch for free?
Yes. OpenSearch has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Equals starts at $24000/year.
What is Equals best used for?
Equals is most often used for a revenue operations team that wants software metrics computed in a spreadsheet rather than defined in a bi semantic layer, analysts who need a sql result and manual assumptions in the same file, with the assumptions visible as cells, joining stripe, salesforce and a production database without building a warehouse and pipeline first, distributing a recurring numbers pack to slack, email or a wall display without rebuilding it as a dashboard. Of those, a revenue operations team that wants software metrics computed in a spreadsheet rather than defined in a bi semantic layer and analysts who need a sql result and manual assumptions in the same file, with the assumptions visible as cells are not what OpenSearch is typically brought in for.
What can Equals do that OpenSearch cannot?
Equals covers Connected sheets, Real spreadsheet mechanics, Cell references into SQL, Equals Warehouse. OpenSearch covers Full-text search, OpenSearch Dashboards, Log analytics, Vector search.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Equals: Is it a real spreadsheet or a modelling tool with a grid?

A real spreadsheet. A1 references, absolute reference locking, pivot tables and spilling array formulas all work, and SQL results land in ranges that ordinary cells reference.

OpenSearch: Is OpenSearch free?

Yes, Apache 2.0 licensed under the Linux Foundation. Amazon OpenSearch Service is a paid managed option.

Equals: What does it actually cost?

24,000 USD a year for Essential, 36,000 for Business and 60,000 for Enterprise, billed annually. There is no monthly option and no self-serve signup; the trial is negotiated per customer.

OpenSearch: Why does OpenSearch exist?

Elastic moved Elasticsearch off the Apache 2.0 licence in 2021. AWS forked the last Apache-licensed version, and the project now sits under the Linux Foundation.

Equals: Are seats charged?

No. Viewers and editors are unlimited on every plan. The meters are connector count, refresh frequency and AI spend, with additional connectors at 199 or 699 USD a month.

OpenSearch: Is OpenSearch compatible with Elasticsearch?

It was at the 7.10 fork point. Both have developed independently since, so compatibility weakens with every release and should be verified for the features you use.

Equals: Does my data stay in my own warehouse?

No. Connecting more than one source syncs data into a Snowflake warehouse that Equals runs, and non-SQL sources pass through Fivetran. There is no documented self-hosted option.

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