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Machine Learning · head to head

Milvus vs Orange

Milvus logo

Milvus

Machine Learning

Open-source vector database for scalable similarity search

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Orange logo

Orange

Machine Learning

Data mining and visualization toolkit

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Milvus vector dimensions are capped at 32,768; Orange orange is licensed under the GNU General Public License version 3, so distributing modified or derived software requires releasing the source under the GPL
  • They diverge on capability: Milvus covers Billion-scale vectors, Orange covers Visual programming.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Milvus and Orange actually diverge.

Attributes where Milvus and Orange differ
AttributeMilvusOrange
Pricing modelfreemiumopen-source
PlatformsLinux, Mac, Windows, WebLinux, Mac, Windows
Founded20171996

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

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 Milvus

  • Billion-scale vectors
  • Multiple index types
  • GPU acceleration
  • Hybrid search
  • Data partitioning
  • PyTorch
  • TensorFlow
  • Hugging Face

Only in Orange

  • Visual programming
  • Data visualization
  • Machine learning
  • Text mining
  • Bioinformatics
  • Python
  • scikit-learn
  • PyQt

Both cover

  • Linux support
  • Mac support
  • Windows support

What people use each for

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

Milvus

  • Self hosting a vector database for semantic searchnot Orange
  • Storing and querying embeddings for retrieval augmented generationnot Orange
  • Similarity search over images, audio or text at scalenot Orange

Orange

  • Visual programming for data mining and machine learning workflowsnot Milvus
  • Teaching data science without writing codenot Milvus
  • Exploratory data visualisation and clustering on tabular datanot Milvus

Where each one falls short

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

Milvus

  • Vector dimensions are capped at 32,768
  • A collection is limited to 64 fields, 1,024 partitions and 16 shards
  • Only 1 index is allowed per field
  • Search returns at most 16,384 vectors as top-k, and nq is capped at 16,384
  • Input and output per RPC is capped at 64 MB for insert, search and query
  • VARCHAR values are limited to 65,535 characters
  • Data loaded into query nodes cannot exceed 90% of available memory
  • An instance supports at most 65,536 collections

Orange

  • Orange is licensed under the GNU General Public License version 3, so distributing modified or derived software requires releasing the source under the GPL
  • The widgets and canvas are built on Qt, which is itself distributed under GPL 3.0
  • Orange add-ons may carry additional licensing requirements set in their own licence files
  • Documentation and website content are under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike, which imposes an attribution and share-alike obligation on reuse
  • The software is distributed without any warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose

Pricing, plan by plan

Milvus

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Full features
    • Self-hosted
    • Community support
  • Zilliz CloudFree
    • Managed service
    • Free tier available

Orange

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Visual programming
    • Machine learning
    • Data visualization

Which should you pick?

Choose Milvus if

  • You need billion-scale vectors.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Mac, Windows, Web.
  • You also want multiple index types.
Milvus review

Choose Orange if

  • You need visual programming.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Mac, Windows.
  • You also want data visualization.
Orange review

Questions people ask

Is Milvus or Orange better?
Neither clearly leads. Milvus starts at Free and Orange at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Milvus or Orange?
Milvus starts at Free and Orange at Free.
Does Milvus or Orange run on more platforms?
Milvus runs on Linux, Mac, Windows, Web. Orange runs on Linux, Mac, Windows.
Can I use Milvus for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Milvus best used for?
Milvus is most often used for self hosting a vector database for semantic search, storing and querying embeddings for retrieval augmented generation, similarity search over images, audio or text at scale. Of those, self hosting a vector database for semantic search and storing and querying embeddings for retrieval augmented generation are not what Orange is typically brought in for.
What can Milvus do that Orange cannot?
Milvus covers Billion-scale vectors, Multiple index types, GPU acceleration, Hybrid search. Orange covers Visual programming, Data visualization, Machine learning, Text mining. Both handle Linux support, Mac support, Windows support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Milvus: How much does Milvus cost?

Milvus is open-source and free to use and modify. The self-hosted version has no licensing cost. Zilliz Cloud (the managed SaaS version) does not publish pricing on the website.

Source
Orange: What is the cost of Orange Data Mining?

Orange Data Mining is free open-source software available for Windows, Mac, and other platforms. There are no subscription fees, licensing costs, or paid tiers.

Source
Milvus: Is there a free or open-source version of Milvus?

Yes, Milvus is fully open-source and available for free. Milvus Lite is a lightweight option for learning and prototyping that can be installed via pip.

Source
Orange: How is Orange Data Mining funded?

Orange Data Mining is supported through optional voluntary donations. The project encourages donations from users who value the software to support bug fixes, new features, educational content, and infrastructure maintenance.

Source
Milvus: Does Milvus offer a managed cloud service?

Yes, Zilliz Cloud is a fully managed Milvus cloud offering with serverless and dedicated cluster options. Pricing must be requested from the company as it is not listed on the public website.

Source
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