--- title: "MyScaleDB vs pgvector" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/myscale-myscaledb-vs-pgvector-pgvector" tools: ["myscale-myscaledb", "pgvector-pgvector"] --- # MyScaleDB vs pgvector *GraphCanon updated Sep 20, 2026* ## Verdict Pick MyScaleDB if myScaleDB is a ClickHouse-derived system designed to enhance performance for vector and full-text searches. It integrates SQL support with advanced features like embedding-based search and image search; pick pgvector if pgvector is an extension for PostgreSQL that enables efficient vector similarity search using various distance metrics, including L2, inner product, cosine distance, and L1 distance. [MyScaleDB](https://myscale.com) reports 1.0k GitHub stars, 73 forks, and 10 open issues, last pushed Feb 5, 2025. [pgvector](https://github.com/pgvector/pgvector) has 23k stars, 1.3k forks, and 16 open issues, last pushed Sep 10, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [MyScaleDB's repository](https://github.com/myscale/MyScaleDB) and [pgvector's repository](https://github.com/pgvector/pgvector). | | [MyScaleDB](/tools/myscale-myscaledb.md) | [pgvector](/tools/pgvector-pgvector.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | A @ClickHouse fork that supports high-performance vector search and full-text search. | Open-source vector similarity search for Postgres | | Stars | 1,043 | 23,049 | | Forks | 73 | 1,325 | | Open issues | 10 | 16 | | Language | C++ | C | | Adopt for | MyScaleDB is a ClickHouse-derived system designed to enhance performance for vector and full-text searches. It integrates SQL support with advanced features like embedding-based search and image search. | pgvector is an extension for PostgreSQL that enables efficient vector similarity search using various distance metrics, including L2, inner product, cosine distance, and L1 distance. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | Other | | Categories | Data & Retrieval, Vector Databases | Vector Databases | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [MyScaleDB](/tools/myscale-myscaledb.md) | [pgvector](/tools/pgvector-pgvector.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Dormant (18%) | Active (82%) | | Days since push | 592d | 7d | | Open issues (now) | 10 | 16 | | Stars delta | +6 (30d) | +674 (30d) | | Open issues delta | 0 (30d) | +2 (30d) | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/myscale-myscaledb/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/pgvector-pgvector/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: MyScaleDB - **Adopt for:** MyScaleDB is a ClickHouse-derived system designed to enhance performance for vector and full-text searches. It integrates SQL support with advanced features like embedding-based search and image search. ## Decision facts: pgvector - **Adopt for:** pgvector is an extension for PostgreSQL that enables efficient vector similarity search using various distance metrics, including L2, inner product, cosine distance, and L1 distance. ## Choose when ### Choose MyScaleDB if… - MyScaleDB is primarily C++; pgvector is C. - License: MyScaleDB is Apache-2.0, pgvector is Other. - Tags unique to MyScaleDB: ann, big-data, embedding, image-search. - Also covers Data & Retrieval. - - When your application requires both fast vector and full-text search capabilities within a single database system without compromising on performance. ### Choose pgvector if… - pgvector is primarily C; MyScaleDB is C++. - License: pgvector is Other, MyScaleDB is Apache-2.0. - Tags unique to pgvector: approximate-nearest-neighbor-search, c-language, docker-support, l2-distance. - pgvector ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. - When you need to perform vector similarity searches within a PostgreSQL database and require support for multiple distance metrics. ## When NOT to use MyScaleDB - - If your primary requirement is only standard relational data operations and does not include vector or full-text search capabilities, as MyScaleDB's strength lies in these specific areas. - - For cases where your application environment strictly avoids C++ based systems due to language-specific preferences or constraints. ## When NOT to use pgvector - If your application does not require the full feature set of PostgreSQL and you are looking for a lightweight solution specifically designed for vector similarity searches. - When you need real-time, low-latency vector similarity searches that might be better served by specialized vector databases or in-memory solutions. - If you are working in an environment where PostgreSQL is not supported or where you need to integrate with a different database system. - When you require a solution that supports more advanced indexing techniques or approximate nearest neighbor search algorithms that are not natively supported by pgvector. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between MyScaleDB and pgvector? MyScaleDB: A @ClickHouse fork that supports high-performance vector search and full-text search.. pgvector: Open-source vector similarity search for Postgres. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose MyScaleDB over pgvector? Choose MyScaleDB over pgvector when MyScaleDB is primarily C++; pgvector is C; License: MyScaleDB is Apache-2.0, pgvector is Other; Tags unique to MyScaleDB: ann, big-data, embedding, image-search; Also covers Data & Retrieval; - When your application requires both fast vector and full-text search capabilities within a single database system without compromising on performance. ### When should I choose pgvector over MyScaleDB? Choose pgvector over MyScaleDB when pgvector is primarily C; MyScaleDB is C++; License: pgvector is Other, MyScaleDB is Apache-2.0; Tags unique to pgvector: approximate-nearest-neighbor-search, c-language, docker-support, l2-distance; pgvector ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment; When you need to perform vector similarity searches within a PostgreSQL database and require support for multiple distance metrics. ### When should I avoid MyScaleDB? - If your primary requirement is only standard relational data operations and does not include vector or full-text search capabilities, as MyScaleDB's strength lies in these specific areas. - For cases where your application environment strictly avoids C++ based systems due to language-specific preferences or constraints. ### When should I avoid pgvector? If your application does not require the full feature set of PostgreSQL and you are looking for a lightweight solution specifically designed for vector similarity searches. When you need real-time, low-latency vector similarity searches that might be better served by specialized vector databases or in-memory solutions. If you are working in an environment where PostgreSQL is not supported or where you need to integrate with a different database system. When you require a solution that supports more advanced indexing techniques or approximate nearest neighbor search algorithms that are not natively supported by pgvector. ### Is MyScaleDB or pgvector more popular on GitHub? pgvector has more GitHub stars (23,049 vs 1,043). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are MyScaleDB and pgvector open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (MyScaleDB: Apache-2.0, pgvector: Other). ### Where can I find alternatives to MyScaleDB or pgvector? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [MyScaleDB alternatives](/tools/myscale-myscaledb/alternatives) and [pgvector alternatives](/tools/pgvector-pgvector/alternatives) ([MyScaleDB markdown twin](/tools/myscale-myscaledb/alternatives.md), [pgvector markdown twin](/tools/pgvector-pgvector/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/myscale-myscaledb-vs-pgvector-pgvector.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, MyScaleDB or pgvector? MyScaleDB: Dormant. pgvector: Active. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for MyScaleDB and pgvector? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [MyScaleDB trust report](/tools/myscale-myscaledb/trust); [pgvector trust report](/tools/pgvector-pgvector/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=myscale-myscaledb`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=myscale-myscaledb) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_