Chroma · Open-source vector database

Chroma

Open-source embedding database that runs in your app or as Chroma Cloud.

RAG & Vector Databases Local & Self-Hosted AI

Provider: Chroma
Latest confirmed model: Not applicable / not verified
Pricing: Open source
Free plan: Yes
API: Yes · free quota
Status: Generally available
Last verified: Oct 19, 2026

Visit official website Pricing page API docs

What is Chroma?

Chroma is a vector database for storing embeddings and searching them by similarity, popular for RAG prototypes because it installs with pip or npm and can run inside your application. It is Apache 2.0 licensed. Chroma Cloud is the hosted, usage-billed version with team features.

Adding semantic search and retrieval to an AI app quickly, from a laptop prototype to a hosted service.

Why use Chroma?

Practical benefits

Apache 2.0 open source
Very quick setup with pip or npm
Runs locally or in the cloud
Usage-based cloud pricing with starter credits

Who it suits

Developers prototyping RAG
Python and JavaScript developers
Small teams wanting simple hosted search

When another tool may fit better

Teams requiring a published SLA without Enterprise
Non-technical users

Learning curve: Beginner-friendly
Skills needed: Python or JavaScript.

Example workflows

pip install chromadb, create a collection, add documents and query by text

What can it do?

Open-source databaseApache 2.0; Python and JavaScript clients.
Chroma CloudHosted databases billed by data written, stored, queried and returned.
Team features Depends on planSOC II, Slack support and volume discounts on Team.
Enterprise deployment Depends on planSingle-tenant and BYOC clusters with SLAs.

Good for

RAG prototypes
Semantic search in apps
Agent memory
Local experiments

Where it runs

PythonJavaScriptChroma Cloud

Pricing and plans

Open source Open-source Chroma is free. Chroma Cloud Starter is $0/month plus usage with $5 credits; Team is $250/month plus usage with $100 credits; Enterprise is custom. Usage is $2.50/GiB written, $0.33/GiB-month stored, $0.0075/TiB queried and $0.09/GiB returned.

Plan	Price	Billing	Free trial / tier	Usage limits	Main inclusions	Model access	API access	Restrictions
Open source	Free	per month	Free tier	Your hardware	Local or self-hosted database	—	Yes	—
Starter (Cloud)	Free	per month	$5 free credits	10 databases, 10 team members	Community Slack	—	Yes	—
Team (Cloud)	$250/mo Plus usage; includes $100 credits	per month	—	100 databases, 30 team members	Slack support SOC II Volume discounts	—	Yes	Credits do not roll over
Enterprise	Contact provider	per month	—	Unlimited databases and members	Single-tenant and BYOC SLAs Dedicated support	—	Yes	—

Prices in USD · Global list price · Taxes may apply · Verified Oct 19, 2026

Official pricing page (opens in a new tab)

API and developer access

Official API: Yes
Documentation: API docs (opens in a new tab)
Authentication: API key (cloud)
Pricing model: per GiB written/stored/returned and per TiB queried
Free API quota: $5 free credits on Chroma Cloud Starter
Rate limits: Not documented
Context / input limits: Not documented
SDKs: Python (chromadb), JavaScript (chromadb)
Streaming: Not documented
Batch processing: Not documented
Structured output: Not documented
Tool / function calling: Not documented
Commercial use: Apache 2.0 for the open-source database
Data retention & privacy: See the provider privacy terms

Published API rates

Item	Price	Unit
Writes	$2.50	per GiB written
Storage	$0.33	per GiB per month
Queries	$0.0075	per TiB queried
Network	$0.09	per GiB returned

A free Chroma account is not the same thing as free API access. The API allowance above is the provider's documented developer quota.

Verified Oct 19, 2026

Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages

Easiest local start
Permissive licence
Simple cloud pricing

Disadvantages

Team plan has a high fixed fee
Team credits do not roll over
Advanced deployment needs Enterprise

Privacy: Local and self-hosted deployments keep data on your infrastructure.

Real-world examples

A student building a notes search

pip install chromadb
Add notes to a local collection
Query by meaning

free plan works

A startup hosting its index

Sign up for Chroma Cloud Starter ($5 free credits)
Migrate the local collection
Pay per GiB written and stored

free plan works

A company needing support

Upgrade to Team ($250/month with $100 credits)
Invite up to 30 members
Use Slack support

needs paid plan

Chroma alternatives

Qdrant

Open-source vector search engine written in Rust, available self-hosted or as a managed cloud.

has a free plan · offers an API · open source / open-weight

Chroma vs Qdrant

Pinecone

Fully managed vector database for semantic search and retrieval-augmented generation.

has a free plan · offers an API

Chroma vs Pinecone

LlamaIndex

Open-source framework for connecting LLMs to your data, plus the commercial LlamaParse document platform.

has a free plan · offers an API · open source / open-weight

Chroma vs LlamaIndex

Compare Chroma with these side by side

Frequently asked questions

Is Chroma free?

The open-source database is free under Apache 2.0. Chroma Cloud Starter is $0/month plus usage with $5 in free credits.

How do I install Chroma?

Use pip install chromadb for Python or npm install chromadb for JavaScript.

How is Chroma Cloud billed?

By usage: $2.50 per GiB written, $0.33 per GiB per month stored, $0.0075 per TiB queried and $0.09 per GiB returned.

What does the Team plan cost?

$250 per month plus usage, including $100 of credits that do not roll over.

Can I use Chroma commercially?

Yes, the Apache 2.0 licence permits commercial use of the open-source software.