Asopitech VS
Chroma vs Alopex DB
Chroma's client types and where data is stored. Also explains how it differs from Alopex DB.
Updated: Oct 12, 2026
What Chroma is
Chroma is a database that stores and searches embedding vectors. It comes as the cloud service Chroma Cloud and as forms you run yourself.
How it works
- Client types: CloudClient connects to Chroma Cloud, Client() runs in memory only, and PersistentClient(path) saves to a directory.
- In-memory Client(): Python only. Data is not saved.
- PersistentClient: Python only. By default it saves the database files in a
.chromadirectory. - TypeScript and Rust: these clients only connect to a server. To store data locally, start a server with
chroma run --pathor use the Docker image.
Main features
From Python, it runs without a server and saves to a directory. Chroma Cloud’s default region is AWS us-east-1.
Limits
- Only Python can embed it. TypeScript and Rust need a separate server.
- Data is stored as a directory of files.
- reset() wipes the database completely and cannot be undone.
How it differs from Alopex DB
Both can search vectors stored locally.
Alopex DB embeds in Rust and Python, and the CLI and the HTTP and gRPC server open the same single file. SQL joins tables and vectors in one search.
Take RAG from prototype to production on the same Alopex DB. The quickstart is your starting point.