Which Qdrant Deployment Do I Need?

Start with what you need: managed ops or full control? Network latency acceptable or not? Production or prototyping? The answer narrows to one of four options.

Getting Started or Prototyping

Use when: building a prototype, running tests, CI/CD pipelines, or learning Qdrant.

• Use local mode (Python only): zero-dependency, in-memory or disk-persisted, no server needed Local mode
• Local mode data format is NOT compatible with server. Do not use for production or benchmarking.
• For a real server locally, use Docker Quick start

Going to Production (Self-Hosted)

Use when: you need full control over infrastructure, data residency, or custom configuration.

• Docker is the default deployment. Full Qdrant Open Source feature set, minimal setup. Quick start