Chroma vs Pinecone
Chroma vs Pinecone, compared side by side on 23 data points: what each one does, how big it is, what it has raised, the tech running each site, and what users report. We score both out of 100 on traction, team and visibility: Chroma is on 61/100 and Pinecone on 66/100.
Where each one leads
Chroma
Leads on none of the measures we hold for both companies.
Pinecone
- our overall score: 66/100 against 61/100
- agent readiness: 76/100 against 57/100
- funding raised: $138M against $20.3M
- LinkedIn following: 77,036 against 8,672
At a glance
| Measure | Chroma | Pinecone |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Open-source AI-native vector database that makes knowledge and memory pluggable for LLM applications. | Managed vector database for building scalable, reliable, and accurate AI applications and search. |
| Category | Artificial Intelligence, Developer Tools, Vector Database, Open Source | AI Infrastructure, API Platform, Artificial Intelligence, Data |
| Sells toBusiness model | Open Source / Cloud | B2B |
| Offering | Not published | Platform |
| Founded | 2022 | 2019 |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, United States | San Francisco, United States |
| Status | Active | Active |
Size, funding and growth
| Measure | Chroma | Pinecone |
|---|---|---|
| Employees | 103 | 127 |
| Total funding | $20.3M | $138M |
| Latest round | Seed | Series B |
| Valuation | $75.0M | $750M |
| LinkedIn followers | 8,672 | 77,036 |
StartupHub scores
Our own 0-100 ratings. They measure company strength and site quality, not which product suits you.
| Measure | Chroma | Pinecone |
|---|---|---|
| StartupHub scoreOur 0-100 rating | 61/100 | 66/100 |
| Traction | 57/100 | 60/100 |
| Team | 60/100 | 30/100 |
| Community | 15/100 | Not published |
| Search visibility | 42/100 | 46/100 |
| Quality | 68/100 | 78/100 |
| Agent readinessHow well an AI agent can read and act on the site | D (57/100) | B (76/100) |
| Domain ratingLink authority, 0-100 | 79/100 | 80/100 |
Technology
Detected on each public site, so it reflects the marketing stack as well as the product.
| Measure | Chroma | Pinecone |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting | Vercel | Vercel |
| CDN | Vercel | Vercel |
| Frameworks | Next.js, Tailwind CSS | Next.js, Tailwind CSS |
| Analytics | Google Tag Manager | Not detected |
| Support stack | Not detected | HubSpot |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | No |
Chroma vs Pinecone: common questions
Which is better, Chroma or Pinecone?
On our 0-100 score Pinecone rates higher (66/100 against 61/100). The score weights traction, team, visibility and profile completeness, so it reflects company strength rather than which product suits you. We compare the two on 23 data points above: read the rows that match what you are buying for.
How do Chroma and Pinecone compare on the numbers?
Pinecone leads on our overall score (66/100 against 61/100), agent readiness (76/100 against 57/100), funding raised ($138M against $20.3M), LinkedIn following (77,036 against 8,672).
Read the full Chroma review and pricing or the Pinecone review and pricing. You can also browse other Chroma alternatives we track.