head to head · open source
Hermes Agent vs Open WebUI
Hermes Agent has 246,492 GitHub stars, 51,615 forks, 41,784 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Open WebUI has 152,394 stars, 22,296 forks, 294 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Hermes Agent leads on adoption by 62% (246,492 vs 152,394 stars). Hermes Agent is written in Python under MIT; Open WebUI is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence. Hermes Agent has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, Open WebUI 15%. Hermes Agent was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (ai, llm), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Hermes Agent | Open WebUI | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 246K | ★ 152K |
| License | MIT | Custom / other |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 52K | ⑂ 22K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Hermes Agent if
- You weight community size — 246K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Open WebUI if
- You want the Open WebUI feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and Open WebUI fits your workflow better
About Hermes Agent
Hermes Agent is a desktop AI agent developed by Nous Research that maintains persistent memory and self improving capabilities across sessions and platforms. It operates as a local first, cross platform interface for LLMs, integrating with multiple model providers and deployment environments without vendor lock in. The agent implements a closed learning loop where it curates its own memory, creates and refines skills from experience, and supports cross session recall via full text search and summarization.
read the full Hermes Agent overview →
About Open WebUI
Open WebUI is a self hosted, open source AI interface that unifies access to local and cloud based large language models. It runs entirely in a web browser and supports Ollama for local model hosting alongside any OpenAI compatible API, including services like LMStudio, GroqCloud, Mistral, and OpenRouter. Built in Python, it functions as a drop in replacement for proprietary AI platforms, giving users full control over their model infrastructure and data.
read the full Open WebUI overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Hermes Agent or Open WebUI more popular?
Hermes Agent has 246,492 GitHub stars and Open WebUI has 152,394. Hermes Agent has the larger community by that measure.
Are Hermes Agent and Open WebUI free?
Both are open source. Hermes Agent is licensed under MIT, and Open WebUI has no licence declared in this registry. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Hermes Agent and Open WebUI?
Hermes Agent is written in Python and Open WebUI in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Hermes Agent or Open WebUI?
Choose Hermes Agent if you want the larger community (246,492 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose Open WebUI if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.