head to head · open source
Jan vs h2o-llmstudio
Jan has 44,566 GitHub stars, 3,040 forks, 521 open issues and last shipped yesterday. h2o-llmstudio has 5,183 stars, 557 forks, 36 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Jan leads on adoption by 760% (44,566 vs 5,183 stars). Jan is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; h2o-llmstudio is written in Python under Apache-2.0. Jan has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, h2o-llmstudio 11%. Jan was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 3 topic tags (chatgpt, gpt, 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
| Jan | h2o-llmstudio | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 45K | ★ 5.2K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 557 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Jan if
- You weight community size — 45K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick h2o-llmstudio if
- You want the h2o-llmstudio feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and h2o-llmstudio fits your workflow better
About Jan
Jan is an open source desktop application that serves as a ChatGPT replacement, enabling users to run large language models (LLMs) locally on their machines or connect to cloud based providers like OpenAI and Anthropic. It is built with Tauri, TypeScript, and integrates llama.cpp for efficient local inference, targeting privacy conscious users who want full control over their AI workflows without sending data to third parties.
About h2o-llmstudio
H2O LLM Studio is an Apache 2.0 Python framework with a no code graphical interface for fine tuning large language models, built for teams and individuals who want a custom LLM without writing training code yourself.
read the full h2o-llmstudio overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Jan or h2o-llmstudio more popular?
Jan has 44,566 GitHub stars and h2o-llmstudio has 5,183. Jan has the larger community by that measure.
Are Jan and h2o-llmstudio free?
Both are open source. Jan has no licence declared in this registry, and h2o-llmstudio is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Jan and h2o-llmstudio?
Jan is written in TypeScript and h2o-llmstudio 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, Jan or h2o-llmstudio?
Choose Jan if you want the larger community (44,566 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose h2o-llmstudio if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.