head to head · open source
Jan vs LibreChat
Jan has 44,512 GitHub stars, 3,032 forks, 521 open issues and last shipped yesterday. LibreChat has 44,217 stars, 9,087 forks, 732 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Jan leads on adoption by 1% (44,512 vs 44,217 stars). Jan is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; LibreChat is written in TypeScript under MIT. Jan has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, LibreChat 21%. LibreChat was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (chatgpt), 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.
← all 8884 open source comparisons
Side by side
| Jan | LibreChat | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 45K | ★ 44K |
| License | Custom / other | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 9.1K |
| 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 LibreChat if
- You want the LibreChat feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and LibreChat 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 LibreChat
LibreChat is an open source, self hostable chat interface designed as an enhanced ChatGPT clone. It unifies access to multiple AI models—including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini, DeepSeek, Mistral, AWS Bedrock, Azure OpenAI, and others—within a single web application. Built in TypeScript, it supports real time streaming, multi model switching, and advanced agent workflows while providing features like message search, artifacts, code interpreter, and secure multi user authentication.
read the full LibreChat overview →
More in AI & Machine Learning
Related comparisons
More AI Interaction & Interfaces projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the AI Interaction & Interfaces field.
Frequently asked questions
Is Jan or LibreChat more popular?
Jan has 44,512 GitHub stars and LibreChat has 44,217. Jan has the larger community by that measure.
Are Jan and LibreChat free?
Both are open source. Jan has no licence declared in this registry, and LibreChat is licensed under MIT. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Jan and LibreChat?
Jan is written in TypeScript and LibreChat in TypeScript. 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 LibreChat?
Choose Jan if you want the larger community (44,512 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose LibreChat if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.