head to head · open source
Jan vs screenpipe
Jan has 44,516 GitHub stars, 3,032 forks, 521 open issues and last shipped today. screenpipe has 21,616 stars, 2,203 forks, 36 open issues and last shipped today. Jan leads on adoption by 106% (44,516 vs 21,616 stars). Jan is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; screenpipe is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence. Jan has attracted 7% as many forks as stars, screenpipe 10%. Jan was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (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 | screenpipe | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 45K | ★ 22K |
| License | Custom / other | Custom / other |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 2.2K |
| 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 screenpipe if
- You want the screenpipe feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and screenpipe 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 screenpipe
Screenpipe is a source available Rust application that continuously records a computer's screen and audio, then turns that local history into searchable context for AI agents. It lives in the AI and machine learning ecosystem, covering local first memory, computer vision, audio recording, and agent interfaces.
read the full screenpipe overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Jan or screenpipe more popular?
Jan has 44,516 GitHub stars and screenpipe has 21,616. Jan has the larger community by that measure.
Are Jan and screenpipe free?
Neither Jan nor screenpipe declares a licence in this registry, so check each project's own repository before relying on either for a commercial use. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Jan and screenpipe ?
Jan is written in TypeScript and screenpipe 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 screenpipe ?
Choose Jan if you want the larger community (44,516 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose screenpipe if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.