head to head · open source
Open WebUI vs askimo
Open WebUI has 152,951 GitHub stars, 22,373 forks, 294 open issues and last shipped yesterday. askimo has 500 stars, 103 forks, 15 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Open WebUI leads on adoption by 30,490% (152,951 vs 500 stars). Open WebUI is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence; askimo is written in Kotlin under AGPL-3.0. Open WebUI has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, askimo 21%. Open WebUI 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
| Open WebUI | askimo | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 153K | ★ 500 |
| License | Custom / other | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Python | Kotlin |
| Last push | 2026-09-24 | 2026-09-24 |
| Forks | ⑂ 22K | ⑂ 103 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Open WebUI if
- You weight community size — 153K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick askimo if
- You want the askimo feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Kotlin
- You evaluated both and askimo fits your workflow better
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 →
About askimo
Askimo is an AGPL 3.0, Kotlin built AI desktop application that combines multi provider chat, local RAG over your own files, multi step Plans, reusable Skills, MCP tools, and delegated agent CLIs in one native client, for individuals who want to work with models without their data leaving the machine.
read the full askimo overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Open WebUI or askimo more popular?
Open WebUI has 152,951 GitHub stars and askimo has 500. Open WebUI has the larger community by that measure.
Are Open WebUI and askimo free?
Both are open source. Open WebUI has no licence declared in this registry, and askimo is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Open WebUI and askimo?
Open WebUI is written in Python and askimo in Kotlin. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Open WebUI or askimo?
Choose Open WebUI if you want the larger community (152,951 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose askimo if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.