head to head · open source
Open WebUI vs LobeChat
Open WebUI has 152,394 GitHub stars, 22,296 forks, 294 open issues and last shipped yesterday. LobeChat has 82,547 stars, 15,891 forks, 922 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Open WebUI leads on adoption by 85% (152,394 vs 82,547 stars). Open WebUI is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence; LobeChat is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence. Open WebUI has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, LobeChat 19%. LobeChat was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (ai), 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 | LobeChat | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 152K | ★ 83K |
| License | Custom / other | Custom / other |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 22K | ⑂ 16K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Open WebUI if
- You weight community size — 152K 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 LobeChat if
- You want the LobeChat feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and LobeChat 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 LobeChat
LobeHub is an open source platform for managing, building, and operating AI agent teams. It functions as a Chief Agent Operator (CAO), enabling users to organize, schedule, and monitor autonomous AI agents around the clock. The project lives in the AI interaction and interfaces ecosystem, integrating with major LLM providers like OpenAI, Anthropic, DeepSeek, and Alibaba’s GLM series.
read the full LobeChat overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Open WebUI or LobeChat more popular?
Open WebUI has 152,394 GitHub stars and LobeChat has 82,547. Open WebUI has the larger community by that measure.
Are Open WebUI and LobeChat free?
Neither Open WebUI nor LobeChat 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 Open WebUI and LobeChat?
Open WebUI is written in Python and LobeChat 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, Open WebUI or LobeChat?
Choose Open WebUI if you want the larger community (152,394 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose LobeChat if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.