head to head · open source
Open WebUI vs LobsterAI
Open WebUI has 157,575 GitHub stars, 22,923 forks, 294 open issues and last shipped yesterday. LobsterAI has 6,162 stars, 978 forks, 601 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Open WebUI leads on adoption by 2,457% (157,575 vs 6,162 stars). Open WebUI is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence; LobsterAI is written in TypeScript under MIT. Open WebUI has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, LobsterAI 16%. LobsterAI was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (llm, mcp), 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 | LobsterAI | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 158K | ★ 6.2K |
| License | Custom / other | MIT |
| Written in | Python | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 23K | ⑂ 978 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Open WebUI if
- You weight community size — 158K 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 LobsterAI if
- You want the LobsterAI feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and LobsterAI fits your workflow better
About Open WebUI
Open WebUI 👋 Open WebUI is a home for AI , a self hosted AI platform that's extensible , feature rich , user friendly, and built to run entirely offline . With support for Ollama and OpenAI compatible APIs , it gives you a powerful, provider agnostic interface for both local and cloud based models. Passionate about open source AI? Join our team → [!TIP] Looking for an Enterprise Plan? – Speak with Our Sales Team Today! For more information, be sure to check out our Open WebUI Documentation. Key Features of Open WebUI ⭐ 🚀 Effortless Setup : Install seamlessly via pip, uv, Docker, or Kubernetes (kubectl…
read the full Open WebUI overview →
About LobsterAI
LobsterAI English · 中文 All scenario office assistant Agent. The first open source desktop grade Agent among major Chinese tech companies, built by NetEase Youdao. Features · Developing · Community Download LobsterAI LobsterAI is a desktop Agent that can operate in your real working environment: local files, terminal commands, browser workflows, documents, spreadsheets, slides, IM channels, scheduled jobs, and project workspaces. Cowork is the LobsterAI product/session layer. OpenClaw is the runtime and gateway underneath it. That split lets LobsterAI keep local persistence, permissions, UI state, artifacts…
read the full LobsterAI overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Open WebUI or LobsterAI more popular?
Open WebUI has 157,575 GitHub stars and LobsterAI has 6,162. Open WebUI has the larger community by that measure.
Are Open WebUI and LobsterAI free?
Both are open source. Open WebUI has no licence declared in this registry, and LobsterAI is licensed under MIT. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Open WebUI and LobsterAI?
Open WebUI is written in Python and LobsterAI 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 LobsterAI?
Choose Open WebUI if you want the larger community (157,575 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose LobsterAI if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.