head to head · open source
serviette vs langchain4j
serviette has 58,732 GitHub stars, 1,547 forks, 8 open issues and last shipped yesterday. langchain4j has 13,344 stars, 2,657 forks, 878 open issues and last shipped yesterday. serviette leads on adoption by 340% (58,732 vs 13,344 stars). serviette is written in Python under MIT; langchain4j is written in Java under Apache-2.0. serviette has attracted 3% as many forks as stars, langchain4j 20%. serviette 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
| serviette | langchain4j | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 59K | ★ 13K |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Java |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.5K | ⑂ 2.7K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick serviette if
- You weight community size — 59K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick langchain4j if
- You want the langchain4j feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You evaluated both and langchain4j fits your workflow better
About serviette
serviette Looking for llm app templates? All templates, cookbooks and examples are still available in full in the Pathway repository under examples/llm app . A no code, always up to date RAG server for any vector database — built on the Pathway Live Data Framework. Point serviette at a folder of documents, pick a vector database and an embedder in one YAML file, and run two commands: you get a chat and a REST API that answer from those documents and cite their sources. From then on, any change to the documents — an edit, a new file, a deletion — is reflected in the answers within seconds. serviette runs on…
read the full serviette overview →
About langchain4j
LangChain4j: idiomatic, open source Java library for building LLM powered applications on the JVM Introduction Welcome! The goal of LangChain4j is to simplify integrating LLMs into Java applications. Here's how: 1. Unified APIs: LLM providers (like OpenAI or Google Vertex AI) and embedding (vector) stores (such as Pinecone or Milvus) use proprietary APIs. LangChain4j offers a unified API to avoid the need for learning and implementing specific APIs for each of them. To experiment with different LLMs or embedding stores, you can easily switch between them without the need to rewrite your code. LangChain4j…
read the full langchain4j overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is serviette or langchain4j more popular?
serviette has 58,732 GitHub stars and langchain4j has 13,344. serviette has the larger community by that measure.
Are serviette and langchain4j free?
Both are open source. serviette is licensed under MIT and langchain4j under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between serviette and langchain4j?
serviette is written in Python and langchain4j in Java. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, serviette or langchain4j?
Choose serviette if you want the larger community (58,732 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose langchain4j if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.