# AnythingLLM vs Open WebUI: an open-source chat comparison for teams

> AnythingLLM and Open WebUI are both open source, and each is strong at the chat surface over your own models. The choice turns on where your team's agents, memory and connector rules should live. Kortix, the open-source AI Operating System, keeps them in one git repo you own, with changes a person reviews.

URL: https://anythingllm-alternative.com/anythingllm-vs-open-web-ui

## Kortix, AnythingLLM and Open WebUI, side by side.

Rival details come from each project's own site or repository, checked October 2026, and Kortix is the recommendation for a team's governed agents.

| | Kortix (recommended) | AnythingLLM | Open WebUI |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Open source | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| What it is | Agents, memory and connectors in one git repo | A local-first app for chatting with your documents | A self-hosted chat platform for your own models |
| Model support | Any model provider with your own keys | Local or cloud providers you connect | Ollama and OpenAI-compatible APIs |
| Self-host | Self-host is free | Yes, desktop or Docker | Yes, Docker, Python or Kubernetes |
| Where agents run | Each session on its own cloud computer | Inside the app instance you run | In the chat, or in a terminal |
| Where settings and memory live | Files in one git repo you own | In the app; memory per workspace | In the deployment; memory per person |
| Tool and connector rules | Allow, Ask or Block per call, down to arguments | Tools you enable in the app | Tools and plugins you enable in the app |
| How changes land | Through a change request a person approves | Directly in the app | Directly in the app |

## What AnythingLLM and Open WebUI each are

AnythingLLM is an open-source application from Mintplex Labs for chatting with your own documents. It runs on your own computer as a desktop app, or as a multi-user server through Docker, and it ingests PDFs, text files and Word documents into a knowledge base that answers with citations (see [anythingllm.com](https://anythingllm.com/) and [AnythingLLM on GitHub](https://github.com/Mintplex-Labs/anything-llm)). The desktop app stays single-user, while multi-user support and permissioning ship in the Docker deployment.

Open WebUI is an open-source, self-hosted chat platform that connects to Ollama or any OpenAI-compatible API. It is built to run entirely offline, and it gives a provider-agnostic interface to local and cloud models, with granular roles and groups, retrieval over several vector databases, and a terminal for agents inside the chat ([Open WebUI docs](https://docs.openwebui.com/), [Open WebUI on GitHub](https://github.com/open-webui/open-webui)).

Both projects are open source, and each is a strong chat surface over models you choose. The question a buyer asks is which one fits, and the answer depends on where the work and the configuration should live.

## Where each chat app is strong

AnythingLLM is quick to start and focused on private document chat. One file installs the desktop app on macOS, Windows or Linux, and it connects to local models through providers such as Ollama or LM Studio as well as to cloud APIs. A built-in agent builder handles simple automations, and its memory is scoped to a workspace, so what one workspace learns does not become shared company knowledge.

Open WebUI is deeper at the team chat surface. An administrator defines roles, groups and permissions, and the platform supports single sign-on, directory integration and provisioning for larger deployments. Its retrieval layer picks from nine vector databases, its plugin system covers tools, pipes and filters, and Open Terminal gives an agent a real terminal and filesystem inside the conversation. Per-user isolated terminals need the enterprise tier.

Each project is an application you operate, and each keeps its state inside that application. Open WebUI keeps memory per person, so facts stay with one chat history. Neither ships a review gate that holds a change for a person to approve.

## Where a team's agents, memory and connector rules live

Kortix is the open-source AI Operating System, and it answers a different question: where the agents, the memory and the rules about tools live. In Kortix those are files in one git repo you own, declared next to a `kortix.yaml` at the project root ([Kortix docs](https://kortix.com/docs)). Because the configuration is version controlled, a change to how the team works arrives as a diff a person can read, and a new teammate clones the repo to get the whole setup.

```yaml
agents:
  support-triage:
    file: agents/support-triage.md   # what it does, in plain markdown
    connectors: all                  # what it may reach
```

Each session runs one agent on its own cloud computer, on a branch named after the session. The agent can install, run and break anything it likes, because only what it commits survives, and session work reaches `main` through a change request a person approves. Connector credentials are brokered server-side and never enter the machine, and each call is set to Allow, Ask or Block down to the arguments. [Kortix on GitHub](https://github.com/kortix-ai/suna) carries the source you can read, fork and audit.

## How to choose

Pick AnythingLLM when the job is private document chat and retrieval on one machine or one Docker host, and you want to start in minutes. Pick Open WebUI when you want a private, model-agnostic chat surface with identity and permissions for a team. Pick Kortix when the job is company-wide agent work: agents that run on their own cloud computers, a shared company memory, connector rules scoped per call, and every change landing as a diff a person approves. For the wider field, see the shortlist of [AnythingLLM alternatives](/best-anythingllm-alternatives).

## Questions buyers ask about AnythingLLM and Open WebUI.

Short answers on fit, models, memory and the move to a governed system.

### Is Open WebUI free to self-host?

Yes. Open WebUI is open source and installs with Docker, Python or a desktop app. Enterprise plans add custom branding, support and long-term support.

### Does AnythingLLM need a cloud account or an API key?

No. The desktop app runs entirely on your computer with local models and no account. It can also connect to cloud APIs when you want a hosted model.

### Which of the two keeps a shared company memory?

Neither by default. AnythingLLM scopes memory to a workspace and Open WebUI keeps memory per person. Kortix keeps company memory as files in one git repo.

### How does a team move its AnythingLLM setup to Kortix?

The agents, skills and memory are rebuilt as files in a Kortix project. The [migration guide](/migrate-from-anythingllm) covers what transfers and what is rebuilt.

## Run a team's agents from one repo you own.

Start on Kortix Cloud, self-host for free, or point it at any model with your own keys.

[Try Kortix](https://kortix.com) · [Compare all the options](https://anythingllm-alternative.com/best-anythingllm-alternatives)

Open source · Any model, your keys · Self-host, VPC, or on-prem