# Open WebUI alternatives: 11 options checked, from LibreChat to LM Studio (October 2026)

> LibreChat, Onyx, LobeHub, AnythingLLM, Chatbox, LM Studio, Jan, Msty, text-generation-webui, llama.cpp's own web UI and GreenCube: licence, price, how you install each and whether it needs a separate engine, from their own pages.

Canonical: https://blog.greencube.app/blog/openwebui-alternatives  
Published: 2026-09-15 · Updated: 2026-10-21  
Author: Hector Gras

**Short answer: it depends on why you're leaving Open WebUI.** For a self-hosted chat page for a team, LibreChat (MIT, Docker) is the closest swap; Onyx adds search across your company's documents. If it's just you on one computer and you don't want Docker or a separate engine, LM Studio, Jan, Msty and text-generation-webui run models themselves. GreenCube (Windows, €9.99 once) does too and picks the model that fits your PC.

- **11** alternatives checked on their own pages, 21 October 2026
- **50** users: above this, Open WebUI's licence requires keeping its branding
- **5** of the 11 run models themselves, with no separate engine

## Why people look for an Open WebUI alternative

Open WebUI is a self-hosted chat page that you install with pip (Python 3.11) or Docker, and that usually sits on top of an engine like Ollama or an OpenAI-compatible API ([docs](https://docs.openwebui.com/getting-started/)). It's capable: it reads documents, can run "entirely offline" and has a desktop app with an optional built-in llama.cpp engine ([GitHub](https://github.com/open-webui/open-webui)). People look elsewhere for three reasons we hear most:

- **The licence.** It's now the "Open WebUI License": BSD-style terms plus a clause that you may not remove or replace the "Open WebUI" branding, unless you have 50 or fewer end users in any rolling 30 days, written permission, or an enterprise licence ([LICENSE](https://github.com/open-webui/open-webui/blob/main/LICENSE)).
- **Setup.** A server, Docker or a Python environment, plus a separate engine for the models.
- **Fit.** Some people want something bigger (company search, permissions), others something smaller (one app on one PC).

## The 11 alternatives, side by side

Every fact comes from the project's own website, docs or GitHub page, linked in each row, read on 21 October 2026. Where a page doesn't say, we write "not stated". We haven't benchmarked these apps against each other.

| App | What it is | Licence and price | How you install it | Runs models itself? | Your documents |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| **LibreChat** ([GitHub](https://github.com/LibreChat-AI/LibreChat)) | Self-hosted chat page for many AI providers; multi-user login (OAuth2, LDAP, email) and an admin panel | MIT, free | Docker (about 5 minutes, its docs say), npm or Helm; "not a native desktop app" ([docs](https://www.librechat.ai/docs)) | No: connects to cloud APIs or local engines like Ollama and koboldcpp | Yes, chat with files and file search |
| **Onyx** ([GitHub](https://github.com/onyx-dot-app/onyx)) | AI chat plus search across your team's documents and apps | Community Edition MIT, free; Business $20 per user a month, yearly ([pricing](https://onyx.app/pricing)) | Install script, Docker, Kubernetes; a Lite mode under 1 GB can't index documents | No: connects to Ollama, vLLM and others, or cloud APIs | Yes, its main job; can run fully air-gapped ([site](https://onyx.app)) |
| **LobeHub** (formerly LobeChat, [GitHub](https://github.com/lobehub/lobehub)) | Agent and chat platform, self-hosted or hosted | LobeHub Community License (Apache 2.0 with extra conditions on derivatives); hosted plans from free ([pricing](https://lobehub.com/pricing)) | Docker, or one-click deploy to cloud hosts | No: connects to AI providers | Not described on the pages we read |
| **AnythingLLM** ([GitHub](https://github.com/Mintplex-Labs/anything-llm)) | Chat with your documents; desktop app or team server | MIT, desktop free | Desktop installer (Windows, Mac, Linux), or Docker for multiple users | Connects to many providers, local (Ollama, LM Studio) and cloud | Yes: PDF, TXT, DOCX |
| **Chatbox** ([GitHub](https://github.com/chatboxai/chatbox)) | Desktop and phone chat client for many AI models | Community Edition GPL-3.0; hosted plans Lite $3.99 to Pro+ $39.99 a month ([pricing](https://chatboxai.app/pricing)) | Installer for Windows, Mac, Linux; iPhone and Android apps | No: cloud APIs, its hosted service, or Ollama for local models | Yes, a local knowledge base |
| **LM Studio** ([site](https://lmstudio.ai)) | Desktop app with chat and a local OpenAI-style server | Free, also for work; closed source | Installer; Windows needs AVX2, Mac needs Apple chip ([requirements](https://lmstudio.ai/docs/app/system-requirements)) | Yes | Yes: PDF, DOCX, TXT |
| **Jan** ([GitHub](https://github.com/janhq/jan)) | Desktop chat app, plus a local OpenAI-compatible server | Apache 2.0, free | Installer for Windows, Mac, Linux | Yes; optional cloud models | Yes: PDF, Office files |
| **Msty** ([site](https://msty.ai/products/studio/)) | Desktop app that brings local engines and cloud models together | Free plan; Aurum $149 a year or $349 once ([pricing](https://msty.ai/pricing)); licence not stated | Installer for Windows, Mac, Linux | Uses local engines (MLX, llama.cpp, Ollama) and hosted providers | Yes, Knowledge Stacks |
| **text-generation-webui** (now "textgen", [GitHub](https://github.com/oobabooga/textgen)) | Local web UI for models, with an OpenAI/Anthropic-compatible API | AGPL-3.0, free | Portable build: unzip and run; or one-click scripts, Conda, Docker | Yes: llama.cpp, ExLlamaV3, Transformers and others | Yes: PDF, DOCX and text attachments |
| **llama.cpp server** ([GitHub](https://github.com/ggml-org/llama.cpp)) | The engine itself; its server includes a browser chat page | MIT, free | Install script, prebuilt binaries, Docker or build from source | Yes | Not stated |
| **GreenCube** ([site](https://greencube.app)) | Desktop app for one person: chat, study from PDFs, code, pictures | €9.99 once; closed source | Installer for Windows 10 and 11; no server or Docker | Yes, and picks the model that fits your PC | Yes: PDFs, notes, photos |

## Which one fits you?

### A chat page for a team, self-hosted

**LibreChat** is the closest swap: MIT licence, Docker, multi-user login and an admin panel, connecting to cloud APIs or your own engine. **Onyx** if the main job is answering questions from your company's documents and apps (MIT Community Edition, or $20 per user a month hosted). **AnythingLLM**'s Docker version if document chat is what you need most. **LobeHub** if you want agents and don't mind its licence conditions.

### Just you, on one computer, no Docker

**LM Studio** and **Jan** install like normal apps and run the models themselves; both can also serve a local OpenAI-style API for other tools. **Msty** mixes local engines and cloud models. **GreenCube** (Windows) picks and downloads the model that fits your PC, reads PDFs and photos and makes pictures, for €9.99 once.

### You like tinkering and want full control

**text-generation-webui** supports several back ends (llama.cpp, ExLlamaV3, Transformers) and says it runs with "zero telemetry". **llama.cpp**'s own server gives you a browser chat page with nothing else on top. KoboldCpp, a single .exe built on llama.cpp, is another option ([GitHub](https://github.com/LostRuins/koboldcpp)).

### You want the same chat on your phone

**Chatbox** has desktop and phone apps and can use Ollama for local models. Open WebUI itself can be added to a phone's home screen as a web app.

## How fast are local models on a normal PC?

Whatever interface you choose, speed comes from your hardware: the model runs on your graphics card or processor. We measured GreenCube on 10 real PCs (we haven't measured the other apps on the same machines):

| Your PC | Writes |
| --- | --- |
| 8 GB laptop, no graphics card | **5–7** tokens/s, about reading speed |
| 16 GB laptop, no graphics card | **14–18** tokens/s |
| Gaming PC with a 6 GB+ card | **37–76** tokens/s on most cards |

Each card's numbers are in [Can my PC run AI?](https://blog.greencube.app/blog/can-my-pc-run-ai#checker), and the raw data is in [how we measure](https://blog.greencube.app/blog/how-we-measure-ai-speed). For desktop apps compared on privacy and what goes online, see [our comparison of 12 offline AI chatbots](https://blog.greencube.app/blog/best-offline-ai-chatbot).

## How we checked

On 21 October 2026 we read each project's own GitHub page, docs, pricing page and licence, not reviews or other lists, and linked the page each fact comes from. Where pages disagreed (LobeHub's README badge says Apache 2.0, its LICENSE file adds conditions) we went with the licence file. We make GreenCube, so we've stuck to facts anyone can check and haven't ranked the apps. We'll check again every month and update the date at the top.

## FAQ

### What is the best Open WebUI alternative?

It depends on why you're leaving. For a self-hosted chat page for a team: LibreChat (MIT, Docker). For searching your company's documents: Onyx. For one person on one computer with no Docker: LM Studio, Jan, Msty or text-generation-webui, which run the models themselves. GreenCube (Windows, €9.99 once) picks the model for your PC by itself.

### Is Open WebUI still open source?

Its licence is now the "Open WebUI License": BSD-style terms plus a clause that you may not remove or replace its branding, unless you have 50 or fewer users in a rolling 30 days, written permission, or an enterprise licence. Code released earlier keeps its original licence.

### Is there an Open WebUI alternative without Docker?

Yes. LM Studio, Jan, Msty, Chatbox and GreenCube install like normal apps; text-generation-webui has portable builds you unzip and run; llama.cpp's server has its own web chat page.

### Which Open WebUI alternatives run models themselves?

LM Studio, Jan, text-generation-webui, llama.cpp and GreenCube run models with no separate engine. LibreChat, Onyx, LobeHub and Chatbox connect to an engine such as Ollama, or to cloud APIs.

### Which alternative is best for a team?

LibreChat (MIT) has multi-user login with OAuth2, LDAP and email, plus an admin panel. Onyx adds search across your company's documents; its Business plan is $20 per user a month. AnythingLLM's Docker version also supports multiple users.