the catalog · ✨ AI assistants
Jan
★ 44kOffline-first open-source ChatGPT alternative desktop app that runs LLMs 100% locally
Jan does the job of ChatGPT Plus and LM Studio, self-hosted. It is AGPL-licensed, so a hosted fork has to publish its changes, and it installs in about one command. ChatGPT Plus bills $20 for it. 44k stars on GitHub.
Open-source replacement for ChatGPT Plus, LM Studio.
- Licence
- AGPL-3.0
- Self-hosting
- Easy
- The paid one costs
- $20
- GitHub stars
- 44k
Is it actually a replacement?
We have written a verdict on what it replaces — what you lose, and why people still pay:
How Jan runs
Where it runs
Jan runs on on your machine.
Installing it
Download the macOS, Windows or Linux desktop installer.
Where your data lives
Threads, assistants, settings and downloaded model files live in Jan's local data folder; only requests sent to configured cloud providers leave the machine.
What setup takes
Local use requires downloading a multi-gigabyte model and enough RAM; cloud use requires an API key.
The catch compared with Anyword
It can follow a saved brand prompt, but it lacks Anyword's structured campaign templates, audience controls, and predictive copy scores.
Jan questions
Is Jan open source?
Yes — it is released under AGPL-3.0.
Can Jan replace ChatGPT Plus?
Our verdict on ChatGPT is YES. Dify (110k stars), RAGFlow (88k stars), Lobe Chat (65k stars) are mature open-source replacements for ChatGPT — self-host with docker and stop paying $20/mo.
Can I self-host Jan?
Yes — we rate it easy to self-host, and it runs on on your machine. Download the macOS, Windows or Linux desktop installer.
Does Jan run locally?
Yes — it runs on your own machine rather than on a server, so your data stays on your disk.