
Open WebUI
Self-hosted AI platform with a ChatGPT-style interface for local and cloud LLMs
About Open WebUI
Open WebUI is an extensible, self-hosted AI platform that provides a polished ChatGPT-style interface for interacting with local and cloud-based large language models. It supports Ollama and any OpenAI-compatible API, and can operate entirely offline. With 45k+ GitHub stars, it offers multi-user support, conversation history, document uploads with RAG, image generation, web browsing within chats, voice and video calls, a model builder, native Python function calling, and a growing plugin ecosystem. Open WebUI is fully free and open-source, with optional enterprise licenses for compliance, white labeling, and dedicated support.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Completely free and open-source with no restrictions or hidden limits
- Works entirely offline — full data privacy and sovereignty
- Supports virtually any LLM through Ollama and OpenAI-compatible APIs
- Massive community (45k+ GitHub stars) with rapid development and updates
- Enterprise-ready with compliance support (SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR)
- Feature-rich with RAG, voice, image generation, web browsing, and plugins
Cons
- Requires self-hosting — no managed cloud version from the project itself
- Initial setup needs some technical knowledge (Docker, Ollama configuration)
- Performance depends on your hardware when running local models
- Enterprise support requires a paid license agreement
- Rapid development pace means occasional breaking changes between versions
Key Features
Multi-LLM Support
Connect to Ollama, OpenAI, and any OpenAI-compatible API — run local models or cloud providers from one interface
RAG Integration
Upload documents to create Knowledge Collections and augment LLM responses with custom data using Retrieval Augmented Generation
Web Browsing
Browse the web directly within chats to pull in real-time information for AI responses
Voice & Video Calls
Hands-free voice and video call features with multiple Speech-to-Text and Text-to-Speech engine support
Model Builder
Create custom Ollama models, characters, and agents directly through the web interface
Plugin System
Extensible architecture with native Python function calling, built-in code editor, and community plugins
Multi-User Management
Full authentication system with role-based access, conversation history, and per-user settings
Code Live Preview
Automatically renders HTML, CSS, and JS code snippets as interactive live previews within the chat
Pricing
- Fully open-source (MIT license)
- Unlimited users and conversations
- Ollama and OpenAI-compatible API support
- RAG document uploads and web browsing
- Image generation and voice/video calls
- Model builder and plugin system
- Operates entirely offline
- White labeling and custom branding
- Dedicated support and SLA
- Long-Term Support (LTS) versions
- SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR, FedRAMP, ISO 27001 compliance
- Custom deployment assistance
Featured In
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