Open WebUI
Self-hosted ChatGPT-like web UI for LLMs. Native Ollama integration, RAG document Q&A, multi-user support, and OpenRouter compatibility.
Chat Frontend, Self Hosted
Yes
Yes
Yes
Only for local models
Private self-hosted ChatGPT alternative
Easy
Web, Docker
Open source — free
Open WebUI is Self-hosted ChatGPT-like web UI for LLMs. Native Ollama integration, RAG document Q&A, multi-user support, and OpenRouter compatibility. Open WebUI is the most popular open-source chat frontend with 60K+ GitHub stars.
Open WebUI runs entirely on your local hardware. It supports OpenRouter for unified access to 300+ models from a single API. Ollama integration lets you run models locally on your own GPU. Open WebUI is open source (https://github.com/open-webui/open-webui), so you can inspect the code and self-host. Open WebUI itself has no GPU requirement — it is a frontend. The GPU requirement depends entirely on the model you connect. For small models (7B-8B), you can run on CPU only with 16 GB system RAM.
Can it run on my hardware?
Minimum
Open WebUI itself has no GPU requirement — it is a frontend. The GPU requirement depends entirely on the model you connect. For small models (7B-8B), you can run on CPU only with 16 GB system RAM.
Recommended
Pair Open WebUI with a GPU that matches your target model: 8 GB VRAM for 7B models, 16 GB for 12-14B, 24 GB for 27-32B. Docker host needs 4 GB RAM minimum for the app itself.
Approximate VRAM needed for recommended local models at Q4 with 8K context:
| Model | Params | Q4 VRAM | Min GPU |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qwen3 32B | 32.8B | ~22.2 GB | 24 GB |
| Qwen3 14B | 14.8B | ~10.8 GB | 12 GB |
| Qwen 2.5 7B Instruct | 7.6B | ~5.3 GB | 8 GB |
| Llama 3.1 8B Instruct | 8B | ~6.3 GB | 8 GB |
| Gemma 3 12B Instruct | 12.2B | ~8.9 GB | 12 GB |
| Mistral Nemo 12B Instruct | 12.2B | ~9.2 GB | 12 GB |
| Phi-4 14B Instruct | 14B | ~10.3 GB | 12 GB |
App compatibility
| Feature | Supported |
|---|---|
| Local models | Yes |
| OpenRouter | Yes |
| OpenAI-compatible API | Yes |
| Ollama | Yes |
| LM Studio | Yes |
| Anthropic API | No |
| Google API | No |
| Mistral API | No |
| Docker | Yes |
| Works offline | Yes |
| Needs GPU | No |
Recommended models
Best local models
Qwen3 32B
32.8B params · ~22.2 GB at Q4 · Dense
Qwen3 14B
14.8B params · ~10.8 GB at Q4 · Dense
Qwen 2.5 7B Instruct
7.6B params · ~5.3 GB at Q4 · Dense
Llama 3.1 8B Instruct
8B params · ~6.3 GB at Q4 · Dense
Gemma 3 12B Instruct
12.2B params · ~8.9 GB at Q4 · Dense
Mistral Nemo 12B Instruct
12.2B params · ~9.2 GB at Q4 · Dense
Phi-4 14B Instruct
14B params · ~10.3 GB at Q4 · Dense
Local vs cloud: which should you use?
Use local models if
- You want privacy — data never leaves your machine
- You already have a GPU with sufficient VRAM
- You want zero per-token API costs
- You need offline access
Use cloud/API if
- Your GPU has insufficient VRAM for the models you need
- You want access to frontier model quality
- You need maximum coding/reasoning performance
- You don't want to manage local model downloads and updates
- OpenRouter lets you switch between 300+ models with one API key
Setup overview
Setting up Open WebUI is straightforward. It runs on web, docker. Full documentation is available at https://docs.openwebui.com.
Limitations
- Non-Docker setups — Docker is required for the standard install
- Mobile-native use — web only (works in mobile browser but no native app)
- Lightweight API-only access — this is a full chat UI, not an API gateway
Related
Compatible models
Related apps
Frequently asked questions
- What is Open WebUI?
- Open WebUI is Self-hosted ChatGPT-like web UI for LLMs. Native Ollama integration, RAG document Q&A, multi-user support, and OpenRouter compatibility. Open WebUI is the most popular open-source chat frontend with 60K+ GitHub stars.
- Does Open WebUI need a GPU?
- Open WebUI itself does not require a GPU. However, the models you connect to it do. Open WebUI itself has no GPU requirement — it is a frontend. The GPU requirement depends entirely on the model you connect. For small models (7B-8B), you can run on CPU only with 16 GB system RAM.
- Can I run Open WebUI on CPU only?
- Yes — Open WebUI supports CPU-only operation, but performance will be significantly slower (5-10x) compared to GPU inference. CPU-only works best for models under 7B parameters with at least 16 GB of system RAM.
- Can Open WebUI use OpenRouter?
- Yes. Open WebUI supports OpenRouter for accessing 300+ models through a single API. Configure OpenRouter as a provider in Open WebUI's settings with your API key.
- Can Open WebUI use local models via Ollama?
- Yes. Open WebUI works with Ollama for running models locally. Install Ollama, pull your model (e.g., `ollama pull qwen2.5:7b`), and connect Open WebUI to the local Ollama server. GPU requirements depend on the model you choose, not Open WebUI itself.
- What models work best with Open WebUI?
- Models that work well with Open WebUI include: Qwen3 32B, Qwen3 14B, Qwen 2.5 7B Instruct, Llama 3.1 8B Instruct, Gemma 3 12B Instruct, Mistral Nemo 12B Instruct. The best model depends on your GPU's VRAM and your use case.
- Is Open WebUI free and open source?
- Yes. Open WebUI is open source and completely free. You can find the source code on GitHub at https://github.com/open-webui/open-webui.