# What is Open WebUI? Facts, license and pricing (Oct 2026)

Canonical: https://theagenticweekly.com/what-is/open-webui · Last verified: 2026-10-25 · Published: 2026-10-25 · Author: Agentic Weekly (operated independently from Texas, US) · Evidence: Evidence: Reported. Everything here was read from Open WebUI's own pages and the public GitHub API on 2026-10-25 (America/Chicago). We have not run Open WebUI for this page, so it says nothing about quality or speed.

> Open WebUI is self-hosted AI platform: a web interface that connects to Ollama and OpenAI-compatible models, under its own Open WebUI License. License: Open WebUI License (custom; read it before commercial use). Its GitHub repository (open-webui/open-webui) had 156,757 stars on Oct 25, 2026. Facts were read from official pages on Oct 25, 2026 and are Reported, not Tested.

## What Open WebUI is

Open WebUI's site pitches a self-hosted AI platform you run on your own machine and connect to any model. The repository's license file is a custom 'Open WebUI License' (BSD-style terms with additional conditions), not a standard OSI license; v0.12.4 was tagged Oct 25, 2026.

We list Open WebUI under Local LLMs and model platforms.

## Open WebUI key facts

Table: Open WebUI facts (vendor pages and GitHub, 2026-10-25)

|  | Open WebUI |
|---|---|
| Vendor | Open WebUI |
| License | Open WebUI License (custom; read it before commercial use) |
| Platforms | Self-hosted (Docker and others) |
| Pricing model | Free self-hosted |
| Free tier | Free to self-host |
| GitHub | open-webui/open-webui: 156,757 stars, last push Oct 25, 2026 (GitHub API, Oct 25, 2026) |
| Latest release we saw | v0.12.4 on Oct 25, 2026 |
| Evidence | Reported from vendor pages |

## Who Open WebUI is for

- Good for: Teams that want a self-hosted chat UI.
- Good for: Ollama users who want a browser interface.
- Skip if: You need a standard OSI license for your own distribution.

## How to start with Open WebUI

1. Follow the install guide on openwebui.com (Docker is the common route) and connect a model backend.

## Open WebUI alternatives

- Ollama: The common way to run open models locally on macOS, Windows and Linux, with a cloud option and an MIT-licensed open-source core.
- Jan: Open-source alternative to ChatGPT that runs open models locally or connects to cloud models like GPT and Claude.
- Dify: Open-source platform for building LLM apps and agent workflows with a visual canvas; licensed under a modified Apache 2.0 with extra conditions.

## What we did not verify

- Enterprise pricing.
- Output quality, speed and reliability of Open WebUI: we have not run it for this page.

## FAQ

### What is Open WebUI?

Open WebUI's site pitches a self-hosted AI platform you run on your own machine and connect to any model. The repository's license file is a custom 'Open WebUI License' (BSD-style terms with additional conditions), not a standard OSI license; v0.12.4 was tagged Oct 25, 2026.

### What license is Open WebUI under?

Open WebUI License (custom; read it before commercial use). Read from the project's own pages on Oct 25, 2026.

### Is Open WebUI free?

Free to self-host. Checked Oct 25, 2026; prices change, so confirm on the vendor's page.

## Sources

- [Open WebUI](https://openwebui.com/) (fetched 2026-10-25)
- [Open WebUI license](https://github.com/open-webui/open-webui/blob/main/LICENSE) (fetched 2026-10-25)
- [Open WebUI repository (GitHub)](https://github.com/open-webui/open-webui) (fetched 2026-10-25)

## Related

- [Open WebUI facts and sources](https://theagenticweekly.com/tools/open-webui)
- [Alternatives to Open WebUI](https://theagenticweekly.com/alternatives/open-webui)
- [Local LLMs and model platforms: all tools we track](https://theagenticweekly.com/best/llm-platforms)
- [Ollama vs Open WebUI](https://theagenticweekly.com/compare/ollama-vs-open-webui)
- [Open WebUI vs Dify](https://theagenticweekly.com/compare/open-webui-vs-dify)
- [Open WebUI vs Jan](https://theagenticweekly.com/compare/open-webui-vs-jan)

## Changelog

- 2026-10-25: First published from official pages read on 2026-10-25.

## How to cite

Agentic Weekly, "What is Open WebUI? Facts, license and pricing (Oct 2026)", last updated 2026-10-25, https://theagenticweekly.com/what-is/open-webui