--- title: "agent-control vs claude-mem" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/agentcontrol-agent-control-vs-thedotmack-claude-mem" tools: ["agentcontrol-agent-control", "thedotmack-claude-mem"] --- # agent-control vs claude-mem *GraphCanon updated Jul 15, 2026* ## Verdict Pick agent-control when agent-control is primarily Python; claude-mem is JavaScript; pick claude-mem when claude-mem is primarily JavaScript; agent-control is Python. [agent-control](https://agentcontrol.dev) reports 275 GitHub stars, 43 forks, and 34 open issues, last pushed Jul 13, 2026. [claude-mem](https://claude-mem.ai) has 87k stars, 7.5k forks, and 252 open issues, last pushed Jul 9, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [agent-control's repository](https://github.com/agentcontrol/agent-control) and [claude-mem's repository](https://github.com/thedotmack/claude-mem). | | [agent-control](/tools/agentcontrol-agent-control.md) | [claude-mem](/tools/thedotmack-claude-mem.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Centralized agent control plane for governing runtime agent behavior at scale. Configurable, extensible, and production-ready. | Persistent Context Across Sessions for Every Agent | | Stars | 275 | 86,816 | | Forks | 43 | 7,500 | | Open issues | 34 | 252 | | Language | Python | JavaScript | | Adopt for | - | claude-mem provides persistent context across sessions, leveraging AI to capture and compress agent activity. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | Claude-Mem is distributed under the Apache License 2.0, allowing it to be freely used in a variety of development and production environments while maintaining clear licensing terms. | | Categories | AI Agents, Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks | AI Agents, Inference & Serving | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [agent-control](/tools/agentcontrol-agent-control.md) | [claude-mem](/tools/thedotmack-claude-mem.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Open issues (now) | 34 | 252 | | Owner type | Organization | User | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/agentcontrol-agent-control/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/thedotmack-claude-mem/trust.md) | ## Shared compatibility - **Python**: [agent-control](/tools/agentcontrol-agent-control.md) - Python runtime; [claude-mem](/tools/thedotmack-claude-mem.md) - Python runtime ## Decision facts: claude-mem - **Requirements:** Requires Node.js v20.0.0 or higher.; Must have the latest version of Claude Code with plugin support.; Auto-installs Bun (JavaScript runtime and process manager) if not already present.; Requires uv (Python package for vector search), auto-installation supported. - **Adopt for:** claude-mem provides persistent context across sessions, leveraging AI to capture and compress agent activity. - **License detail:** Claude-Mem is distributed under the Apache License 2.0, allowing it to be freely used in a variety of development and production environments while maintaining clear licensing terms. ## Choose when ### Choose agent-control if… - agent-control is primarily Python; claude-mem is JavaScript. - Tags unique to agent-control: agentic-workflow, ai-safety, guardrails, llm. - Also covers LLM Frameworks. - agent-control ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. ### Choose claude-mem if… - claude-mem is primarily JavaScript; agent-control is Python. - Requirements: Requires Node.js v20.0.0 or higher.; Must have the latest version of Claude Code with plugin support.; Auto-installs Bun (JavaScript runtime and process manager) if not already present.; Requires uv (Python package for vector search), auto-installation supported.. - Tags unique to claude-mem: ai-agents, ai-memory, chromadb, claude. - When you require seamless and persistent context continuity between different session interactions with Claude Code or other supported agents. ## When NOT to use agent-control - AI Agents: Don't use an agent loop when a deterministic workflow would do; agents add latency, cost, and non-determinism. - Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. - LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ## When NOT to use claude-mem - When working in environments where Node.js v20.0.0 or higher cannot be installed, as claude-mem requires this version to operate. - If your specific AI agent or tool does not integrate with the supported frameworks listed (e.g., Claude Code, OpenClaw), making context persistence ineffective for your workflow. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between agent-control and claude-mem? agent-control: Centralized agent control plane for governing runtime agent behavior at scale. Configurable, extensible, and production-ready.. claude-mem: Persistent Context Across Sessions for Every Agent. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose agent-control over claude-mem? Choose agent-control over claude-mem when agent-control is primarily Python; claude-mem is JavaScript; Tags unique to agent-control: agentic-workflow, ai-safety, guardrails, llm; Also covers LLM Frameworks; agent-control ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. ### When should I choose claude-mem over agent-control? Choose claude-mem over agent-control when claude-mem is primarily JavaScript; agent-control is Python; Requirements: Requires Node.js v20.0.0 or higher.; Must have the latest version of Claude Code with plugin support.; Auto-installs Bun (JavaScript runtime and process manager) if not already present.; Requires uv (Python package for vector search), auto-installation supported.; Tags unique to claude-mem: ai-agents, ai-memory, chromadb, claude; When you require seamless and persistent context continuity between different session interactions with Claude Code or other supported agents. ### When should I avoid agent-control? AI Agents: Don't use an agent loop when a deterministic workflow would do; agents add latency, cost, and non-determinism. Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ### When should I avoid claude-mem? When working in environments where Node.js v20.0.0 or higher cannot be installed, as claude-mem requires this version to operate. If your specific AI agent or tool does not integrate with the supported frameworks listed (e.g., Claude Code, OpenClaw), making context persistence ineffective for your workflow. ### Is agent-control or claude-mem more popular on GitHub? claude-mem has more GitHub stars (86,816 vs 275). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are agent-control and claude-mem open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (agent-control: Apache-2.0, claude-mem: Apache-2.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to agent-control or claude-mem? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [agent-control alternatives](/tools/agentcontrol-agent-control/alternatives) and [claude-mem alternatives](/tools/thedotmack-claude-mem/alternatives) ([agent-control markdown twin](/tools/agentcontrol-agent-control/alternatives.md), [claude-mem markdown twin](/tools/thedotmack-claude-mem/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/agentcontrol-agent-control-vs-thedotmack-claude-mem.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, agent-control or claude-mem? agent-control: Very active. claude-mem: Very active. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for agent-control and claude-mem? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [agent-control trust report](/tools/agentcontrol-agent-control/trust); [claude-mem trust report](/tools/thedotmack-claude-mem/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=agentcontrol-agent-control`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=agentcontrol-agent-control) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_