Comparison
kotaemon vs qabot
Verdict
Pick kotaemon if cinnamon's kotaemon is an open-source Retrieval-Augmented Generation-based chat tool that facilitates document interaction through a user-friendly chat interface; pick qabot if qabot enables CLI-based natural language queries on local or remote data. It is licensed under Apache-2.0.
Markdown twin · kotaemon alternatives · qabot alternatives
GraphCanon updated 6d
Trust & integrity
| Signal | kotaemon | qabot |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance | Steady (34d since push) As of 6d · github_public_v1 | Dormant (527d since push) As of 1w · github_public_v1 |
| Provenance | Not a fork · Organization account As of 6d · github_public_v1 | Not a fork · Personal account As of 1w · github_public_v1 |
| OSV dependency advisories | No lockfile (source not queried) As of 1mo · osv@v1 | No lockfile (source not queried) As of 1mo · osv@v1 |
| deps.dev advisories | Not queried deps.dev@v1 | Not queried deps.dev@v1 |
| OpenSSF Scorecard | Not queried openssf-scorecard@v1 | Not queried openssf-scorecard@v1 |
Tagline
- kotaemon
- An open-source RAG-based tool for chatting with your documents.
- qabot
- CLI-based natural language queries on local or remote data
Stars
- kotaemon
- 26k
- qabot
- 245
Forks
- kotaemon
- 2.1k
- qabot
- 20
Open issues
- kotaemon
- 241
- qabot
- 2
Language
- kotaemon
- Python
- qabot
- Python
Adopt for
- kotaemon
- Cinnamon's kotaemon is an open-source Retrieval-Augmented Generation-based chat tool that facilitates document interaction through a user-friendly chat interface.
- qabot
- qabot enables CLI-based natural language queries on local or remote data. It is licensed under Apache-2.0.
Persona
- kotaemon
- -
- qabot
- -
Runtime
- kotaemon
- -
- qabot
- -
License
- kotaemon
- Apache-2.0
- qabot
- Apache-2.0
Last pushed
- kotaemon
- Jul 14, 2026
- qabot
- Mar 5, 2025
Categories
- kotaemon
- Data & Retrieval, Developer Tools
- qabot
- Data & Retrieval
Trust and health
Maintenance
- kotaemon
- Steady (60%)
- qabot
- Dormant (18%)
Days since push
- kotaemon
- 34d
- qabot
- 527d
Open issues (now)
- kotaemon
- 241
- qabot
- 2
Stars delta
- kotaemon
- +138 (30d)
- qabot
- 0 (30d)
Open issues delta
- kotaemon
- +4 (30d)
- qabot
- 0 (30d)
Owner type
- kotaemon
- Organization
- qabot
- User
Full report
- kotaemon
- Trust report
- qabot
- Trust report
Choose kotaemon if…
- Tags unique to kotaemon: chatbot, llms, open-source, rag.
- Also covers Developer Tools.
- When you need to customize the file types you can process beyond PDFs, HTML, MHTML, and XLSX by opting for the `full` Docker version which includes additional packages from 'unstructured'.
When NOT to use kotaemon
- If you only need to process a limited set of file types (PDF, HTML, MHTML, XLSX) and prefer the smaller Docker image size, as the `lite` version lacks additional package dependencies.
- In environments with strict constraints on external dependencies where installing Docker or Python packages is not feasible.
Choose qabot if…
- Tags unique to qabot: natural-language-processing, query interface.
- Prefer qabot for users who prefer command-line interaction over graphical interfaces.
- Leaner open-issue backlog (2).
When NOT to use qabot
- Avoid if your workflow requires frequent visual analysis and interactivity.
- Skip qabot for scenarios with limited data transfer budgets as it might incur charges with remote data access.
Explore
Sources
Every stat on this page traces to a dated GitHub sync, license file, enrichment field, or trust scan.
- GitHub stars (Cinnamon/kotaemon) · observed Aug 18, 2026
- GitHub forks (Cinnamon/kotaemon) · observed Aug 18, 2026
- Last push (Cinnamon/kotaemon) · observed Jul 14, 2026
- License file (Apache-2.0) · observed Aug 18, 2026
- Decision facts (enrichment) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- GitHub stars (hardbyte/qabot) · observed Aug 15, 2026
- GitHub forks (hardbyte/qabot) · observed Aug 15, 2026
- Last push (hardbyte/qabot) · observed Mar 5, 2025
- License file (Apache-2.0) · observed Aug 15, 2026
- Decision facts (enrichment) · observed Jul 15, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 11, 2026
GitHub stars on cards: kotaemon 26k · qabot 245 (synced Aug 18, 2026).
Common questions
- What is the difference between kotaemon and qabot?
- kotaemon: An open-source RAG-based tool for chatting with your documents.. qabot: CLI-based natural language queries on local or remote data. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories.
- When should I choose kotaemon over qabot?
- Choose kotaemon over qabot when Tags unique to kotaemon: chatbot, llms, open-source, rag; Also covers Developer Tools; When you need to customize the file types you can process beyond PDFs, HTML, MHTML, and XLSX by opting for the
fullDocker version which includes additional packages from 'unstructured'. - When should I choose qabot over kotaemon?
- Choose qabot over kotaemon when Tags unique to qabot: natural-language-processing, query interface; Prefer qabot for users who prefer command-line interaction over graphical interfaces; Leaner open-issue backlog (2).
- When should I avoid kotaemon?
- If you only need to process a limited set of file types (PDF, HTML, MHTML, XLSX) and prefer the smaller Docker image size, as the
liteversion lacks additional package dependencies. In environments with strict constraints on external dependencies where installing Docker or Python packages is not feasible. - When should I avoid qabot?
- Avoid if your workflow requires frequent visual analysis and interactivity. Skip qabot for scenarios with limited data transfer budgets as it might incur charges with remote data access.
- Is kotaemon or qabot more popular on GitHub?
- kotaemon has more GitHub stars (25,701 vs 245). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints.
- Are kotaemon and qabot open source?
- Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (kotaemon: Apache-2.0, qabot: Apache-2.0).
- Where can I find alternatives to kotaemon or qabot?
- GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at kotaemon alternatives and qabot alternatives (kotaemon markdown twin, qabot markdown twin), 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 mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers.
- Which is better maintained, kotaemon or qabot?
- kotaemon: Steady. qabot: Dormant. 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 kotaemon and qabot?
- GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: kotaemon trust report; qabot trust report.