Comparison
surf vs langextract
Verdict
Pick surf if surf is an open-source tool for managing personal notes by integrating local or remote AI models to process files and webpages; pick langextract if langextract is a Python library designed for extracting structured data from unstructured text using large language models, offering precise source grounding and interactive visualization.
Markdown twin · surf alternatives · langextract alternatives
GraphCanon updated Sep 20, 2026
6views this month
Trust & integrity
| Signal | surf | langextract |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance | Active (26d since push) As of Sep 20, 2026 · github_public_v1 | Very active (4d since push) As of Sep 18, 2026 · github_public_v1 |
| Provenance | Not a fork · Organization account As of Sep 20, 2026 · github_public_v1 | Not a fork · Organization account As of Sep 18, 2026 · github_public_v1 |
| OSV dependency advisories | No lockfile (source not queried) As of Jul 15, 2026 · osv@v1 | No lockfile (source not queried) As of Sep 18, 2026 · 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
- surf
- Tools for organizing files and webpages locally to generate notes using personal AI notebooks.
- langextract
- Python library for extracting structured information from unstructured text using LLMs
Stars
- surf
- 3.6k
- langextract
- 39k
Forks
- surf
- 251
- langextract
- 2.7k
Open issues
- surf
- 32
- langextract
- 125
Language
- surf
- TypeScript
- langextract
- Python
Adopt for
- surf
- surf is an open-source tool for managing personal notes by integrating local or remote AI models to process files and webpages.
- langextract
- Langextract is a Python library designed for extracting structured data from unstructured text using large language models, offering precise source grounding and interactive visualization.
Persona
- surf
- -
- langextract
- -
Runtime
- surf
- -
- langextract
- -
License
- surf
- Apache-2.0
- langextract
- Langextract is available under the Apache-2.0 license, allowing for broad use in both commercial and non-commercial projects with the requirement to include the license text and copyright notice.
Last pushed
- surf
- Aug 24, 2026
- langextract
- Sep 13, 2026
Categories
- surf
- Data & Retrieval, Developer Tools, LLM Frameworks
- langextract
- Data & Retrieval, LLM Frameworks
Trust and health
Maintenance
- surf
- Active (82%)
- langextract
- Very active (96%)
Days since push
- surf
- 26d
- langextract
- 4d
Open issues (now)
- surf
- 32
- langextract
- 125
Stars delta
- surf
- +50 (30d)
- langextract
- +214 (30d)
Open issues delta
- surf
- 0 (30d)
- langextract
- +3 (30d)
Full report
- surf
- Trust report
- langextract
- Trust report
Choose surf if…
- surf is primarily TypeScript; langextract is Python.
- Tags unique to surf: claude, deepseek, gemma, knowledge-base.
- Also covers Developer Tools.
- Need a robust integration with both local and remote language models for comprehensive note creation
When NOT to use surf
- Prefer using proprietary, closed-source tools that do not allow open model choices
- Require extensive cloud-based collaboration features among multiple users
Choose langextract if…
- langextract is primarily Python; surf is TypeScript.
- Pricing: The library itself is free to use, but using cloud-hosted models like Gemini may incur costs based on the provider's pricing model..
- Requirements: Min 4 GB RAM; Requires Docker; Installation requires Python and pip.; For cloud-hosted models, an API key is required and must be configured as per the documentation..
- Tags unique to langextract: gemini, gemini-ai, gemini-api, gemini-flash.
- langextract ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment.
- When you need to extract structured data from unstructured text with precise source grounding and interactive visualization capabilities.
When NOT to use langextract
- If your project does not require the use of large language models for information extraction, as langextract is specifically designed around this functionality.
- When you do not have access to or do not wish to use cloud-hosted models like Gemini, as langextract requires an API key for these services.
- If your project does not need interactive visualization or precise source grounding features, as these are specific to langextract and may not be necessary for all use cases.
Explore
Sources
Every stat on this page traces to a dated GitHub sync, license file, enrichment field, or trust scan.
- GitHub stars (deta/surf) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- GitHub forks (deta/surf) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- Last push (deta/surf) · observed Aug 24, 2026
- License file (Apache-2.0) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- Decision facts (enrichment) · observed Jul 17, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 15, 2026
- GitHub stars (google/langextract) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- GitHub forks (google/langextract) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- Last push (google/langextract) · observed Sep 13, 2026
- License file (Apache-2.0) · observed Sep 20, 2026
- Decision facts (enrichment) · observed Sep 18, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Sep 18, 2026
GitHub stars on cards: surf 3.6k · langextract 39k (synced Sep 20, 2026).
Common questions
- What is the difference between surf and langextract?
- surf: Tools for organizing files and webpages locally to generate notes using personal AI notebooks.. langextract: Python library for extracting structured information from unstructured text using LLMs. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories.
- When should I choose surf over langextract?
- Choose surf over langextract when surf is primarily TypeScript; langextract is Python; Tags unique to surf: claude, deepseek, gemma, knowledge-base; Also covers Developer Tools; Need a robust integration with both local and remote language models for comprehensive note creation.
- When should I choose langextract over surf?
- Choose langextract over surf when langextract is primarily Python; surf is TypeScript; Pricing: The library itself is free to use, but using cloud-hosted models like Gemini may incur costs based on the provider's pricing model.; Requirements: Min 4 GB RAM; Requires Docker; Installation requires Python and pip.; For cloud-hosted models, an API key is required and must be configured as per the documentation.; Tags unique to langextract: gemini, gemini-ai, gemini-api, gemini-flash; langextract ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment; When you need to extract structured data from unstructured text with precise source grounding and interactive visualization capabilities.
- When should I avoid surf?
- Prefer using proprietary, closed-source tools that do not allow open model choices Require extensive cloud-based collaboration features among multiple users
- When should I avoid langextract?
- If your project does not require the use of large language models for information extraction, as langextract is specifically designed around this functionality. When you do not have access to or do not wish to use cloud-hosted models like Gemini, as langextract requires an API key for these services. If your project does not need interactive visualization or precise source grounding features, as these are specific to langextract and may not be necessary for all use cases.
- Is surf or langextract more popular on GitHub?
- langextract has more GitHub stars (38,614 vs 3,572). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints.
- Are surf and langextract open source?
- Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (surf: Apache-2.0, langextract: Apache-2.0).
- Where can I find alternatives to surf or langextract?
- GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at surf alternatives and langextract alternatives (surf markdown twin, langextract 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, surf or langextract?
- surf: Active. langextract: 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 surf and langextract?
- GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: surf trust report; langextract trust report.