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Comparison

willow vs jan

Verdict

Pick willow when willow is primarily C; jan is TypeScript; pick jan when jan is primarily TypeScript; willow is C.

Markdown twin · willow alternatives · jan alternatives

GraphCanon updated today

willow logo

willow

HeyWillow/willow

★ 3.1kpushed Feb 13, 2026
vs
jan logo

jan

janhq/jan

★ 43kpushed Jul 10, 2026

Trust & integrity

Signalwillowjan
Maintenance
Slowing (147d since push)
As of today · github_public_v1
Very active (1d since push)
As of today · github_public_v1
Provenance
Not a fork · Organization account
As of today · github_public_v1
Not a fork · Organization account
As of today · github_public_v1
Security (OSV)
No lockfile
As of today · none
No lockfile
As of today · none
willow trust reportjan trust reportTrust methodology

Tagline

willow
Open source, local, and self-hosted Amazon Echo/Google Home competitive Voice Assistant alternative
jan
open source alternative to ChatGPT that runs offline locally

Stars

willow
3.1k
jan
43k

Forks

willow
120
jan
2.9k

Open issues

willow
27
jan
387

Language

willow
C
jan
TypeScript

Adopt for

willow
-
jan
Jan is a TypeScript-based, self-hosted chatbot application that acts as an offline alternative to services like ChatGPT.

Persona

willow
-
jan
-

Runtime

willow
-
jan
-

License

willow
Apache-2.0
jan
Other

Last pushed

willow
Feb 13, 2026
jan
Jul 10, 2026

Categories

willow
LLM Frameworks, Inference & Serving, Speech & Audio
jan
LLM Frameworks, Inference & Serving

Trust and health

Maintenance

willow
Slowing (36%)
jan
Very active (96%)

Days since push

willow
147d
jan
1d

Open issues (now)

willow
27
jan
387

Full report

willow
Trust report
jan
Trust report

Choose willow if…

  • willow is primarily C; jan is TypeScript.
  • License: willow is Apache-2.0, jan is Other.
  • Tags unique to willow: esp-adf, deep-learning, google-home, esp-idf.
  • Also covers Speech & Audio.
  • willow ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment.

When NOT to use willow

  • Last GitHub push was 148 days ago (slowing maintenance, Feb 13, 2026). Validate activity before betting a new project on willow.
  • LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves.
  • Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic.
GitHubDetails

Choose jan if…

  • jan is primarily TypeScript; willow is C.
  • License: jan is Other, willow is Apache-2.0.
  • Tags unique to jan: tauri, self-hosted, llm, llamacpp.
  • - If you require an offline-capable AI assistant for environments without internet access.

When NOT to use jan

  • - If you require real-time updates to the AI model, since Jan uses static local models which may not get frequent updates.
  • - When a vast knowledge base or continuous learning capabilities are essential, as Jan's offline nature constrains its ability to stay current with new information.
GitHubDetails

Explore

willow trust report →jan trust report →LLM Frameworks category →Inference & Serving category →Speech & Audio category →All comparisonsStack workflowsTrending tools

Sources

Every stat on this page traces to a dated GitHub sync, license file, enrichment field, or trust scan.

GitHub stars on cards: willow 3.1k · jan 43k (synced Jul 11, 2026).

Common questions

What is the difference between willow and jan?
willow: Open source, local, and self-hosted Amazon Echo/Google Home competitive Voice Assistant alternative. jan: open source alternative to ChatGPT that runs offline locally. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories.
When should I choose willow over jan?
Choose willow over jan when willow is primarily C; jan is TypeScript; License: willow is Apache-2.0, jan is Other; Tags unique to willow: esp-adf, deep-learning, google-home, esp-idf; Also covers Speech & Audio; willow ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment.
When should I choose jan over willow?
Choose jan over willow when jan is primarily TypeScript; willow is C; License: jan is Other, willow is Apache-2.0; Tags unique to jan: tauri, self-hosted, llm, llamacpp; - If you require an offline-capable AI assistant for environments without internet access.
When should I avoid willow?
Last GitHub push was 148 days ago (slowing maintenance, Feb 13, 2026). Validate activity before betting a new project on willow. LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic.
When should I avoid jan?
- If you require real-time updates to the AI model, since Jan uses static local models which may not get frequent updates. - When a vast knowledge base or continuous learning capabilities are essential, as Jan's offline nature constrains its ability to stay current with new information.
Is willow or jan more popular on GitHub?
jan has more GitHub stars (43,499 vs 3,066). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints.
Are willow and jan open source?
Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (willow: Apache-2.0, jan: Other).
Where can I find alternatives to willow or jan?
GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at willow alternatives and jan alternatives (willow markdown twin, jan 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, willow or jan?
willow: Slowing. jan: 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 willow and jan?
GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: willow trust report; jan trust report.