--- title: "FastChat vs BMTrain" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/lm-sys-fastchat-vs-openbmb-bmtrain" tools: ["lm-sys-fastchat", "openbmb-bmtrain"] --- # FastChat vs BMTrain *GraphCanon updated Aug 7, 2026* ## Verdict Pick FastChat if fastChat is a comprehensive open platform for managing large language models (LLMs) that includes capabilities for training, serving, evaluating, and comparing chatbot models via web UIs and RESTful APIs. It powers ChatB; pick BMTrain if bMTrain: Efficient Training for Big Models in Python. [FastChat](https://github.com/lm-sys/FastChat) reports 40k GitHub stars, 4.8k forks, and 1.0k open issues, last pushed May 1, 2026. [BMTrain](https://github.com/OpenBMB/BMTrain) has 623 stars, 88 forks, and 10 open issues, last pushed Jul 7, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [FastChat's repository](https://github.com/lm-sys/FastChat) and [BMTrain's repository](https://github.com/OpenBMB/BMTrain). | | [FastChat](/tools/lm-sys-fastchat.md) | [BMTrain](/tools/openbmb-bmtrain.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | An open platform for training, serving, and evaluating large language models | Efficient Training for Big Models | | Stars | 39,517 | 623 | | Forks | 4,788 | 88 | | Open issues | 1,038 | 10 | | Language | Python | Python | | Adopt for | FastChat is a comprehensive open platform for managing large language models (LLMs) that includes capabilities for training, serving, evaluating, and comparing chatbot models via web UIs and RESTful APIs. It powers ChatB | BMTrain: Efficient Training for Big Models in Python. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 | | Categories | Evaluation & Observability, Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks, Model Training | Model Training | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [FastChat](/tools/lm-sys-fastchat.md) | [BMTrain](/tools/openbmb-bmtrain.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Slowing (36%) | Steady (60%) | | Days since push | 98d | 30d | | Open issues (now) | 1.0k | 10 | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/lm-sys-fastchat/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/openbmb-bmtrain/trust.md) | ## Shared compatibility - **Python**: [FastChat](/tools/lm-sys-fastchat.md) - Python runtime; [BMTrain](/tools/openbmb-bmtrain.md) - Python runtime ## Decision facts: FastChat - **Adopt for:** FastChat is a comprehensive open platform for managing large language models (LLMs) that includes capabilities for training, serving, evaluating, and comparing chatbot models via web UIs and RESTful APIs. It powers ChatB ## Decision facts: BMTrain - **Adopt for:** BMTrain: Efficient Training for Big Models in Python. ## Choose when ### Choose FastChat if… - Tags unique to FastChat: chatbots, distributed-serving, evaluation system, large language models. - Also covers Evaluation & Observability, Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks. - - You are looking to train and evaluate state-of-the-art models such as Vicuna or MT-Bench. ### Choose BMTrain if… - Tags unique to BMTrain: apache-2.0-license, big model, fine-tuning, pre-training. - BMTrain ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. - Need efficient pre-training or fine-tuning of large scale models ## When NOT to use FastChat - - You require a proprietary or closed-source framework; FastChat is open-source under Apache-2.0 license and its use might be unsuitable for environments requiring proprietary solutions. - - Your chatbot evaluation needs do not align with the types of data used in FastChat's datasets (e.g., human votes, MT-Bench evaluations). - - You prefer a more user-friendly setup without the need to clone a repository and manually install dependencies; FastChat requires installation from source with additional steps for Rust and CMake on - + Mac. ## When NOT to use BMTrain - Seeking a tool that installs without compiling C/CUDA source code - Require immediate setup; BMTrain's installation might be time-consuming due to compilation steps ## Common questions ### What is the difference between FastChat and BMTrain? FastChat: An open platform for training, serving, and evaluating large language models. BMTrain: Efficient Training for Big Models. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose FastChat over BMTrain? Choose FastChat over BMTrain when Tags unique to FastChat: chatbots, distributed-serving, evaluation system, large language models; Also covers Evaluation & Observability, Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks; - You are looking to train and evaluate state-of-the-art models such as Vicuna or MT-Bench. ### When should I choose BMTrain over FastChat? Choose BMTrain over FastChat when Tags unique to BMTrain: apache-2.0-license, big model, fine-tuning, pre-training; BMTrain ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment; Need efficient pre-training or fine-tuning of large scale models. ### When should I avoid FastChat? - You require a proprietary or closed-source framework; FastChat is open-source under Apache-2.0 license and its use might be unsuitable for environments requiring proprietary solutions. - Your chatbot evaluation needs do not align with the types of data used in FastChat's datasets (e.g., human votes, MT-Bench evaluations). - You prefer a more user-friendly setup without the need to clone a repository and manually install dependencies; FastChat requires installation from source with additional steps for Rust and CMake on + Mac. ### When should I avoid BMTrain? Seeking a tool that installs without compiling C/CUDA source code Require immediate setup; BMTrain's installation might be time-consuming due to compilation steps ### Is FastChat or BMTrain more popular on GitHub? FastChat has more GitHub stars (39,517 vs 623). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are FastChat and BMTrain open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (FastChat: Apache-2.0, BMTrain: Apache-2.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to FastChat or BMTrain? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [FastChat alternatives](/tools/lm-sys-fastchat/alternatives) and [BMTrain alternatives](/tools/openbmb-bmtrain/alternatives) ([FastChat markdown twin](/tools/lm-sys-fastchat/alternatives.md), [BMTrain markdown twin](/tools/openbmb-bmtrain/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/lm-sys-fastchat-vs-openbmb-bmtrain.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, FastChat or BMTrain? FastChat: Slowing. BMTrain: Steady. 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 FastChat and BMTrain? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [FastChat trust report](/tools/lm-sys-fastchat/trust); [BMTrain trust report](/tools/openbmb-bmtrain/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=lm-sys-fastchat`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=lm-sys-fastchat) - 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/_