--- title: "ollama vs llm-applications" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/ollama-ollama-vs-ray-project-llm-applications" tools: ["ollama-ollama", "ray-project-llm-applications"] --- # ollama vs llm-applications *GraphCanon updated Jul 11, 2026* ## Verdict Pick ollama when ollama is primarily Go; llm-applications is Jupyter Notebook; pick llm-applications when llm-applications is primarily Jupyter Notebook; ollama is Go. [ollama](https://ollama.com) reports 176k GitHub stars, 17k forks, and 3.4k open issues, last pushed Jul 10, 2026. [llm-applications](https://github.com/ray-project/llm-applications) has 1.9k stars, 255 forks, and 13 open issues, last pushed Aug 2, 2024. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [ollama's repository](https://github.com/ollama/ollama) and [llm-applications's repository](https://github.com/ray-project/llm-applications). | | [ollama](/tools/ollama-ollama.md) | [llm-applications](/tools/ray-project-llm-applications.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Get up and running with various large language models using Ollama. | A comprehensive guide to building RAG-based LLM applications for production. | | Stars | 175,936 | 1,857 | | Forks | 16,939 | 255 | | Open issues | 3,423 | 13 | | Language | Go | Jupyter Notebook | | Adopt for | Ollama is a Go-based platform that provides tools for deploying and managing large language models (LLMs) like Kimi-K2.6, GLM-5.1, MiniMax, DeepSeek, gpt-oss, Qwen, Gemma using docker images, package managers, cloud and | - | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | MIT license - permissive open-source licensing that allows for broad use of the tool. | CC-BY-4.0 | | Categories | Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks | Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [ollama](/tools/ollama-ollama.md) | [llm-applications](/tools/ray-project-llm-applications.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Very active (96%) | Dormant (18%) | | Days since push | 1d | 708d | | Open issues (now) | 3.4k | 13 | | Security scan | 52 low (52 low) | No lockfile | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/ollama-ollama/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/ray-project-llm-applications/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: ollama - **Hosting:** self hosted - Ollama supports self-hosted and cloud-deployable models using Docker, Helm charts, and various package managers. - **Adopt for:** Ollama is a Go-based platform that provides tools for deploying and managing large language models (LLMs) like Kimi-K2.6, GLM-5.1, MiniMax, DeepSeek, gpt-oss, Qwen, Gemma using docker images, package managers, cloud and - **License detail:** MIT license - permissive open-source licensing that allows for broad use of the tool. ## Choose when ### Choose ollama if… - ollama is primarily Go; llm-applications is Jupyter Notebook. - License: ollama is MIT, llm-applications is CC-BY-4.0. - Ollama supports self-hosted and cloud-deployable models using Docker, Helm charts, and various package managers. - Tags unique to ollama: deepseek, gemma, glm, go. - ollama ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. - Use Ollama when you require a multi-model platform supporting several large language models such as Kimi-K2.6, GLM-5.1, MiniMax, DeepSeek, gpt-oss, Qwen, Gemma and intend to deploy in various cloud or ### Choose llm-applications if… - llm-applications is primarily Jupyter Notebook; ollama is Go. - License: llm-applications is CC-BY-4.0, ollama is MIT. - Tags unique to llm-applications: anyscale, fine-tuning, llama2, machine-learning. ## When NOT to use ollama - Avoid using Ollama if you are only interested in a single LLM deployment and seek simplified, model-specific solutions with tailored support rather than a comprehensive multi-model platform. ## When NOT to use llm-applications - Last GitHub push was 709 days ago (dormant maintenance, Aug 2, 2024). Validate activity before betting a new project on llm-applications. - 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. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between ollama and llm-applications? ollama: Get up and running with various large language models using Ollama.. llm-applications: A comprehensive guide to building RAG-based LLM applications for production.. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose ollama over llm-applications? Choose ollama over llm-applications when ollama is primarily Go; llm-applications is Jupyter Notebook; License: ollama is MIT, llm-applications is CC-BY-4.0; Ollama supports self-hosted and cloud-deployable models using Docker, Helm charts, and various package managers; Tags unique to ollama: deepseek, gemma, glm, go; ollama ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment; Use Ollama when you require a multi-model platform supporting several large language models such as Kimi-K2.6, GLM-5.1, MiniMax, DeepSeek, gpt-oss, Qwen, Gemma and intend to deploy in various cloud or. ### When should I choose llm-applications over ollama? Choose llm-applications over ollama when llm-applications is primarily Jupyter Notebook; ollama is Go; License: llm-applications is CC-BY-4.0, ollama is MIT; Tags unique to llm-applications: anyscale, fine-tuning, llama2, machine-learning. ### When should I avoid ollama? Avoid using Ollama if you are only interested in a single LLM deployment and seek simplified, model-specific solutions with tailored support rather than a comprehensive multi-model platform. ### When should I avoid llm-applications? Last GitHub push was 709 days ago (dormant maintenance, Aug 2, 2024). Validate activity before betting a new project on llm-applications. 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. ### Is ollama or llm-applications more popular on GitHub? ollama has more GitHub stars (175,936 vs 1,857). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are ollama and llm-applications open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (ollama: MIT, llm-applications: CC-BY-4.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to ollama or llm-applications? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [ollama alternatives](/tools/ollama-ollama/alternatives) and [llm-applications alternatives](/tools/ray-project-llm-applications/alternatives) ([ollama markdown twin](/tools/ollama-ollama/alternatives.md), [llm-applications markdown twin](/tools/ray-project-llm-applications/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/ollama-ollama-vs-ray-project-llm-applications.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, ollama or llm-applications? ollama: Very active. llm-applications: 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 ollama and llm-applications? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [ollama trust report](/tools/ollama-ollama/trust); [llm-applications trust report](/tools/ray-project-llm-applications/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=ollama-ollama`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=ollama-ollama) - 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/_