Comparison
honcho vs cognee
Verdict
Pick honcho if memory Library for Stateful Agents; pick cognee if when evaluating Cognee, consider its self-hosted persistence capability and the extensive support it offers through multiple programming languages (Python, Rust, TypeScript). It uses vector databases to provide efficient.
Markdown twin · honcho alternatives · cognee alternatives
GraphCanon updated 2d
vs
Trust & integrity
| Signal | honcho | cognee |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance | Very active (0d since push) As of 3d · github_public_v1 | Very active (0d since push) As of 2d · github_public_v1 |
| Provenance | Not a fork · Organization account As of 3d · github_public_v1 | Not a fork · Organization account As of 2d · 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
- honcho
- Memory library for building stateful agents
- cognee
- Cognee is the open-source AI memory platform for agents.
Stars
- honcho
- 6.7k
- cognee
- 30k
Forks
- honcho
- 824
- cognee
- 2.9k
Open issues
- honcho
- 163
- cognee
- 359
Language
- honcho
- Python
- cognee
- Python
Adopt for
- honcho
- Memory Library for Stateful Agents
- cognee
- When evaluating Cognee, consider its self-hosted persistence capability and the extensive support it offers through multiple programming languages (Python, Rust, TypeScript). It uses vector databases to provide efficient
Persona
- honcho
- -
- cognee
- -
Runtime
- honcho
- -
- cognee
- -
License
- honcho
- AGPL-3.0
- cognee
- Apache-2.0
Last pushed
- honcho
- Aug 18, 2026
- cognee
- Aug 19, 2026
Categories
- honcho
- AI Agents, Data & Retrieval
- cognee
- AI Agents, Vector Databases
Trust and health
Open issues (now)
- honcho
- 163
- cognee
- 359
Stars delta
- honcho
- +659 (30d)
- cognee
- +1.5k (30d)
Open issues delta
- honcho
- -3 (30d)
- cognee
- -265 (30d)
Full report
- honcho
- Trust report
- cognee
- Trust report
Shared compatibility
- Python · honcho: Python runtime · cognee: Python runtime
Choose honcho if…
- License: honcho is AGPL-3.0, cognee is Apache-2.0.
- Tags unique to honcho: embeddings, langchain, long-term-memory, memory.
- Also covers Data & Retrieval.
- Requires managing long-term and contextual memory in AI agents for statefulness.
When NOT to use honcho
- Do not need complex SDK support or a customizable framework approach.
- Not interested in using stateful capabilities leveraging multiple APIs such as Gemini, Anthropic, and OpenAI.
Choose cognee if…
- License: cognee is Apache-2.0, honcho is AGPL-3.0.
- Tags unique to cognee: docker, knowledge-graph, open-source, python.
- Also covers Vector Databases.
- - You are developing AI agents that require persistent long-term memory across different sessions.
When NOT to use cognee
- - Your project does not require persistent memory storage, or your agents operate fully within short-lived sessions without the need for past context.
- - You are aiming for minimal setup overhead and prefer a cloud-based solution that requires less maintenance on your infrastructure side.
Explore
Sources
Every stat on this page traces to a dated GitHub sync, license file, enrichment field, or trust scan.
- GitHub stars (plastic-labs/honcho) · observed Aug 18, 2026
- GitHub forks (plastic-labs/honcho) · observed Aug 18, 2026
- Last push (plastic-labs/honcho) · observed Aug 18, 2026
- License file (AGPL-3.0) · observed Aug 18, 2026
- Decision facts (enrichment) · observed Jul 12, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- GitHub stars (topoteretes/cognee) · observed Aug 19, 2026
- GitHub forks (topoteretes/cognee) · observed Aug 19, 2026
- Last push (topoteretes/cognee) · observed Aug 19, 2026
- License file (Apache-2.0) · observed Aug 19, 2026
- Decision facts (enrichment) · observed Jul 11, 2026
- Trust scan (lockfile / OSV) · observed Jul 11, 2026
GitHub stars on cards: honcho 6.7k · cognee 30k (synced Aug 18, 2026).
Common questions
- What is the difference between honcho and cognee?
- honcho: Memory library for building stateful agents. cognee: Cognee is the open-source AI memory platform for agents.. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories.
- When should I choose honcho over cognee?
- Choose honcho over cognee when License: honcho is AGPL-3.0, cognee is Apache-2.0; Tags unique to honcho: embeddings, langchain, long-term-memory, memory; Also covers Data & Retrieval; Requires managing long-term and contextual memory in AI agents for statefulness.
- When should I choose cognee over honcho?
- Choose cognee over honcho when License: cognee is Apache-2.0, honcho is AGPL-3.0; Tags unique to cognee: docker, knowledge-graph, open-source, python; Also covers Vector Databases; - You are developing AI agents that require persistent long-term memory across different sessions.
- When should I avoid honcho?
- Do not need complex SDK support or a customizable framework approach. Not interested in using stateful capabilities leveraging multiple APIs such as Gemini, Anthropic, and OpenAI.
- When should I avoid cognee?
- - Your project does not require persistent memory storage, or your agents operate fully within short-lived sessions without the need for past context. - You are aiming for minimal setup overhead and prefer a cloud-based solution that requires less maintenance on your infrastructure side.
- Is honcho or cognee more popular on GitHub?
- cognee has more GitHub stars (30,121 vs 6,703). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints.
- Are honcho and cognee open source?
- Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (honcho: AGPL-3.0, cognee: Apache-2.0).
- Where can I find alternatives to honcho or cognee?
- GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at honcho alternatives and cognee alternatives (honcho markdown twin, cognee 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, honcho or cognee?
- honcho: Very active. cognee: 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 honcho and cognee?
- GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: honcho trust report; cognee trust report.