--- title: "SillyTavern vs catai" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/sillytavern-sillytavern-vs-withcatai-catai" tools: ["sillytavern-sillytavern", "withcatai-catai"] --- # SillyTavern vs catai *GraphCanon updated Aug 16, 2026* ## Verdict Pick SillyTavern if sillyTavern is a JavaScript-based frontend for managing and interacting with large language models (LLMs) that focuses on providing a user-friendly experience tailored to power users. Given its license and functionality,; pick catai if catai, an AI assistant framework built for local deployment with Node.js, offers developers using TypeScript the ability to create and deploy AI agents through. [SillyTavern](https://sillytavern.app) reports 32k GitHub stars, 6.1k forks, and 583 open issues, last pushed Jul 11, 2026. [catai](https://withcatai.github.io/catai/) has 498 stars, 39 forks, and 2 open issues, last pushed Nov 16, 2025. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [SillyTavern's repository](https://github.com/SillyTavern/SillyTavern) and [catai's repository](https://github.com/withcatai/catai). | | [SillyTavern](/tools/sillytavern-sillytavern.md) | [catai](/tools/withcatai-catai.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | LLM Frontend for Power Users | Run AI assistant locally with Node.js | | Stars | 32,190 | 498 | | Forks | 6,069 | 39 | | Open issues | 583 | 2 | | Language | JavaScript | TypeScript | | Adopt for | SillyTavern is a JavaScript-based frontend for managing and interacting with large language models (LLMs) that focuses on providing a user-friendly experience tailored to power users. Given its license and functionality, | catai, an AI assistant framework built for local deployment with Node.js, offers developers using TypeScript the ability to create and deploy AI agents through a simple API. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT | | Categories | Inference & Serving | AI Agents, Inference & Serving | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [SillyTavern](/tools/sillytavern-sillytavern.md) | [catai](/tools/withcatai-catai.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Steady (60%) | Slowing (36%) | | Days since push | 35d | 269d | | Open issues (now) | 583 | 2 | | Stars delta | +1.4k (30d) | Unknown | | Open issues delta | +52 (30d) | Unknown | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/sillytavern-sillytavern/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/withcatai-catai/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: SillyTavern - **Pricing:** freemium - **Requirements:** Min 4 GB RAM; Requires Docker; It is essential to have familiarity with Docker for setup and maintenance. - **Adopt for:** SillyTavern is a JavaScript-based frontend for managing and interacting with large language models (LLMs) that focuses on providing a user-friendly experience tailored to power users. Given its license and functionality, - **License detail:** AGPL-3.0 ## Decision facts: catai - **Adopt for:** catai, an AI assistant framework built for local deployment with Node.js, offers developers using TypeScript the ability to create and deploy AI agents through a simple API. ## Choose when ### Choose SillyTavern if… - SillyTavern is primarily JavaScript; catai is TypeScript. - License: SillyTavern is AGPL-3.0, catai is MIT. - Requirements: Min 4 GB RAM; Requires Docker; It is essential to have familiarity with Docker for setup and maintenance.. - Tags unique to SillyTavern: ai, chat, llm. - SillyTavern ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. - SillyTavern is a JavaScript-based frontend for managing and interacting with large language models (LLMs) that focuses on providing a user-friendly experience tailored to power users. Given its license and functionality, ### Choose catai if… - catai is primarily TypeScript; SillyTavern is JavaScript. - License: catai is MIT, SillyTavern is AGPL-3.0. - Tags unique to catai: ai-assistant, chatbot, ggmlv3, llama-cpp. - Also covers AI Agents. - - When aiming to deploy a local AI assistant without reliance on cloud-based services; catai is ideal due to its focus on node-llama-cpp integration, allowing for robust offline capabilities. ## When NOT to use SillyTavern - Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. ## When NOT to use catai - - For environments that strictly prohibit or limit Node.js operations on the server side, as catai is engineered to run locally via Node.js only. - - If seeking a cloud-based AI deployment solution that does not require local setup, since catai focuses solely on providing local AI capabilities through an easy-to-use API. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between SillyTavern and catai? SillyTavern: LLM Frontend for Power Users. catai: Run AI assistant locally with Node.js. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose SillyTavern over catai? Choose SillyTavern over catai when SillyTavern is primarily JavaScript; catai is TypeScript; License: SillyTavern is AGPL-3.0, catai is MIT; Requirements: Min 4 GB RAM; Requires Docker; It is essential to have familiarity with Docker for setup and maintenance.; Tags unique to SillyTavern: ai, chat, llm; SillyTavern ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment; SillyTavern is a JavaScript-based frontend for managing and interacting with large language models (LLMs) that focuses on providing a user-friendly experience tailored to power users. Given its license and functionality,. ### When should I choose catai over SillyTavern? Choose catai over SillyTavern when catai is primarily TypeScript; SillyTavern is JavaScript; License: catai is MIT, SillyTavern is AGPL-3.0; Tags unique to catai: ai-assistant, chatbot, ggmlv3, llama-cpp; Also covers AI Agents; - When aiming to deploy a local AI assistant without reliance on cloud-based services; catai is ideal due to its focus on node-llama-cpp integration, allowing for robust offline capabilities. ### When should I avoid SillyTavern? Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. ### When should I avoid catai? - For environments that strictly prohibit or limit Node.js operations on the server side, as catai is engineered to run locally via Node.js only. - If seeking a cloud-based AI deployment solution that does not require local setup, since catai focuses solely on providing local AI capabilities through an easy-to-use API. ### Is SillyTavern or catai more popular on GitHub? SillyTavern has more GitHub stars (32,190 vs 498). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are SillyTavern and catai open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (SillyTavern: AGPL-3.0, catai: MIT). ### Where can I find alternatives to SillyTavern or catai? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [SillyTavern alternatives](/tools/sillytavern-sillytavern/alternatives) and [catai alternatives](/tools/withcatai-catai/alternatives) ([SillyTavern markdown twin](/tools/sillytavern-sillytavern/alternatives.md), [catai markdown twin](/tools/withcatai-catai/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/sillytavern-sillytavern-vs-withcatai-catai.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, SillyTavern or catai? SillyTavern: Steady. catai: Slowing. 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 SillyTavern and catai? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [SillyTavern trust report](/tools/sillytavern-sillytavern/trust); [catai trust report](/tools/withcatai-catai/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=sillytavern-sillytavern`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=sillytavern-sillytavern) - 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/_