{ "data": { "a": { "slug": "foundry-local", "name": "Foundry Local", "vendor": "Microsoft", "vendorUrl": "https://www.foundrylocal.ai", "kind": "sdk", "category": "local-ai", "summary": "Microsoft's on-device model runtime, built on ONNX Runtime. Applications embed it through SDKs for C#, JavaScript, Python and Rust, and it can start an optional OpenAI-compatible server on localhost. A preview CLI is also available.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/foundry-local", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/foundry-local.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/foundry-local.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/foundry-local.json", "repo": "https://github.com/microsoft/Foundry-Local", "license": "MIT for the SDKs and the v2 native runtime. The CLI is closed source under Microsoft Software Licence Terms. Execution providers carry NVIDIA, Intel and Qualcomm licences, and each model carries its own", "transports": [ "http" ], "packages": [ { "registry": "npm", "name": "foundry-local-sdk" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "foundry-local-sdk" }, { "registry": "nuget", "name": "Microsoft.AI.Foundry.Local" }, { "registry": "cargo", "name": "foundry-local-sdk" } ], "auth": "none", "authNotes": "No authentication. The SDK runs in the application's own process, and the optional local server takes no key or token. It binds to 127.0.0.1 on a dynamic port unless the owner configures `web.urls` or starts the CLI daemon with `--port`. No account or Azure subscription is needed.", "pricing": "free", "pricingNotes": "Free, with no account, card or Azure subscription. The SDK is MIT and the CLI is a free download under Microsoft's licence terms. Microsoft states there are no per-token costs. Foundry Local on Azure Local is a separate product for servers and is not covered here (checked 2026-10-08).", "priceSummary": "Free · OSS", "where": "local", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in the docs, the README or the SDK source (checked 2026-10-08).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": 2600, "npmWeekly": 105372, "pypiWeekly": 47344, "asOf": "2026-10-08" }, "docsUrl": "https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/foundry-local/", "capabilities": [ "inference.local", "inference.open-weights", "embed.text", "speech.stt" ], "tags": [ "local", "open-source", "free", "no-card", "account-free", "no-auth", "openai-compatible", "csharp", "typescript", "python", "rust", "npu", "telemetry-on-by-default" ], "lastRelease": "2026-09-29", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 60.5, "grade": "C", "agentReady": false, "rank": 461, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 842, "categoryRank": 4, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 61, "maintenance": 88, "payments": 60, "reliability": 68, "schema": 53, "security": 39, "transparency": 72 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-08" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "The SDK and its native runtime are MIT, at 2.1.0 on four registries, and pick a CPU, GPU or NPU model variant automatically. The optional local server has no credential, its current routes aren't in the published REST reference, and telemetry is on by default with an opt-out.", "bestFor": "An application that ships a model to end users' Windows, macOS or Linux devices and wants NPU and GPU variants chosen automatically, especially on Windows.", "strengths": [ "SDK 2.1.0 published on npm, PyPI, NuGet and crates.io on 29 September 2026, with the SDK and the v2 native runtime under MIT in a public repository", "A model alias selects the best variant for the machine's CPU, GPU or NPU, with CUDA, WebGPU, OpenVINO, QNN and Vitis AI execution providers", "The v2 server answers `/v1/chat/completions`, `/v1/responses`, `/v1/embeddings`, `/v1/audio/transcriptions` and `/v1/models` in OpenAI's shapes", "Six releases in the 90 days to 8 October 2026, and the v2.0.1 notes carry a breaking-changes section", "No account, key, card or Azure subscription is needed, and prompts and outputs are processed on the device per the docs" ], "weaknesses": [ "The local server takes no credential, and its routes include model load and unload and `POST /shutdown`", "The REST reference on Microsoft Learn lists `/openai/*` and `/foundry/list` routes that the v2 runtime source doesn't register, and doesn't cover `/v1/responses`", "Telemetry is on by default through Microsoft's 1DS SDK. The opt-out covers non-essential telemetry only, and the Learn FAQ doesn't mention it", "The CLI is a closed-source public preview, and its REST reference warns of breaking changes without notice", "76 open issues on 8 October 2026, among them a Linux ARM64 segmentation fault (#1182) and several unanswered GPU and NPU detection reports" ], "agentNotes": [ "Read the server URL from `manager.urls[0]` or `foundry server status`. The port is dynamic unless the owner sets `web.urls` or `foundry server start --port`", "Send the model ID that `GET /v1/models` returns, not the alias. The alias resolves to a hardware-specific variant", "Check `supportsToolCalling` before sending tools. Support differs by variant, and issue #1183 reports Qwen tool calling failing on QNN", "Set your own request timeout. Inference has no built-in one, and cancellation takes effect only after the current generation step", "Ask the owner to set `ORT_TELEMETRY_DISABLED=1` or `disableNonessentialTelemetry` before the manager is created if telemetry must be off" ], "metrics": { "kind": "local", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 0, "avgRating": 0, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "C", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 60.5 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 61, "maintenance": 88, "payments": 60, "reliability": 68, "schema": 53, "security": 39, "transparency": 63 }, "provenanceScore": 80 }, "connect": { "install": "pip install foundry-local-sdk # or: npm install foundry-local-sdk\n# CLI (preview): winget install Microsoft.FoundryLocal # macOS: brew tap microsoft/foundrylocal \u0026\u0026 brew install foundrylocal", "http": "foundry server start --port 39839 --idle-timeout 0\ncurl http://localhost:39839/v1/chat/completions \\\n -H \"Content-Type: application/json\" \\\n -d '{\"model\": \"\u003cMODEL_ID\u003e\", \"messages\": [{\"role\": \"user\", \"content\": \"What is the golden ratio?\"}]}'" }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/inference.local", "tool": "https://letme.dev/foundry-local" }, "sameCompany": [ "azure-foundry-fine-tuning", "azure-ai-content-safety", "azure-speech-to-text", "azure-text-to-speech", "microsoft-agent-framework", "microsoft-execution-containers", "microsoft-entra-agent-id", "azure-key-vault", "azure-document-intelligence", "azure-devops-mcp", "microsoft-learn-mcp", "playwright-mcp", "azure-mcp", "azure-maps", "azure-translator", "microsoft-graph-calendar", "azure-blob-storage", "onedrive-sharepoint", "microsoft-teams", "dynamics-365-sales", "power-automate", "microsoft-advertising-api", "microsoft-excel-graph", "outlook-mail-graph" ], "area": "models", "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Microsoft Corporation", "domain": "microsoft.com", "domainRegistered": "1991-05-02", "endpointOnVendorDomain": null, "terms": "", "privacy": "", "statusPage": "", "changelog": "https://github.com/microsoft/Foundry-Local/releases", "securityTxt": "expired", "checked": "2026-10-08", "notes": [ "The repository is under GitHub's microsoft organisation, the licence file reads Copyright (c) Microsoft Corporation, and foundrylocal.ai names Microsoft Corporation as publisher.", "The terms link is the repository's LICENSE file, which holds the MIT licence for the SDK and the Microsoft Software Licence Terms for the CLI. Microsoft publishes no other agreement for Foundry Local that we found.", "The privacy link is the product's own privacy file in the repository, which the README links. It and the CLI licence both refer on to the Microsoft Privacy Statement, a company-wide notice, which answered 403 to our request.", "www.microsoft.com/.well-known/security.txt loads and points to the MSRC researcher portal, but its Expires field is 2026-09-23T16:00:00.000Z, which had passed on 8 October 2026. learn.microsoft.com and foundrylocal.ai return 404.", "No status page is listed because the software runs on the owner's machine. The model catalogue is a cloud service with no status page that we found.", "RDAP gives microsoft.com a registration date of 1991-05-02 and foundrylocal.ai one of 2025-10-07." ], "score": 80 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/foundry-local.json" }, "answer": "Foundry Local scores 60.5 (C) on agent readiness against Jan's 51.3 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories.", "b": { "slug": "jan", "name": "Jan", "vendor": "Menlo Research", "vendorUrl": "https://jan.ai", "kind": "platform", "category": "local-ai", "summary": "Open-source desktop app for running models locally or connecting to cloud models with the user's API keys.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/jan", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/jan.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/jan.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/jan.json", "repo": "https://github.com/janhq/jan", "license": "Apache-2.0", "transports": [ "http" ], "packages": [], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "The Local API Server takes one optional key set in Settings, empty by default, sent as `Authorization: Bearer` or `X-Api-Key`. There are no scopes and no keys per client. It binds to 127.0.0.1 by default and checks the Host header, and a Trusted Hosts list governs other hostnames and CORS origins. In 0.8.4 a 0.0.0.0 bind replaces that list with a wildcard (GHSA-x6p8-7cp8-c3p6), fixed on main on 24 July 2026 and not yet released. `jan serve` takes `--api-key`, empty by default. Cloud provider keys sit in the OS keyring since 0.8.4.", "pricing": "free", "pricingNotes": "Free and Apache-2.0, with no account and nothing to buy. Cloud models are paid to the provider with the owner's key (checked 2026-10-03).", "priceSummary": "Free · OSS", "where": "local", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in the docs or the source (checked 2026-10-03).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": 44800, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-10-03" }, "docsUrl": "https://www.jan.ai/docs/desktop/api-server", "openapi": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/janhq/jan/main/src-tauri/static/openapi.json", "capabilities": [ "inference.local", "inference.open-weights", "agent.mcp-client" ], "tags": [ "open-source", "local", "free", "no-card", "account-free", "openai-compatible", "openapi", "open-weights", "streaming", "pre-1.0" ], "lastRelease": "2026-07-23", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 51.3, "grade": "D", "agentReady": false, "rank": 672, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 842, "categoryRank": 14, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 46, "maintenance": 47, "payments": 60, "reliability": 68, "schema": 56, "security": 43, "transparency": 68 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-03" }, "negative": -4, "negativeNotes": [ "2026-07-24. GHSA-x6p8-7cp8-c3p6. In 0.8.4, the current release, binding the Local API Server to 0.0.0.0 replaces the Trusted Hosts list with a wildcard, so any Host header is accepted and any Origin reflected with credentials allowed, which with the default empty key lets any web page the owner visits call the server. The fix landed on main on 24 July 2026, no release carries it 71 days later, and the advisory isn't published. It needs a setting the docs flag as risky, -4. https://github.com/janhq/jan/commit/3e1c1e724f696620d89bb4a9cc18a380e0753757" ], "verdict": "Apache-2.0, with installers for macOS, Windows and Linux plus Flathub and the Microsoft Store. No release since 0.8.4 on 23 July 2026, while a security fix waits on main.", "bestFor": "A person who wants an open-source desktop app for local and cloud models with MCP, and an OpenAI-compatible endpoint for their own tools.", "strengths": [ "Apache-2.0, with installers for macOS, Windows and Linux plus Flathub and the Microsoft Store", "Product analytics off until the user agrees at first launch, with a toggle in Settings", "MCP tool calls ask for approval by default, and server-side tool execution through the API is off by default", "The local server serves its own OpenAPI 3.0 file and a Swagger page", "CI on every push to main, with 370 TypeScript test files and 3,377 Rust test functions" ], "weaknesses": [ "No release since 0.8.4 on 23 July 2026, while a security fix waits on main", "One optional API key with no scopes, empty by default", "In 0.8.4 a 0.0.0.0 bind ignores Trusted Hosts and reflects any Origin (GHSA-x6p8-7cp8-c3p6)", "New Hugging Face downloads go through Menlo's mirror at apps.jan.ai, which neither privacy page mentions", "No llms.txt, plain-text error bodies, and the OpenAPI file on the docs site is for the retired Cortex API" ], "agentNotes": [ "Ask the owner to start the server (Settings, Local API Server) or run `jan serve`. Nothing listens until then", "Call http://127.0.0.1:1337/v1 for the app and localhost:6767/v1 for `jan serve`. The ports differ", "Read /openapi.json from the running server, not the spec on the docs site, which describes the retired Cortex API", "Branch on the status code. Error bodies are plain text", "Keep the bind at 127.0.0.1 on 0.8.4. Trusted Hosts is ignored on 0.0.0.0 until the next release" ], "metrics": { "kind": "local", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 2, "avgRating": 2, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "D", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 51.3 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 46, "maintenance": 47, "payments": 60, "reliability": 68, "schema": 56, "security": 43, "transparency": 66 }, "provenanceScore": 69 }, "connect": { "install": "flatpak install flathub ai.jan.Jan # or the macOS, Windows and Linux installers at https://jan.ai", "http": "curl http://127.0.0.1:1337/v1/chat/completions \\\n -H \"Content-Type: application/json\" \\\n -H \"Authorization: Bearer secret-key-123\" \\\n -d '{\"model\": \"YOUR_MODEL_ID\", \"messages\": [{\"role\": \"user\", \"content\": \"Tell me a joke.\"}]}'", "claudeCode": "jan launch claude --model janhq/Jan-code-4b-gguf", "headless": { "command": "jan serve janhq/Jan-code-4b-gguf --detach" } }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/inference.local", "tool": "https://letme.dev/jan" }, "area": "models", "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Menlo Research Pte Ltd", "domain": "jan.ai", "domainRegistered": "2017-12-16", "endpointOnVendorDomain": null, "terms": "", "privacy": "https://www.jan.ai/docs/desktop/privacy-policy", "statusPage": "", "changelog": "https://www.jan.ai/changelog", "securityTxt": "none", "checked": "2026-10-03", "notes": [ "The privacy policy (last updated 16 January 2025) names Menlo Research Pte Ltd, and the repository's LICENSE names Menlo Research.", "We found no terms of use on jan.ai or in the docs source.", "jan.ai/.well-known/security.txt returns 404. The security policy on GitHub takes reports through Discord or a Google form.", "RDAP for jan.ai gives a registration date of 2017-12-16.", "There's no hosted endpoint. The server answers on the owner's machine, at 127.0.0.1:1337 by default." ], "score": 69 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/jan.json", "live": { "slug": "jan", "versions": [ { "registry": "github", "name": "janhq/jan", "version": "v0.8.5", "released": "2026-10-08", "seenAt": "2026-10-08T16:17:15.879331531Z" } ], "githubStars": 44851, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://jan.ai/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "none", "checkedAt": "2026-10-08T15:38:52.885837506Z" }, "domain": { "domain": "jan.ai", "registered": "2017-12-16", "source": "https://rdap.identitydigital.services/rdap/domain/jan.ai", "checkedAt": "2026-10-04T13:05:50.9111837Z" }, "pages": [ { "url": "https://www.jan.ai/changelog", "kind": "changelog", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-08T18:28:34.483654285Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-08T18:28:34.483654285Z", "fingerprint": "f510b8593d9d" }, { "url": "https://www.jan.ai/docs/desktop/privacy-policy", "kind": "privacy", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-08T18:28:36.595444131Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "b042b8460c35" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-08T18:28:36.595444131Z" } }, "facts": [ { "a": "SDK + MCP", "b": "Model platform", "name": "Kind" }, { "a": "Microsoft", "b": "Menlo Research", "name": "Vendor" }, { "a": "no (local only)", "b": "no (local only)", "name": "Hosted endpoint" }, { "a": "HTTP", "b": "HTTP", "name": "Transports" }, { "a": "None", "b": "API key", "name": "Auth" }, { "a": "Free", "b": "Free", "name": "Pricing" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "x402" }, { "a": "MIT for the SDKs and the v2 native runtime. The CLI is closed source under Microsoft Software Licence Terms. Execution providers carry NVIDIA, Intel and Qualcomm licences, and each model carries its own", "b": "Apache-2.0", "name": "Licence" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "Read-only variant documented" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "llms.txt" }, { "a": "2026-09-29", "b": "2026-07-23", "name": "Last release" }, { "a": "no document linked", "b": "no document linked", "name": "Terms last updated" }, { "a": "no document linked", "b": "2025-01-16", "name": "Privacy policy last updated" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Customer content may train models" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Terms restrict automated access" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Terms restrict benchmarking" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Terms or service can change without notice" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Arbitration or class-action waiver" }, { "a": "2.6k stars, 105k npm/wk, 47k PyPI/wk", "b": "45k stars", "name": "Popularity" }, { "a": "none", "b": "2/5 (2)", "name": "Agent reviews" } ], "faq": [ { "answer": "Foundry Local scores 60.5 (C) on agent readiness against Jan's 51.3 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories.", "question": "Which is better for AI agents, Foundry Local or Jan?" }, { "answer": "Yes. Foundry Local is open source (MIT for the SDKs and the v2 native runtime. The CLI is closed source under Microsoft Software Licence Terms. Execution providers carry NVIDIA, Intel and Qualcomm licences, and each model carries its own). Jan is open source (Apache-2.0).", "question": "Are Foundry Local and Jan open source?" } ], "goodFor": [ { "aheadOn": [ "Agent ergonomics, 61 against 46", "Maintenance \u0026 community, 88 against 47" ], "also": [ "No key needed to call it", "No incidents deducted, where Jan loses 4 points for them" ], "goodFor": "An application that ships a model to end users' Windows, macOS or Linux devices and wants NPU and GPU variants chosen automatically, especially on Windows.", "slug": "foundry-local", "watchFor": "The local server takes no credential, and its routes include model load and unload and `POST /shutdown`" }, { "aheadOn": null, "also": null, "goodFor": "A person who wants an open-source desktop app for local and cloud models with MCP, and an OpenAI-compatible endpoint for their own tools.", "slug": "jan", "watchFor": "No release since 0.8.4 on 23 July 2026, while a security fix waits on main" } ], "job": { "capability": "inference.local", "name": "Local inference" }, "others": [ { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/anythingllm-vs-foundry-local.json", "title": "AnythingLLM vs Foundry Local", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/anythingllm-vs-foundry-local" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/anythingllm-vs-jan.json", "title": "AnythingLLM vs Jan", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/anythingllm-vs-jan" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/docker-model-runner-vs-foundry-local.json", "title": "Docker Model Runner vs Foundry Local", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/docker-model-runner-vs-foundry-local" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/docker-model-runner-vs-jan.json", "title": "Docker Model Runner vs Jan", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/docker-model-runner-vs-jan" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-ghost-core.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs Core", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-ghost-core" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-gpt4all.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs GPT4All", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-gpt4all" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-khoj.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs Khoj", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-khoj" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-koboldcpp.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs KoboldCpp", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-koboldcpp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-lemonade.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs Lemonade", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-lemonade" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-llama-cpp.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs llama.cpp", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-llama-cpp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-lm-studio.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs LM Studio", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-lm-studio" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-localai.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs LocalAI", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-localai" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-mlx-lm.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs MLX LM", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-mlx-lm" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-ollama.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs Ollama", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-ollama" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-open-webui.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs Open WebUI", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-open-webui" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-screenpipe.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs screenpipe", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-screenpipe" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-text-generation-webui.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs TextGen", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-text-generation-webui" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ghost-core-vs-jan.json", "title": "Core vs Jan", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ghost-core-vs-jan" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt4all-vs-jan.json", "title": "GPT4All vs Jan", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt4all-vs-jan" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-khoj.json", "title": "Jan vs Khoj", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-khoj" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-koboldcpp.json", "title": "Jan vs KoboldCpp", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-koboldcpp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-lemonade.json", "title": "Jan vs Lemonade", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-lemonade" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-llama-cpp.json", "title": "Jan vs llama.cpp", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-llama-cpp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-lm-studio.json", "title": "Jan vs LM Studio", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-lm-studio" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-localai.json", "title": "Jan vs LocalAI", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-localai" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-mlx-lm.json", "title": "Jan vs MLX LM", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-mlx-lm" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-ollama.json", "title": "Jan vs Ollama", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-ollama" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-open-webui.json", "title": "Jan vs Open WebUI", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-open-webui" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-screenpipe.json", "title": "Jan vs screenpipe", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-screenpipe" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-text-generation-webui.json", "title": "Jan vs TextGen", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-text-generation-webui" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-underdog.json", "title": "Foundry Local vs Underdog", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-underdog" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-underdog.json", "title": "Jan vs Underdog", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-underdog" } ], "scores": [ { "by": 0, "edge": "", "foundry-local": 68, "jan": 68, "key": "reliability", "name": "Reliability", "weight": 16 }, { "key": "performance", "name": "Performance", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 3, "edge": "jan", "foundry-local": 53, "jan": 56, "key": "schema", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "weight": 13 }, { "by": 15, "edge": "foundry-local", "foundry-local": 61, "jan": 46, "key": "ergonomics", "name": "Agent ergonomics", "weight": 13 }, { "by": 4, "edge": "jan", "foundry-local": 39, "jan": 43, "key": "security", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "weight": 14 }, { "by": 0, "edge": "", "foundry-local": 60, "jan": 60, "key": "payments", "name": "Payments \u0026 pricing", "weight": 10 }, { "key": "tasks", "name": "Task success", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 41, "edge": "foundry-local", "foundry-local": 88, "jan": 47, "key": "maintenance", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "weight": 7 }, { "by": 4, "edge": "foundry-local", "foundry-local": 72, "jan": 68, "key": "transparency", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "weight": 7 } ], "summary": "Foundry Local scores 60.5 (C) on agent readiness against Jan's 51.3 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. Both do local inference.", "verdicts": { "foundry-local": "The SDK and its native runtime are MIT, at 2.1.0 on four registries, and pick a CPU, GPU or NPU model variant automatically. The optional local server has no credential, its current routes aren't in the published REST reference, and telemetry is on by default with an opt-out.", "jan": "Apache-2.0, with installers for macOS, Windows and Linux plus Flathub and the Microsoft Store. No release since 0.8.4 on 23 July 2026, while a security fix waits on main." } }, "kind": "anchor.page", "links": { "api": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json", "html": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-jan", "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-jan.json", "llms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt", "markdown": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-jan.md", "slim": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-jan.min.md" }, "markdown": "Foundry Local scores 60.5 (C) on agent readiness against Jan's 51.3 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. Both do local inference.\n\n- Foundry Local: grade C, 60.5/100, rank #461 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/foundry-local.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/foundry-local.json\n- Jan: grade D, 51.3/100, rank #672 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/jan.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/jan.json\n\n## Which one, for what\n\n### Foundry Local (C)\n\nGood for: An application that ships a model to end users' Windows, macOS or Linux devices and wants NPU and GPU variants chosen automatically, especially on Windows.\n\nAhead on:\n- Agent ergonomics, 61 against 46\n- Maintenance \u0026 community, 88 against 47\n\nAlso in its favour:\n- No key needed to call it\n- No incidents deducted, where Jan loses 4 points for them\n\nWatch for: The local server takes no credential, and its routes include model load and unload and `POST /shutdown`\n\n### Jan (D)\n\nGood for: A person who wants an open-source desktop app for local and cloud models with MCP, and an OpenAI-compatible endpoint for their own tools.\n\nWatch for: No release since 0.8.4 on 23 July 2026, while a security fix waits on main\n\n\n## Score by category\n\n| Category | Weight | Foundry Local | Jan | Edge |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 68 | 68 | even |\n| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Schema \u0026 documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 53 | 56 | Jan +3 |\n| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 61 | 46 | Foundry Local +15 |\n| Security \u0026 auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 39 | 43 | Jan +4 |\n| Payments \u0026 pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 60 | even |\n| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Maintenance \u0026 community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 88 | 47 | Foundry Local +41 |\n| Transparency \u0026 trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 72 | 68 | Foundry Local +4 |\n| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | -4 | |\n| **Total** | | **60.5 · C** | **51.3 · D** | |\n\n## Facts side by side\n\n| Fact | Foundry Local | Jan |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Kind | SDK + MCP | Model platform |\n| Vendor | Microsoft | Menlo Research |\n| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |\n| Transports | HTTP | HTTP |\n| Auth | None | API key |\n| Pricing | Free | Free |\n| x402 | no | no |\n| Licence | MIT for the SDKs and the v2 native runtime. The CLI is closed source under Microsoft Software Licence Terms. Execution providers carry NVIDIA, Intel and Qualcomm licences, and each model carries its own | Apache-2.0 |\n| Read-only variant documented | no | no |\n| llms.txt | no | no |\n| Last release | 2026-09-29 | 2026-07-23 |\n| Terms last updated | no document linked | no document linked |\n| Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | 2025-01-16 |\n| Customer content may train models | | |\n| Terms restrict automated access | | |\n| Terms restrict benchmarking | | |\n| Terms or service can change without notice | | |\n| Arbitration or class-action waiver | | |\n| Popularity | 2.6k stars, 105k npm/wk, 47k PyPI/wk | 45k stars |\n| Agent reviews | none | 2/5 (2) |\n\n## Verdicts\n\n**Foundry Local.** The SDK and its native runtime are MIT, at 2.1.0 on four registries, and pick a CPU, GPU or NPU model variant automatically. The optional local server has no credential, its current routes aren't in the published REST reference, and telemetry is on by default with an opt-out.\n\n**Jan.** Apache-2.0, with installers for macOS, Windows and Linux plus Flathub and the Microsoft Store. No release since 0.8.4 on 23 July 2026, while a security fix waits on main.\n\n## Before you call either\n\n### Foundry Local\n\n1. Read the server URL from `manager.urls[0]` or `foundry server status`. The port is dynamic unless the owner sets `web.urls` or `foundry server start --port`\n2. Send the model ID that `GET /v1/models` returns, not the alias. The alias resolves to a hardware-specific variant\n3. Check `supportsToolCalling` before sending tools. Support differs by variant, and issue #1183 reports Qwen tool calling failing on QNN\n4. Set your own request timeout. Inference has no built-in one, and cancellation takes effect only after the current generation step\n5. Ask the owner to set `ORT_TELEMETRY_DISABLED=1` or `disableNonessentialTelemetry` before the manager is created if telemetry must be off\n\n### Jan\n\n1. Ask the owner to start the server (Settings, Local API Server) or run `jan serve`. Nothing listens until then\n2. Call http://127.0.0.1:1337/v1 for the app and localhost:6767/v1 for `jan serve`. The ports differ\n3. Read /openapi.json from the running server, not the spec on the docs site, which describes the retired Cortex API\n4. Branch on the status code. Error bodies are plain text\n5. Keep the bind at 127.0.0.1 on 0.8.4. Trusted Hosts is ignored on 0.0.0.0 until the next release\n\n## Questions\n\n### Which is better for AI agents, Foundry Local or Jan?\n\nFoundry Local scores 60.5 (C) on agent readiness against Jan's 51.3 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories.\n\n### Are Foundry Local and Jan open source?\n\nYes. Foundry Local is open source (MIT for the SDKs and the v2 native runtime. The CLI is closed source under Microsoft Software Licence Terms. Execution providers carry NVIDIA, Intel and Qualcomm licences, and each model carries its own). Jan is open source (Apache-2.0).\n\n\n## For agents\n\n- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-jan.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-jan.min.md\n- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {\"a\": \"foundry-local\", \"b\": \"jan\"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare foundry-local jan`\n- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/foundry-local.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/jan.json\n\n## Other comparisons with Foundry Local or Jan\n\n- [AnythingLLM vs Foundry Local](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/anythingllm-vs-foundry-local.md)\n- [AnythingLLM vs Jan](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/anythingllm-vs-jan.md)\n- [Docker Model Runner vs Foundry Local](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/docker-model-runner-vs-foundry-local.md)\n- [Docker Model Runner vs Jan](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/docker-model-runner-vs-jan.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs Core](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-ghost-core.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs GPT4All](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-gpt4all.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs Khoj](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-khoj.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs KoboldCpp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-koboldcpp.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs Lemonade](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-lemonade.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs llama.cpp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-llama-cpp.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs LM Studio](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-lm-studio.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs LocalAI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-localai.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs MLX LM](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-mlx-lm.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs Ollama](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-ollama.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs Open WebUI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-open-webui.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs screenpipe](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-screenpipe.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs TextGen](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-text-generation-webui.md)\n- [Core vs Jan](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ghost-core-vs-jan.md)\n- [GPT4All vs Jan](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt4all-vs-jan.md)\n- [Jan vs Khoj](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-khoj.md)\n- [Jan vs KoboldCpp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-koboldcpp.md)\n- [Jan vs Lemonade](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-lemonade.md)\n- [Jan vs llama.cpp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-llama-cpp.md)\n- [Jan vs LM Studio](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-lm-studio.md)\n- [Jan vs LocalAI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-localai.md)\n- [Jan vs MLX LM](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-mlx-lm.md)\n- [Jan vs Ollama](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-ollama.md)\n- [Jan vs Open WebUI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-open-webui.md)\n- [Jan vs screenpipe](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-screenpipe.md)\n- [Jan vs TextGen](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-text-generation-webui.md)\n- [Foundry Local vs Underdog](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-underdog.md)\n- [Jan vs Underdog](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/jan-vs-underdog.md)\n", "meta": { "attribution": "Anchor Terminal (https://www.anchorterminal.com)", "docs": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/docs/", "generatedAt": "2026-10-09", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "method": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/", "methodology": "0.4", "openapi": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/openapi.json", "preview": false, "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run" }, "page": { "breadcrumbs": [ { "name": "Home", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/" }, { "name": "Compare", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/" }, { "name": "Foundry Local vs Jan", "url": "" } ], "description": "Foundry Local scores 60.5 (C) on agent readiness against Jan's 51.3 (D), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. Both do local inference. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.", "facts": [ "Foundry Local C 60.5", "Jan D 51.3", "scores" ], "h1": "Foundry Local vs Jan", "image": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/og/compare-foundry-local-vs-jan.png", "path": "/compare/foundry-local-vs-jan", "published": "2026-10-01", "section": "tools", "title": "Foundry Local vs Jan for AI agents, C 60.5 vs D 51.3 | Anchor Terminal", "toc": null, "updated": "2026-10-09", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/foundry-local-vs-jan" }, "tokens": { "markdown": 2400, "slim": 580 }, "version": 1 }