ollama vs llama.cpp
Updated
Both are free, open-source ways to run LLMs locally. ollama is more popular (185k vs 132k GitHub stars). Pick ollama if you want the bigger community (185k vs 132k GitHub stars); pick llama.cpp if your team works in C++.
Side by side
 ollama |  llama.cpp | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | LLMs & chat | Inference & serving |
| GitHub stars | 184,754 | 132,350 |
| Stars this week | +511 | +539 |
| Last update | today | today |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Commercial use | ||
| Language | Go | C++ |
| Runs on Mac | ||
| Runs without a GPU | ||
| GPU memory | Not stated | Not stated |
| Needs a paid API key | No | No |
| Self-hostable | ||
| Trending this week | – | – |
Hardware details are as stated by each project and may be incomplete.
Choose ollama if…
Get up and running with Kimi, GLM, MiniMax, DeepSeek, gpt-oss, Qwen, Gemma and other models.
- you want the bigger community (185k vs 132k GitHub stars)
- you're on a Mac
- your team works in Go
FAQ
Is ollama better than llama.cpp?
Both are free, open-source ways to run LLMs locally. ollama is more popular (185k vs 132k GitHub stars). Pick ollama if you want the bigger community (185k vs 132k GitHub stars); pick llama.cpp if your team works in C++.
Which is better for commercial use, ollama or llama.cpp?
Both use permissive licenses (MIT and MIT), so both allow commercial use.
Do ollama and llama.cpp run on a Mac?
ollama runs on macOS, according to the project. llama.cpp doesn't say.
Are ollama and llama.cpp free?
Yes. Both are open source and free to use.