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Jan

Open-source desktop app for running AI models locally, with optional connections to cloud model providers.

Try Jan (opens the Jan website in a new tab)

Our verdict

Good for people who want a free, open-source chat app that runs models on their own machine and can also connect to cloud providers. Skip it if you have under 8GB of RAM or want a server-only tool.

What it does well

  • Apache-2.0 licensed source code on GitHub
  • Labelled 'Free & Open source' on jan.ai
  • Downloads for macOS, Windows (x64, ARM64) and Linux (Flatpak, AppImage, deb)

Where it falls short

  • Docs list 6GB GPU VRAM minimum on Windows and Linux
  • Cowork feature is marked Preview in the docs
  • No official pricing page; cloud model use is billed by the provider you connect
The Jan website
The official Jan website, 16 October 2026.

Jan is a desktop app by Menlo Research that runs AI models locally and can also connect to cloud providers such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Google using your own keys. It also runs a local OpenAI-compatible API server. The jan.ai site labels it 'Free & Open source'.

The GitHub LICENSE file is the Apache License 2.0, with an added line saying attribution is requested in user-facing documentation and materials. No paid plan is listed on the pages checked, so use is free for both personal and work use under that licence; any cost for cloud models comes from the provider you connect.

Official minimums: macOS 13.6 or newer with 10GB+ free space; Windows 10 or newer (x64 with AVX2, or ARM64), 8GB RAM minimum and 6GB VRAM minimum for GPU use, 10GB free space; Linux with AVX2, 8GB RAM minimum and 10GB free space.

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Last updated 16 October 2026. Facts checked against the official site on 16 October 2026. How we make money