Enchanted vs GPT4All
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted local llm runners options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Enchanted | GPT4All |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 85 · Excellent | 41 · Fair |
| Category | Local LLM Runners | Local LLM Runners |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | Swift | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 8,192 MB |
| Deployment | binary | binary, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 6,002 | ★ 77,387 |
| First released | 2024 | 2023 |
| Replaces | ChatGPT | ChatGPT |
What are Enchanted and GPT4All?
Enchanted
Enchanted is an open-source, privacy-focused app that connects to a self-hosted Ollama server from Apple devices. It provides a native chat experience for private local models on the go.
- Native Apple app
- Connects to private Ollama
- Conversation history
- Prompt completions
GPT4All
GPT4All is a desktop ecosystem for running open large language models locally and privately. It offers a chat client with document retrieval over local files and bindings for several programming languages.
- Runs on CPU
- Local document chat
- Cross-platform desktop app
- Language bindings
Enchanted vs GPT4All: key differences
Enchanted is written in Swift, while GPT4All is built with C++. Licensing differs — Apache-2.0 for Enchanted versus MIT for GPT4All. Enchanted is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 8,192 MB for GPT4All. GPT4All has the considerably larger community, at 77,387 GitHub stars versus 6,002.
Why pick each one
Choose Enchanted if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 6k GitHub stars
- Written in Swift
Choose GPT4All if…
- Very easy setup
- Runs fully offline
- Local document chat
Watch out for
- Limited to smaller models
- Performance depends on hardware
Frequently asked questions
Is Enchanted or GPT4All better?
Neither is universally better. GPT4All has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Enchanted and GPT4All free and open-source?
Yes. Enchanted is licensed under Apache-2.0 and GPT4All under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Enchanted and GPT4All with Docker?
Enchanted: check the project docs for container support. GPT4All: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Enchanted or GPT4All?
Enchanted has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 8,192 MB for GPT4All. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.