Comparison

OpenCat vs MLC Chat

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

OpenCat

This AI utility tool offers seamless integration of advanced AI models into your daily routine on Mac, iPhone, and iPad. It features a user-friendly interface, keyboard extensions for in-app AI access, and Siri/shortcut integration for automation. Supports a wide range of popular AI models and offers team deployment options.

Highlights
  • Support for latest popular AI models
  • Keyboard extensions for in-app AI
  • Realistic voice synthesis
  • Siri and shortcut integration
  • Team deployment with Docker
  • Customizable AI parameters
  • Markdown content rendering
Features
Read full description

Bring AI into every part of your workflow: chat, writing, translation, and search. · Multiple model options — local models, API Key, Cloud subscription, Apple Intelligence · MCP — supports MCP and tool calls · Web search — available on OpenCat Cloud and select providers · System-wide translation — select text in any app for instant AI translation · Content rendering — supports LaTeX formulas, Markdown, and code highlighting · Cross-platform — natively built for Mac, iPhone, and iPad · Data privacy — stored locally, synced across devices via iCloud [Pro Features] · AI Keyboard — invoke AI right in the text field of any app to polish or reply in one step · OpenCat Cloud subscription provides access to all major models [A Variety of Models] · OpenCat Cloud — fast access to leading models · Local models — one-tap download of open-source models for offline use, accelerated by Apple silicon · BYOK — use your own API Key, including Coding Plan · System models — supports Apple Foundation Models [OpenCat Cloud — Ready to Use, No Setup] · No sign-up, zero configuration, all major models supported · 50+ models — ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, DeepSeek, GLM, MiniMax, Kimi, Qwen, Doubao, and more, all in one place · Online search supported [System-Level AI Translation] Set OpenCat as your default translation app to translate selected text directly in Safari, Mail, Notes, and any other app. Powered by large language models, translations are natural and fluent — far superior to traditional translation engines. [Local Models, Offline Inference] · One-tap download — popular open-source models like Llama, Qwen, and Gemma · Apple silicon acceleration — built on Apple's official MLX framework, fully leveraging GPU performance for fast, energy-efficient inference · Fully offline — works without internet, conversation data never leaves your device [Use Your Own API Key] · 25+ providers supported — OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, DeepSeek, Kimi, Qwen, Doubao, ERNIE, and more [Contact Us] Email: support@dreamoon.ai Terms of Use https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy & Third-party AI Service Privacy Policy https://opencat.app/privacy

About

MLC Chat

Engage in conversations with open language models directly on your iPad or iPhone. Once a model is downloaded, all interactions occur locally, ensuring privacy and offline functionality without internet access. This app is designed for non-commercial use, allowing you to run various open-source language models on your device.

Highlights
  • Local AI model chat
  • Offline functionality
  • No internet required
  • Privacy-focused
  • Open-source project integration
  • Downloadable language models
Features
Read full description

MLC Chat lets users chat with open language models locally on ipads and iphones. After a model is downloaded to the app, everything runs locally without server support, and it works without internet connections do not record any information. Because the models run locally, it only works for the devices with sufficient VRAM depending on the models being used. MLC Chat is part of open source project MLC LLM, with allows any language model to be deployed natively on a diverse set of hardware backends and native applications. MLC Chat is a runtime that runs different open model architectures on your phone. The app is intended for non-commercial purposes. It allows you to run open-language models downloaded from the internet. Each model can be subject to its respective licenses.

Screenshots

OpenCat4 screens
MLC Chat2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: MLC Chat at none against OpenCat's 4. OpenCat's advantage is rating (4.6 vs 4.2) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months). On price, review sentiment, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. OpenCat sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. MLC Chat asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

OpenCat holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: OpenCat has 851 ratings behind it against 83, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 65% of OpenCat's written reviews are positive against 68% of MLC Chat's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OpenCat ships an update weekly, MLC Chat every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 30, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
OpenCat versus MLC Chat: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOpenCatMLC Chat
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (851 ratings) — better4.2 (83 ratings)
Positive reviews64.6% of reviews68.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings851 — better83
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size96 MB1.7 GB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperEarly Moon, LLCTianqi Chen

Customer experience

OpenCat

All ratings846 ratings
Positive91.3%
Neutral2.1%
Negative6.6%
Written reviews195 reviews
Positive64.6%
Neutral11.3%
Negative24.1%

MLC Chat

All ratings78 ratings
Positive83.3%
Neutral3.8%
Negative12.8%
Written reviews63 reviews
Positive68.3%
Neutral12.7%
Negative19.0%

User reviews

OpenCat

From 851 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast and responsive
  • 👍 Convenient and user-friendly
  • 💡 Customizable API integrations
  • 🌐 Syncs across devices
  • 🎨 Clean and visually appealing design

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and performance issues
  • 🔒 Lack of custom API support
  • 💻 Compatibility issues with older devices/OSes
  • 🗂️ Difficulty managing conversations
  • 📤 Inability to export chat data

MLC Chat

From 83 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Runs fast locally
  • ✅ Works offline
  • 💰 Free to use
  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 💡 Supports various LLM models

Room to improve

  • ⚠️ Limited model selection
  • 📉 High VRAM requirements
  • 📱 Incompatible with older devices
  • ❌ Crashes on some devices/models
  • 🗄️ Cannot save conversations

Bugs and requests

OpenCat

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • Streaming response disruptions
  • Disappearing API key input fields
  • Inconsistent Markdown rendering
  • Keyboard extension not working as expected
  • Sync issues between devices
Show 1 more
  • Crashes and freezes when handling large inputs

Requested features

7 requests
  • Support for more AI models (e.g., Ollama, Groq)
  • Markdown rendering for chat responses
  • Ability to upload images and files
  • Customizable keyboard extensions
  • Background task support for long-running queries
Show 2 more
  • Prompt library and sharing functionality
  • Integration with other productivity apps (e.g., Shortcuts)

MLC Chat

Reported bugs

17 issues
  • Phi model crashes on iOS 26.0.1 17 Pro Max
  • App crashes on iPad Pro 4th Gen, iPadOs 17.7
  • RedPajama model crashes app on initialization
  • Update is extremely slow
  • Download model button disabled in new version
Show 12 more
  • RedPajama model crashes, custom model download removed
  • App closes when hitting send on iPhone 13
  • Conversation resets when app is backgrounded
  • Vicuna and Mistral 7B models cause crashes
  • Some 7b q4f16/q4f32 models crash on iPhone 15 Pro
  • App crashes on iPhone 13 mini
  • Cannot load other models from URL
  • Crash on iPhone 12
  • Severe heating and frequency reduction on A15
  • Low VRAM failed initialization on 3GB LP DDR4X phone
  • Cannot run 4bit model on iPhone 15 with 8GB RAM
  • Loading models from HF MLC official Repo causes crashes

Requested features

14 requests
  • Ability to import custom models (from URL/Hugging Face)
  • Support for more specific models (DeepSeek, Phi-2, Gemma 2B/7B, MoE Mixtral 8x7B, LLaVA)
  • History of conversations
  • iOS shortcuts support
  • Ability to export entire responses
Show 9 more
  • Information on VRAM requirements per phone/model
  • Ability to change system message/create custom profiles
  • Ability to edit responses and system prompt
  • Add coffee support
  • Delete downloaded models
  • Change settings per model (repetition penalties, temperature)
  • How-to guide for importing/recompiling LLMs
  • Estimate model compatibility before download
  • Support for CN and ZH languages

In-app purchases

4 purchases

OpenCat

Subscriptions2
  • Cloud AI3 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Cloud AI$24.991 Year
One-time2
  • Tokens Package$5.99
  • OpenCat Pro$9.99
None

MLC Chat

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is OpenCat free?
OpenCat is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is MLC Chat free?
MLC Chat is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, OpenCat or MLC Chat?
OpenCat is rated higher. OpenCat averages 4.6 out of 5 from 851 ratings, while MLC Chat averages 4.2 from 83 ratings.
Do OpenCat or MLC Chat have ads?
Neither OpenCat nor MLC Chat shows ads.
Which is updated more often, OpenCat or MLC Chat?
OpenCat ships an update weekly, and MLC Chat every 2 months. Most recently, OpenCat was updated on October 30, 2026 and MLC Chat on October 30, 2026.

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