Comparison

Local AI Assistant vs OpenClient

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

Head to head
About

Local AI Assistant

This app allows you to run powerful AI models directly on your Apple devices, completely offline and with guaranteed privacy. Chat, write, analyze, and create using various AI models without sending any data to the cloud.

Highlights
  • 100% Offline AI functionality
  • Private by design, no data collection
  • Powered by Apple Silicon and MLX
  • Supports popular AI models (Llama, Gemma, etc.)
  • Chat, analyze text, and create content
  • Image analysis capabilities
Read full description

Think Local: Private AI, On Your Device Run powerful AI models directly on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac - fully offline, fully private, and fully yours. Think Local is an on-device AI app built for people who value privacy, speed, and control. No internet required. No accounts. No data collection. Just powerful AI running locally on Apple Silicon. Chat, write, reason, and understand images with modern AI models, all without sending your data to the cloud. Everything runs on your device, powered by Apple’s MLX framework and Apple Foundation Models. What’s New • Apple Foundation Models Use Apple Intelligence on supported devices with no download. On iOS 27 and later, attach photos and get on-device image understanding from Apple’s built-in model. • Attach Images Add photos from your library or camera. Vision-language models can describe, analyze, and answer questions about what they see. • New On-Device Models Gemma 4, Qwen 3.5, LFM 2.5, MiniCPM 5, SmolLM 3, Granite 4.0, and Ternary Bonsai — plus updated Qwen, Llama, Ministral, and more. Why Think Local? • 100% Offline No internet needed. Use AI anywhere, anytime. • Private by Design No login, no cloud processing, no data collection. Your conversations and images stay on your device. • Apple Foundation Models Start instantly with Apple Intelligence. No model download. On iOS 27, it can also understand attached images. • Vision Models Attach images and chat with multimodal models such as Gemma 4, Qwen 3 VL, Qwen 2.5 VL, LFM 2.5 VL, Llama 3.2 Vision, Phi 3.5 Vision, and Ministral 3. • Powered by Apple Silicon Optimized with Apple MLX for fast, efficient on-device AI. • A Growing Model Catalog Choose from Gemma 4, Gemma 3, Qwen 3.5, Qwen 3, LFM 2.5, MiniCPM 5, SmolLM 3, Granite 4.0, Llama 3.2, Ternary Bonsai, Ministral 3, and more. Pick the size that fits your device. • Chat, Analyze, Create Ask questions, summarize text, generate content, reason through problems, and analyze images — all locally. • Your AI, Your Control Download the models you want. Switch anytime. Your data never leaves the device. Think Local brings powerful AI to your device, privately and securely, with no compromises. Download Think Local and experience private AI, offline. Privacy policy: https://digitalhole.github.io/thinklocal.html Standard Apple Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

OpenClient

Connect to your self-hosted AI models for private conversations without subscriptions. Supports multimodal input, real-time streaming, and extensive model compatibility. Offers robust conversation management and personalization features.

Highlights
  • Connect to self-hosted LLMs
  • Real-time streaming responses
  • Multimodal input (photos, PDFs)
  • Conversation history and branching
  • Prompt templates and memory
  • iCloud sync
  • Export conversations to JSON
Features
Read full description

OpenClient is an independent AI chat client for professionals and developers who run their own LLM infrastructure. Connect it to your self-hosted server and chat with your models, without mandatory subscriptions. Compatible with LiteLLM, Ollama, and OpenAI-compatible servers. Supports many popular model families, including GPT, Claude, Llama, Gemini, Mistral, and more. Chat • Real-time streaming responses with Markdown and code block rendering • Collapsible Thinking section for supported reasoning models • Attach photos, camera captures, and PDF documents for multimodal conversations • Drag and drop text, images, and files from other apps (Split View, Stage Manager, Finder on macOS) • Dictate messages with Speech-to-Text and listen with Text-to-Speech • Web search through the search provider configured on your server • Tool-calling support for models that provide function calling • MCP (Model Context Protocol) tools, browse, enable, and use external tools from MCP servers like GitHub, databases, and more, configured on your LiteLLM server • Favourite messages to bookmark and revisit quickly • Per-conversation system prompt and model parameters (temperature, max tokens, top-p) Conversations • Full conversation history with search, pins, and tags • Branch from any message to explore alternatives, then edit and regenerate • Media & Files gallery to browse all attached images and documents • Share content from any app directly into a new conversation via Share Sheet • Apple Shortcuts integration: New Chat, Search Chats, Send File to Chat • Home Screen widgets: New Chat, Search, Quick Actions, Conversations Overview • Control Center button: start a new chat from Control Center • iCloud sync across your Apple devices • Export conversations to JSON • Token usage per message and estimated conversation cost Models • Browse available models with capability badges (vision, tools, JSON mode) • Model detail sheet with context window, pricing, provider, and capabilities • Voice selector for Text-to-Speech models • Switch models per conversation Personalization • Prompt template library for recurring workflows • User profile to provide name and context • Memory to save facts and preferences, synced via iCloud On macOS • Menu bar companion for quick access without opening the main window Privacy • OpenClient does not operate a backend service for your chats. Your requests are sent to the server you configure. • OpenClient does not include advertising SDKs or third-party analytics trackers. This project is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0: https://github.com/ArtCC/openclient-llm Privacy Policy: https://arturocarreterocalvo.com/openclient-llm/privacy Terms of Use: https://arturocarreterocalvo.com/openclient-llm/terms OpenClient is an independent client and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the model or platform providers referenced above.

Screenshots

Local AI Assistant2 screens
OpenClient4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: OpenClient at 100% against Local AI Assistant's 50%. OpenClient also leads on price (Free vs $2.99) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 4 months). Local AI Assistant's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 5) and iOS requirement (17.6 vs 26.6). On 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

OpenClient is free to download; Local AI Assistant costs $2.99 up front. OpenClient sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Local AI Assistant asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Local AI Assistant ships an update every 4 months, OpenClient every 4 days. Both last shipped on October 25, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Local AI Assistant versus OpenClient: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLocal AI AssistantOpenClient
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating—4.9 (8 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings—8 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — betteriPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS17.6 — better26.6
Further details — not scored
Size37 MB244 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDigital Hole Pvt. Ltd.Arturo Carretero Calvo

Customer experience

Local AI Assistant

Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

OpenClient

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Local AI Assistant

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

OpenClient

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Support$2.991 Month
  • Annual Support$8.991 Year
One-time3
  • Small Coffee$2.99
  • Medium Coffee$3.99
  • Big Coffee$8.99

Questions

Is Local AI Assistant free?
Local AI Assistant costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is OpenClient free?
OpenClient is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Local AI Assistant or OpenClient have ads?
Neither Local AI Assistant nor OpenClient shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Local AI Assistant or OpenClient?
Local AI Assistant ships an update every 4 months, and OpenClient every 4 days. Most recently, Local AI Assistant was updated on October 25, 2026 and OpenClient on October 25, 2026.

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