Extension Desktop app

chatboxai/chatbox

Chatbox Community Edition is a GPLv3 desktop AI client for ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Ollama and other LLMs on Windows, Mac and Linux, with local data storage.

  • 42k GitHub stars
  • TypeScript
View on GitHub (opens in a new tab) Setup guide
pnpm install
chatboxai/chatbox preview image

What it is

Chatbox is a desktop client for ChatGPT, Claude and other LLMs, available on Windows, Mac and Linux. This repository holds the Community Edition, open-sourced under GPLv3. Chat data is stored locally on the device. It also offers a web version and native iOS and Android apps.

Who it's for

  • Users who want a desktop GUI for multiple LLM providers such as OpenAI, Claude, Gemini and Ollama
  • People who prefer local data storage and ready-made installers over self-deployment
  • Teams who want to share OpenAI API resources
  • Contributors who want to build or translate an open-source AI client

Requirements

Requirements

  • Windows 10 (x64), macOS 11 Big Sur (Intel/Apple Silicon), or Linux Ubuntu 20.04+ / AppImage-supported distros (x64)
  • An account or configuration for an AI provider (OpenAI, Claude, etc.) set up in settings
  • For development: Node.js v20.x – v22.x, pnpm v10.x or later, and Git

Setup

  1. Install as an end user

    Download the installer for your platform from the releases page, install and launch Chatbox, configure your AI provider (OpenAI, Claude, etc.) in settings, then start chatting.

  2. Enable pnpm (development)

    Install pnpm via corepack. Node.js v20.x – v22.x and Git are also required.

    bash
    corepack enable && corepack prepare pnpm@latest --activate

  3. Clone the repository

    Clone the source and enter the project directory.

    bash
    git clone https://github.com/chatboxai/chatbox.git
cd chatbox

  4. Install dependencies

    Install project dependencies with pnpm.

    bash
    pnpm install

  5. Start the development server

    Starts the app in development mode with hot-reload enabled.

    bash
    pnpm run dev

Examples

Build and package for the current platform

bash
bash
pnpm run package

What it does: Builds and packages Chatbox for the platform you are on.

Run lint checks

bash
bash
pnpm run lint

What it does: Runs Biome to check code quality; the README recommends doing this before committing.

Run the test suite

bash
bash
pnpm run test

What it does: Runs the Vitest test suite.

Fix Git Bash build failure on Windows

bash
bash
pnpm config set script-shell "C:\\Program Files\\git\\bin\\bash.exe"

What it does: The README's suggested fix when the build fails on Windows while using Git Bash.

Pros & cons

Pros

  • Pro:Supports many providers: OpenAI, Azure OpenAI, Claude, Google Gemini Pro, Ollama (local models) and ChatGLM-6B
  • Pro:Local data storage keeps data on your device
  • Pro:Downloadable installers for Windows, Mac and Linux, plus web, iOS and Android versions
  • Pro:Markdown, Latex and code highlighting, a prompt library, keyboard shortcuts, streaming replies and a dark theme

Cons

  • Con:The Community Edition is synced with a separate pro repo, so it may not match the pro version
  • Con:Documented system requirements are limited to specific platforms and versions (Windows 10 x64, macOS 11+, Ubuntu 20.04+ x64)
  • Con:Building from source requires a specific Node.js range (v20.x – v22.x) and pnpm v10.x or later

Images

chatboxai/chatbox preview image
chatboxai/chatbox preview image · chatboxai/chatbox on GitHub
chatboxai/chatbox preview image