# Ollama review

> Ollama is a tool for running and building with open AI models locally or in the cloud on macOS, Windows, and Linux.

Devtoolwatch Board, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026. Canonical page: https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/ollama/

## TL;DR

Ollama runs open models such as Gemma, Qwen, DeepSeek, and gpt-oss on your machine or in the cloud. Ollama is for developers who want local models behind a CLI, a REST API, and Python or JavaScript libraries. Ollama can also launch coding tools like Claude Code, Codex, and OpenCode against its models.

## Ollama at a glance

- **Category:** [Inference and training](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/categories/inference-and-training/)
- **Maintained by:** Ollama (organization, [@ollama](https://github.com/ollama) on GitHub)
- **License:** MIT
- **Language:** Go, C, TypeScript
- **Repository:** [github.com/ollama/ollama](https://github.com/ollama/ollama)
- **Website:** [ollama.com](https://ollama.com)
- **npm package:** [ollama](https://www.npmjs.com/package/ollama) 0.6.4
- **PyPI package:** [ollama](https://pypi.org/project/ollama/) 0.6.3
- **Latest release:** [v0.40.11](https://github.com/ollama/ollama/releases/tag/v0.40.11) on GitHub, Oct 24, 2026
- **First published:** Jun 26, 2023

## What Ollama does

- Ollama runs and chats with open models from the command line, for example with ollama run gemma4.
- Ollama exposes a REST API on localhost port 11434 for running and managing models.
- Ollama connects models to coding tools including Claude Code, Codex, Copilot CLI, Droid, and OpenCode through the ollama launch command.
- Ollama offers official client libraries for Python and JavaScript.
- Ollama can generate speech on macOS and stream audio through an OpenAI-compatible /v1/audio/speech endpoint.
- Ollama handles OpenAI-compatible Responses and Anthropic Messages requests, including streaming.
- Ollama can turn a model into a personal assistant across WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, and Discord using OpenClaw.

## How to install Ollama

**macOS or Linux**

```
curl -fsSL https://ollama.com/install.sh | sh
```

**Windows (PowerShell)**

```
irm https://ollama.com/install.ps1 | iex
```

**Python library**

```
pip install ollama
```

### Requirements

- macOS, Windows, or Linux, or Docker using the ollama/ollama image.
- Python 3.8 or later for the Python client library.

### First steps

1. Run ollama to get prompted to run a model or connect Ollama to an agent or application.
2. Chat with a model by running ollama run gemma4.
3. Launch a coding integration with ollama launch claude.
4. Send a request to http://localhost:11434/api/chat to use the REST API from your own code.

## Who Ollama is for

- Developers who want to run open models locally with their prompts kept private.
- Developers pointing coding agents like Claude Code, Codex, or OpenCode at open models.
- App builders who need a local REST API or Python and JavaScript clients for model calls.

### Limitations

- Ollama speech generation is available on macOS only, according to the v0.40.11 release notes.
- Ollama's README lists llama.cpp as its supported backend.

## Usage data (the week of Oct 25–31, 2026)

- Board rank: #258 overall, #29 in Inference and training, momentum score 36
- Downloads that week: 4M (−2% vs 4-week average)
- New GitHub stars per week (last 12 weeks): Aug 9: 676; Aug 16: 702; Aug 23: 594; Aug 30: 566; Sep 6: 576; Sep 13: 592; Sep 20: 548; Sep 27: 454; Oct 4: 846; Oct 11: 1.1k; Oct 18: 1.1k; Oct 25: 984

## Ollama alternatives

| Rank | Tool | Stars | Downloads/wk |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | [dsh-our-free-model](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/ebony-vinyl-dsh-our-free-model/) | 54.3k | – |
| #2 | [magpie](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/yetone-magpie/) | 26.9k | – |
| #3 | [Strata](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/niko1221-strata/) | 37.1k | – |
| #4 | [edge0](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/edge0-ai-edge0/) | 8.9k | – |
| #5 | [OmniRoute](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/diegosouzapw-omniroute/) | 83.2k | 106k |
| #6 | [CLIProxyAPI](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/router-for-me-cliproxyapi/) | 57.1k | – |

## Ollama FAQ

### Is Ollama free and open source?

Yes. Ollama's source code is on GitHub (ollama/ollama) under the MIT license, so you can use it for free. Its website also links to a pricing page (https://ollama.com/pricing) for any paid plans.

### How do I install Ollama?

Run `curl -fsSL https://ollama.com/install.sh | sh`. The install section above has the other options from the project's README.

### Is Ollama still maintained?

Yes. The ollama/ollama repository was last updated on Oct 25, 2026, and the latest release, v0.40.11 on GitHub, came out on Oct 24, 2026.

### How popular is Ollama?

Ollama has 185.5k GitHub stars as of Nov 1, 2026. It gained 984 new stars in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, against a 12-week average of 730 a week. Its main package had about 4M downloads that week, −2% against its own 4-week average. That made it #29 among LLM inference and training tools on the Devtoolwatch Board.

### Ollama vs llama.cpp: how do they compare?

Ollama and llama.cpp are both tracked by Devtoolwatch as LLM inference and training tools. Ollama has 185.5k GitHub stars and llama.cpp has 133k. llama.cpp is a plain C/C++ library and set of tools for running LLM and VLM inference locally or in the cloud on many kinds of hardware. [llama.cpp review](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/llama-cpp/)

### Ollama vs vLLM: how do they compare?

Ollama and vLLM are both tracked by Devtoolwatch as LLM inference and training tools. Ollama has 185.5k GitHub stars and vLLM has 96k. In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, Ollama's main package had 4M downloads and vLLM's had 677.2k. vLLM is an open-source Python library and engine for high-throughput, memory-efficient inference and serving of large language models. [vLLM review](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/vllm/)

### What are the best alternatives to Ollama?

Other LLM inference and training tools on the Devtoolwatch Board in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, by momentum: dsh-our-free-model (#1), magpie (#2), Strata (#3), edge0 (#4), OmniRoute (#5). The alternatives table above has their numbers.

### How do I use Ollama with Claude Code?

Run ollama launch claude. Ollama starts Claude Code connected to Ollama models. Running ollama by itself also prompts you to connect existing agents such as Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, and Copilot.

### How do I use Ollama in Python?

Install the official client with pip install ollama. Then import chat from ollama and call chat with a model name and a messages list. The Python client requires Python 3.8 or later.

### How do I use Ollama cloud models?

Ollama runs models locally or in the cloud, and requests to remote models route through ollama.com. When you use ollama launch, Ollama passes each cloud model's context length and capabilities to your coding tool.

### Is Ollama an LLM?

No. Ollama is not a model itself. Ollama is a tool that runs open models such as Gemma, Qwen, DeepSeek, and gpt-oss, and serves them through a CLI and a REST API.

### How do I use Ollama on Windows?

Install Ollama in PowerShell with irm https://ollama.com/install.ps1 | iex, or download OllamaSetup.exe. Then run ollama to start a model or connect an agent.

### How do I use Ollama in VS Code?

Use a VS Code extension that connects to Ollama. The README lists Cline, Continue, twinny, and Microsoft's AI Toolkit for VS Code as community integrations.

## Sources

1. [ollama/ollama on GitHub](https://github.com/ollama/ollama)
2. [Ollama README](https://github.com/ollama/ollama/blob/main/README.md)
3. [ollama on npm](https://www.npmjs.com/package/ollama)
4. [ollama on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/ollama/)
5. [Ollama website](https://ollama.com)
6. [Release v0.40.11 (Oct 24, 2026)](https://github.com/ollama/ollama/releases/tag/v0.40.11)
7. [Release v0.40.10 (Oct 23, 2026)](https://github.com/ollama/ollama/releases/tag/v0.40.10)
8. [Release v0.40.9 (Oct 22, 2026)](https://github.com/ollama/ollama/releases/tag/v0.40.9)
9. [Hacker News: Ollama is now powered by MLX on Apple Silicon in preview](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47582482)
10. [Hacker News: Ollama now supports AMD graphics cards](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39718558)
11. [Hacker News: Ollama's new app](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44739632)
12. [Devtoolwatch Board, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/)