Letta vs 
Eliza
Letta vs Eliza compared for 2026 — features, license, ease of use, performance and which one to choose. Stateful agents with long-term memory vs Agents with personality for Discord, X and more.
Updated regularly · curated by OpenSourceAI.tech
Letta vs Eliza at a glance
| Spec | Letta | Eliza |
|---|---|---|
| Category | AI agent framework | AI agent framework |
| Type | Agent runtime (memory) | Agent framework (TS) |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Runs locally | Self-hosted | Partial |
| Primary language | Python | TypeScript |
| Ease of use | Advanced | Intermediate |
| Best for | agents that remember across sessions | character-driven agents living on social platforms |
| GitHub stars | 23.8k | 18.7k |
How Letta and Eliza score
| Criterion | Letta | Eliza |
|---|---|---|
| Popularity | 3.5 | 3.5 |
| Maintenance | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Ease of use | 2.5 | 3.5 |
| Privacy | 4.5 | 3.5 |
| License freedom | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Scores are computed automatically from public signals — GitHub stars (popularity), recent commit activity (maintenance), license type (freedom), local-first design (privacy) and onboarding complexity (ease of use). Indicative, not a verdict.
What each one is
Letta
Letta (formerly MemGPT) is a framework and server for building stateful agents with long-term memory that persists across sessions, with a visual agent editor.
- Persistent long-term agent memory
- Server with REST API and visual editor
- Model-agnostic and self-hostable
Eliza
elizaOS is a TypeScript framework for autonomous agents with personas, memory and connectors to Discord, X and Telegram — the framework behind many social AI agents.
- Personas and long-term memory out of the box
- Native Discord, X and Telegram connectors
- Huge plugin ecosystem in TypeScript
Key differences
Letta is agent runtime (memory), while Eliza is agent framework (TS). Their licenses differ (Apache-2.0 vs MIT), which matters if you ship a commercial product. Letta leans more advanced-friendly, whereas Eliza is more suited to intermediate users. They also differ in how they run (Self-hosted vs Partial). In short, Letta fits agents that remember across sessions, and Eliza fits character-driven agents living on social platforms.
Which should you choose?
Choose Letta for agents that remember across sessions. Choose Eliza for character-driven agents living on social platforms.
There is rarely one winner — many setups use both. The right pick depends on your hardware, your team's skills, and whether you value simplicity or control.
Frequently asked questions
Is Letta or Eliza easier to use?
Eliza is generally the easier of the two to get started with, while Letta rewards more setup with more control.
Are Letta and Eliza free?
Letta is free and open source (Apache-2.0), and Eliza is free and open source (MIT). Neither charges for the core software.
Can I run Letta and Eliza locally?
Letta: self-hosted · Eliza: partial. Both can be used without sending your data to a third-party cloud where their setup allows.
Letta vs Eliza — which should I pick in 2026?
Choose Letta for agents that remember across sessions. Choose Eliza for character-driven agents living on social platforms.
People also compare
Explore more open-source AI
Browse thousands of open-source AI tools, models and projects — all curated in one place, updated daily.
Explore the directory →