Alternatives / Claude Cowork

4 Best Open Source Claude Cowork Alternatives in 2026

Looking for an open source Claude Cowork alternative? We compared 4 AI agent workspaces and desktop coworkers by licensing, self-hosting, model support, agent capabilities, and pricing. Not all four are fully open source: LobeChat is source available, and OpenWork and Agenta are open core.

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Written by Maxime DERAME

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Best Claude Cowork alternatives at a glance

AlternativeBest forLicense
LobeChatTeams of AI agents for long-running workLobeHub Community License
OpenWorkDesktop agent workspace with any LLMMIT core + EE
EigentResearch and multi-agent desktop tasksApache-2.0
AgentaTaking agents from prototype to productionMIT core + EE

How we chose these Claude Cowork alternatives

We looked for agent workspaces and desktop coworkers that overlap with Claude Cowork: running AI agents on files, browsers, and tools, with shared skills and scheduled work. We then verified each project's license in its GitHub repository, its self-hosting options, model support, and pricing. Licensing matters here: LobeChat uses a community license with commercial restrictions, and OpenWork and Agenta keep enterprise features under separate licenses. See our methodology for the full criteria.

Important: not all four are fully open source

LobeChat is not standard open source. It uses the LobeHub Community License, based on Apache-2.0 with additional commercial conditions: a commercial license is required to develop and distribute a derivative work. OpenWork and Agenta are open core: their main code is MIT, but enterprise features in the /ee and ee/ directories are under a separate license. Eigent is the only project here that is fully Apache-2.0.

Desktop coworkers vs agent platforms

OpenWork and Eigent are desktop apps closest to Claude Cowork's experience: agents that browse, edit files, and run commands on your machine. LobeChat and Agenta are platforms for building, running, and operating teams of agents, with memory, scheduling, versioning, and tracing rather than a single desktop assistant.

License details

Eigent is Apache-2.0 and Agenta is MIT outside its ee/ directory. OpenWork is MIT outside its /ee directory, with enterprise features under a separate license. LobeChat is licensed under the LobeHub Community License, based on Apache-2.0 with additional commercial conditions, so it is source available rather than standard open source.

Model flexibility

Unlike Claude Cowork, all four projects are model-agnostic. OpenWork supports 50+ LLM providers and local models, Eigent connects to multiple providers and MCP, and LobeChat and Agenta work with many providers. Model and infrastructure costs still apply to whichever provider you choose.

Why look for a Claude Cowork alternative?

Claude Cowork is a proprietary assistant that works on your files and tasks through Claude models. Teams look for open-source alternatives to choose their own models, run agents locally or self-hosted, share skills and workflows, and avoid vendor lock-in. The projects below take different approaches: desktop coworkers (OpenWork, Eigent), a multi-agent platform (LobeChat), and a workspace for building and operating agents (Agenta).

#1

LobeChat

Platform for building and operating teams of AI agents.

LobeChat, now LobeHub, is a platform for building and running teams of AI agents on long-running tasks and automated workflows. It includes multi-agent coordination, a large skill library, memory, pages, projects, schedules, and messaging gateways. It is licensed under the LobeHub Community License, based on Apache-2.0 with additional commercial conditions.

82.9K16KLobeHub Community LicenseSelf-hosted

Pricing: Self-hostable; hosted cloud services may be offered separately.

  • Multi-agent coordination with parallel execution
  • Large skill library with memory and scheduling
  • Workspace features and IM gateway integrations
  • Source available, not standard open source
  • Commercial license needed to distribute derivative works
  • Platform oriented rather than a simple desktop coworker
#2

OpenWork

Desktop app for running AI agents across 50+ LLMs.

OpenWork is an open-source alternative to Claude Cowork built on OpenCode. It runs agents on your desktop or self-hosted, supports 50+ LLMs including local models, browser automation, shared skills and plugins, an MCP gateway, and SKILL.md compatibility. The repository is MIT outside its /ee enterprise directory.

23.8K2.4KMIT core + EESelf-hosted

Pricing: Free desktop app; team plans are paid per seat after a free tier.

  • 50+ LLMs including local models
  • Browser automation, MCP gateway, and shared skills
  • Local-first privacy mode
  • Open core: enterprise features use a separate license
  • Team plans are paid
  • Built on OpenCode, so it inherits its stack
#3

Eigent

Open-source multi-agent desktop coworker.

Eigent is an Apache-2.0 desktop app that runs coordinated teams of specialized agents for browsing, documents, terminal commands, and multimodal work. It supports scheduled automation, local-first execution, model-agnostic connectivity, and MCP, and is built on CAMEL-AI.

15.5K1.8KApache-2.0Self-hosted

Pricing: Free and open source under Apache-2.0; model and infrastructure costs apply.

  • Browser, document, terminal, and multimodal agents
  • Scheduled automation and recurring workflows
  • Local-first and model-agnostic with MCP
  • More complex than a single agent
  • Higher model usage on multi-agent tasks
  • Needs more computing resources
#4

Agenta

Workspace for building and running AI agents with versioning.

Agenta is a workspace where teams build agents and automations through chat, with scheduling, human-in-the-loop approvals, versioning of prompts, skills, and tools, and run tracing with cost tracking. The repository is MIT outside any ee/ directory.

4.8K686MIT core + EESelf-hosted

Pricing: Self-hostable and free; a paid cloud version is available.

  • Chat-first agent development with approval controls
  • Full versioning and run tracing with costs
  • Templates for code review, support, sales, and operations
  • Aimed at building agents rather than an out-of-the-box desktop coworker
  • Enterprise directories use a separate license

Compare Claude Cowork alternatives

AlternativeTypeLicenseSelf-hostedBest for
LobeChatAgent platformLobeHub Community LicenseYesAgent teams
OpenWorkDesktop agent workspaceMIT core + EEYesAny LLM, shared skills
EigentDesktop multi-agent appApache-2.0YesResearch and reports
AgentaAgent workspaceMIT core + EEYesProduction agents

Which one should you choose?

Want the closest desktop alternative

OpenWork is a desktop app that runs agents across 50+ LLMs with shared skills, browser automation, local files, and a local-first mode.

OpenWork

Want coordinated agents for research

Eigent coordinates browser, document, terminal, and multimodal agents for research-heavy work, with scheduled workflows and MCP support.

Eigent

Want to operate teams of agents

LobeChat supports multi-agent coordination, a large skill library, memory, and scheduled work, but its license is source available rather than standard open source.

LobeChat

Want to move agents to production

Agenta adds chat-driven development, human approval controls, versioning, and run tracing with cost tracking.

Agenta

Want a permissive open-source license

Eigent is fully Apache-2.0, while OpenWork and Agenta keep enterprise directories under separate licenses.

Eigent