Khoj
A personal AI that searches the web and your files; broader than Perplexity, and noticeably heavier to run.
Technical Profile & Specs
verified 2026-08-14
- Cost
- $0 / forever (Open Source)
- License
- AGPL-3.0
- Hosting Model
- Local or hosted (your machine or their cloud)
- Platforms
- desktopmobilewebself-hostedself-host, real ops
- Installation
- Use the hosted app, or self-host the server with Docker or pip and optionally install its desktop/browser/Obsidian clients
- Operational Setup
- The hosted app is immediate, but private self-hosting requires Docker or Python, PostgreSQL/pgvector, model configuration and an initial document index
- Where Your Data Lives
- Hosted accounts store chats and indexed documents in Khoj's cloud; self-hosting stores application data and vector embeddings in the operator's PostgreSQL/pgvector database while original synced files remain at their source
- The Catch / Trade-off
- It is a broader personal assistant, but its web-search freshness, source coverage, and answer-engine polish are weaker than Perplexity's managed index and research modes.
Replaces 2 paid apps
up to $20/mo ($240/yr) in subscriptions
Khoj FAQ
Common questions
Is Khoj free and open source?+
Khoj is an open-source tool licensed under AGPL-3.0 that runs on local or hosted. A personal AI that searches the web and your files; broader than Perplexity, and noticeably heavier to run.
What paid software does Khoj replace?+
Khoj serves as a free replacement for 2 paid SaaS applications: Perplexity, Saner.AI, saving up to $20/month ($240/year) in subscription bills.
How do you install and set up Khoj?+
Installation: Use the hosted app, or self-host the server with Docker or pip and optionally install its desktop/browser/Obsidian clients. Setup notes: The hosted app is immediate, but private self-hosting requires Docker or Python, PostgreSQL/pgvector, model configuration and an initial document index
What is the catch or trade-off with Khoj?+
It is a broader personal assistant, but its web-search freshness, source coverage, and answer-engine polish are weaker than Perplexity's managed index and research modes.