# FreeChat

A free, open-source, fully offline AI chat app for Mac — runs GGUF models like Llama and Mistral locally, no account or internet connection needed.

- **Category:** [Utilities](https://notchlist.vercel.app/category/utilities/)
- **Price:** Free
- **Open source:** yes
- **Official site:** https://www.freechat.run
- **Available via:** Mac App Store, GitHub
- **Requirements:** macOS 13 or newer; 8GB+ RAM, per the App Store listing.
- **Maker:** Peter Sugihara

## Kitsmith's take

The privacy-first pick in this category — FreeChat runs entirely on-device via llama.cpp, so conversations never leave the Mac and nothing needs an account, subscription, or internet connection once a model is downloaded. The tradeoff is local-model quality against a hosted frontier model, plus the 8GB+ RAM the App Store listing itself calls out as a requirement. Open source on GitHub, built by developer Peter Sugihara.

## Features

- **Fully offline:** Runs locally via llama.cpp — no internet connection required once a model is downloaded, per the App Store listing.
- **Bring your own GGUF model:** Supports GGUF-format models including CodeLlama, Mistral 7B, and Llama 3.
- **Custom system prompt:** Set the assistant’s persona and expertise by editing the system prompt directly.

## FAQ

**Does FreeChat need an internet connection?**

No — it runs models fully offline on-device once a model is downloaded, per its App Store listing.

**Is FreeChat open source?**

Yes — the source is on GitHub (psugihara/FreeChat), built on llama.cpp.


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Hand-verified listing on Kitsmith: https://notchlist.vercel.app/apps/freechat/