Karakeep
Self-hosted bookmark and read-later app (formerly Hoarder) with AI tagging, summaries and full-text search.
Quick answer
Karakeep is a self-hosted bookmark and read-later app (formerly Hoarder) with AI tagging, summaries and full-text search, listed under Knowledge base & RAG. A typical small-business use: a shared team library of research links, competitor pages and how-to articles, tagged automatically. The project publishes no official RAM figure, so we do not estimate a monthly server cost. License: AGPL-3.0, which allows internal business use.
Last updated · facts verified against official docs on · sources
Activity data comes from GitHub and was last refreshed Nov 1, 2026.
What is Karakeep?
Karakeep, previously called Hoarder, saves links, notes, images and PDFs in one place. It fetches page titles and previews, archives full pages against link rot, OCRs images and indexes everything for full-text search with Meilisearch. An LLM, either OpenAI or a local model through Ollama, tags bookmarks automatically and can summarise them. It has shared lists, highlights, RSS import, a rule engine, a REST API, browser extensions and iOS and Android apps.
Where it fits in a 10–200 person business
- A shared team library of research links, competitor pages and how-to articles, tagged automatically
- Archive full copies of supplier or regulatory web pages so they survive link rot
- Let staff save links from their phones and find them later by full-text search
These use cases are our editorial suggestions, not claims made by the project.
Can a business use Karakeep? (license)
| License | AGPL-3.0 |
|---|---|
| Type | Network copyleft (AGPL): Like GPL, and also applies when users access a modified version over a network. |
| Internal business use | Allowed under the license text |
| What to watch | Free for internal and commercial use. If you modify Karakeep and let users interact with it over a network, you must offer them the modified source under AGPL-3.0. |
This is a plain-English summary of the license text, not legal advice. Third-party models you run with it have their own licenses.
Data & compliance: does Karakeep phone home?
| Telemetry (usage data sent to the vendor) | Not documented |
|---|---|
| Other calls home by default (updates, marketplaces, default cloud services) | Yes, by default The admin panel checks for the latest release unless DISABLE_NEW_RELEASE_CHECK=true. Source: docs.karakeep.com/configuration/environment-variables |
| Single sign-on (OIDC / SAML / LDAP) | Free By protocol: OIDC free. Any OIDC-compliant OAuth provider can be configured with OAUTH_* variables; password login can be turned off with DISABLE_PASSWORD_AUTH. Source: docs.karakeep.com/configuration/environment-variables |
| Audit log | Not documented |
| Role-based access control (RBAC) | Not documented |
| Data residency / GDPR notes from the project | Not documented |
Checked against the project's own docs and repository on . "Not documented" means we could not find the answer in official sources; it does not mean the feature is missing or that no data is sent. Third-party services you connect (model APIs, vector databases, search engines) have their own data policies. Compare all apps.
What hardware does Karakeep need?
The project does not publish a minimum CPU/RAM figure, so we leave the official value blank rather than guess.
GPU: No. AI tagging calls OpenAI or an Ollama server you configure.
No CPU, RAM or disk requirements are published. The Docker Compose stack runs three containers: the web app, a headless Chrome for crawling and Meilisearch for search.
How much does it cost to host Karakeep per month?
The project publishes no RAM figure we could verify, so we do not estimate a cost.
How to deploy Karakeep
Method: Docker Compose
mkdir karakeep-app && cd karakeep-app
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/karakeep-app/karakeep/main/docker/docker-compose.yml
cat > .env <<'ENV'
KARAKEEP_VERSION=release
NEXTAUTH_SECRET=super_random_string
MEILI_MASTER_KEY=another_random_string
NEXTAUTH_URL=http://localhost:3000
ENV
# replace both random strings (openssl rand -base64 36); optional: OPENAI_API_KEY=<key>
docker compose up -dFrom the official instructions: docs.karakeep.com/installation/docker/. Always check the source for the current version before you run it.
Known gotchas when self-hosting Karakeep
- Sign-ups are open by default and the first user to sign up becomes administrator. Create your admin account first, then set DISABLE_SIGNUPS=true if the instance is reachable by others. source
- The crawler runs a real browser from your network, so any user who can add bookmarks can make it fetch internal endpoints or reveal your server's IP. Basic SSRF protection exists; limit access to trusted users or route the crawler through a proxy outside your network. source
- Automatic tagging only runs when OPENAI_API_KEY or OLLAMA_BASE_URL is set. With OpenAI, bookmark content is sent to OpenAI; use Ollama to keep it in-house, and raise INFERENCE_CONTEXT_LENGTH (default 2048 tokens) for better tags. source
- KARAKEEP_VERSION=release follows the latest stable version; pin a version to control upgrades. A newer Meilisearch image needs a one-time database upgrade first. source
Alternatives in Knowledge base & RAG
- RAGFlow RAG engine with deep document parsing (OCR, layout and tables) and cited answers. Compare Karakeep vs RAGFlow
- AFFiNE Notion- and Miro-style workspace (docs, whiteboards, databases) with built-in AI, self-hostable with Docker. Compare AFFiNE vs Karakeep
- AnythingLLM All-in-one private chat with your documents, agents and an embeddable widget. Compare AnythingLLM vs Karakeep
- PrivateGPT API-first private document Q&A that sits on top of your own LLM server. Compare Karakeep vs PrivateGPT
- Open Notebook Private, self-hosted alternative to Google NotebookLM with your choice of AI models. Compare Karakeep vs Open Notebook
- LightRAG Graph-based RAG server that builds a knowledge graph from your documents, with a web UI and REST API. Compare Karakeep vs LightRAG
- Langchain-Chatchat Chinese-first local knowledge-base Q&A and agent app built on LangChain, wired to local model servers. Compare Karakeep vs Langchain-Chatchat
- WeKnora Tencent's open-source knowledge-base and agent platform with document parsing, RAG and team workspaces. Compare Karakeep vs WeKnora
- Onyx (formerly Danswer) AI chat and enterprise search connected to 50+ workplace apps. Compare Karakeep vs Onyx (formerly Danswer)
- FastGPT Knowledge-base Q&A and visual AI workflow platform. Compare FastGPT vs Karakeep
- kotaemon Open-source RAG web app for chatting with your documents, with citations and GraphRAG. Compare Karakeep vs kotaemon
- MaxKB Enterprise knowledge-base and agent platform with RAG and workflows. Compare Karakeep vs MaxKB
- DocsGPT Open-source platform for AI agents and assistants that answer from your documents with sources. Compare DocsGPT vs Karakeep
- PipesHub Self-hosted workplace search and AI answers across 50+ connected apps, filtered by each user's permissions. Compare Karakeep vs PipesHub
Karakeep FAQ
How much RAM does Karakeep need?
Karakeep does not publish an official RAM figure, so we do not state one. No CPU, RAM or disk requirements are published. The Docker Compose stack runs three containers: the web app, a headless Chrome for crawling and Meilisearch for search.
Does Karakeep need a GPU?
No. AI tagging calls OpenAI or an Ollama server you configure.
How much does it cost to self-host Karakeep?
The software is free to download. The project publishes no official RAM figure, so we do not estimate a monthly server cost.
Is Karakeep free for commercial use?
Karakeep is licensed under AGPL-3.0 (Network copyleft (AGPL)). Internal business use is allowed under the license text. Free for internal and commercial use. If you modify Karakeep and let users interact with it over a network, you must offer them the modified source under AGPL-3.0. This is a summary, not legal advice.
What are common problems when self-hosting Karakeep?
Sign-ups are open by default and the first user to sign up becomes administrator. Create your admin account first, then set DISABLE_SIGNUPS=true if the instance is reachable by others. The crawler runs a real browser from your network, so any user who can add bookmarks can make it fetch internal endpoints or reveal your server's IP. Basic SSRF protection exists; limit access to trusted users or route the crawler through a proxy outside your network. Automatic tagging only runs when OPENAI_API_KEY or OLLAMA_BASE_URL is set. With OpenAI, bookmark content is sent to OpenAI; use Ollama to keep it in-house, and raise INFERENCE_CONTEXT_LENGTH (default 2048 tokens) for better tags. KARAKEEP_VERSION=release follows the latest stable version; pin a version to control upgrades. A newer Meilisearch image needs a one-time database upgrade first.
Is Karakeep still maintained?
Yes, it is actively developed. Last commit: Oct 31, 2026. Latest release: v0.34.1 (Oct 22, 2026). Checked Nov 1, 2026.
How do I install Karakeep?
The official method is Docker Compose. The exact commands are in the "How to deploy" section above and in the official instructions: https://docs.karakeep.com/installation/docker/
What are self-hosted alternatives to Karakeep?
Other apps in Knowledge base & RAG: RAGFlow, AFFiNE, AnythingLLM, PrivateGPT, Open Notebook, LightRAG, Langchain-Chatchat, WeKnora, Onyx (formerly Danswer), FastGPT, kotaemon, MaxKB, DocsGPT, PipesHub.
Sources
- GitHub repository: github.com/karakeep-app/karakeep
- Official documentation, Hardware requirements, Deploy instructions, Gotcha 4: docs.karakeep.com/installation/docker/
- License text: github.com/karakeep-app/karakeep/blob/main/LICENSE
- Gotcha 1, Gotcha 3: docs.karakeep.com/configuration/environment-variables/
- Gotcha 2: docs.karakeep.com/administration/security-considerations/
- Hetzner Cloud pricing (cost estimate): www.hetzner.com/cloud/regular-performance
- GitHub stars, commits and releases: GitHub REST API, fetched
Facts on this page were checked against the project's own repository and docs on 2026-11-01. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.