Open WebUI is a free, open-source chat interface for Ollama. It gives locally hosted models a polished, ChatGPT-like home: choose a model, chat in your browser, and return to saved conversations. It is a ready-made alternative to assembling your own interface with Python and Streamlit. section 16.2
The easiest setup uses Docker, which runs Open WebUI in a packaged container. Start Docker Desktop, run the command below, then visit http://localhost:3000. Create the first administrator account for your Open WebUI instance; after login, it should detect models already downloaded in Ollama. If Docker reports that it cannot connect to its daemon, check that Docker Desktop is running. section 16.2.1
docker run -d -p 3000:8080 \
--add-host=host.docker.internal:host-gateway \
-v open-webui:/app/backend/data \
--name open-webui \
--restart always \
ghcr.io/open-webui/open-webui:main
This command starts Open WebUI on port 3000. The host setting lets the container reach local Ollama, while the volume preserves conversations. section 16.2.1
Once signed in, you can:
- Switch between Ollama models and search saved chats. section 16.2.2
- Upload documents for built-in retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), or save custom system prompts as personas. section 16.2.2
- Export chats as text or JSON, change themes, and optionally manage users for a team. section 16.2.2
A local Ollama backend does not, by itself, guarantee that every feature stays local. For local processing, choose local embedding and document-processing settings and avoid external APIs, web tools, and cloud integrations. Docker and Open WebUI are optional: a Python/Streamlit chatbot remains a better path when you want to learn or customize how model calls, conversation state, and the interface fit together. section 16.2
