HuggingChat

HuggingChat is a free-to-start chat app from Hugging Face that lets anyone talk to open-source language models in the browser. Its Omni mode reads each message and routes it to an open model suited to the task, so you get sensible answers without knowing model names, while the model picker exposes the full catalog for people who want control. Because it sits on top of the Hugging Face Hub, new open models often appear here soon after release.

What is HuggingChat used for?

HuggingChat is used for everyday questions and drafting with open models, and by developers and researchers who want to try a newly released model before downloading it.

• Chatting with an automatically chosen open model through Omni
• Picking a specific open model from a catalog of over a hundred
• Comparing how different open models handle the same prompt
• Choosing which inference provider serves a given model
• Working on machine learning tasks with ML Intern, which covers papers, training, Spaces, datasets and evaluation

Who HuggingChat is best for

HuggingChat suits people who prefer open-source AI, machine learning students and engineers who already have a Hugging Face account, and anyone who wants to test open models without installing local tools. It is less suited to users who need the strongest closed models, long-term memory, deep integrations or a full mobile experience.

HuggingChat pricing

HuggingChat is available to anyone with a Hugging Face account. Requests use Hugging Face Inference Providers, so they draw on your account's inference credits. Free accounts receive a small allowance, and Hugging Face PRO costs $9 per month and includes $2 of inference credits each month, which Hugging Face describes as 20 times the free amount. Team accounts are $20 per user per month and Enterprise is $50 per user per month on the Hugging Face pricing page as of October 2026. Once included credits run out, you need additional credits to keep using paid providers until the monthly reset.

Limitations to keep in mind

• Included credits are small, so heavy users can run out quickly
• Other Hub features such as model widgets draw on the same credit pool
• Only open models are offered, not closed frontier models
• Answer quality varies with whichever model Omni selects

HuggingChat vs alternatives

Together Chat is a similar browser chat for open models and is a good second option. Poe gives access to both open and closed models in a consumer app with a subscription. Qwen Chat, DeepSeek and Vibe (Mistral) are first-party assistants from labs whose open models also appear on Hugging Face, and they offer more polished apps for one model family. HuggingChat wins when you want neutral access to many open models in one place.

Tips for getting started with HuggingChat

Leave Omni on for general questions, then pin a specific model once you find one you like for a task. Check the Inference Usage section of your Hugging Face billing page to track credits. Disable providers you do not want serving your requests in the per-model provider settings.

HuggingChat FAQ

Is HuggingChat free?

Yes, HuggingChat is free to start with a Hugging Face account, using a small inference credit allowance. Hugging Face PRO at $9 per month adds more monthly credits.

What models does HuggingChat use?

HuggingChat uses open-source models. Omni picks one automatically for each request, or you can choose from more than a hundred models yourself.

Is HuggingChat open source?

Yes. The interface behind HuggingChat is Hugging Face's open-source chat-ui project, and the models it serves are open models.

What is the best alternative to HuggingChat?

Together Chat is a close alternative for open models, while Poe is better if you also want closed models like GPT and Claude.