# ibl.ai vs Onyx

> Source: https://ibl.ai/resources/comparisons/ibl-ai-vs-onyx


*A full, owned agentic AI platform with enterprise support — vs. an open-source enterprise-search and chat tool you run yourself*

Both ibl.ai and Onyx can run on your own infrastructure, so the real question isn't whether you self-host — it's scope, support, and what you can build.

Onyx (formerly Danswer) is an open-source enterprise-search and chat tool. It connects to your apps, runs RAG over your documents, and lets a team self-host it for free — a strong choice if you want transparent, code-available search and have engineers to run it.

ibl.ai is a full, owned agentic AI Operating System: enterprise search plus agents, workflows, learning, and content — model-agnostic across any LLM, with enterprise support, forward-deployed engineering, and compliance built in. This comparison covers where Onyx's open-source focus wins and where ibl.ai's breadth and support matter.

## Feature Comparison

### Scope & Capabilities

| Criteria | ibl.ai | Onyx |
|----------|--------------------|--------------------|
| Enterprise Search & RAG | Permissions-aware retrieval and RAG over your knowledge as part of a broader platform. | Purpose-built, well-regarded open-source enterprise search and RAG chat. |
| Full Agentic OS (agents, workflows, LMS, content) | Agents, multi-step workflows, AI-native learning, and content generation in one owned platform. | Focused on search and chat; agents and broader workflows are limited. |
| Any-LLM Routing | Run any open or commercial model and route by cost, latency, and capability. | Supports many models you configure; routing is more manual. |
| Connectors & Integrations | Connects via APIs and MCP, with forward-deployed engineers to wire in your systems. | A solid set of open-source connectors to common apps. |

### Ownership & Deployment

| Criteria | ibl.ai | Onyx |
|----------|--------------------|--------------------|
| Open-Source / Code Transparency | You receive and own the full source under license; the platform is yours to run and modify. | Fully open-source and code-available by default. |
| Self-Hosting / On-Prem / Air-Gapped | Runs on your servers, private cloud, or fully air-gapped with zero external calls. | Self-hostable on your own infrastructure, including offline. |
| Data Sovereignty & Privacy | Prompts, documents, and embeddings stay entirely in your environment. | Self-hosted, so your data stays on your infrastructure. |
| Source-Code & Data Ownership | Own the platform code and all data — no vendor lock-in. | Open-source code and self-hosted data; you control both. |

### Support & Enterprise Fit

| Criteria | ibl.ai | Onyx |
|----------|--------------------|--------------------|
| Enterprise Support & SLAs | Enterprise support with SLAs; a managed option is also available. | Community support, with paid support via Onyx's cloud/commercial tier. |
| Forward-Deployed Engineering / Services | Engineers deploy, integrate, and build custom agents alongside your team. | Largely self-service; you provide the engineering to deploy and extend it. |
| Compliance (HIPAA / FERPA / SOC 2) | Compliant by design with audit logging across every interaction. | Self-hosting helps, but compliance posture is yours to implement and prove. |
| Time-to-Value | Owned-or-managed deployment with a team to stand it up quickly. | Fast for a technical team to trial; production hardening is on you. |

## Detailed Analysis

### Open-Source Search vs a Full Agentic Platform

**ibl.ai:** ibl.ai delivers enterprise search as one capability inside a broader owned platform — agents, workflows, learning, and content — across any LLM, with support and compliance built in.

**Onyx:** Onyx is a focused, open-source search-and-chat tool that's excellent when retrieval over your docs is the core need and you have engineers to run it.

**Verdict:** Choose Onyx for free, transparent, self-run enterprise search; choose ibl.ai when you need a full agentic platform with support, compliance, and any-LLM breadth.

### Run-It-Yourself vs Supported & Owned

**ibl.ai:** ibl.ai can be fully owned and self-hosted with enterprise support and forward-deployed engineers — or run managed — so production reliability isn't solely your team's burden.

**Onyx:** Onyx is typically run by your own engineers; the open-source core is free, with paid support available through Onyx's commercial offering.

**Verdict:** If you have strong in-house engineering and want pure open-source, Onyx fits; if you want ownership plus a partner on the hook, ibl.ai fits.

### When Each Fits

**ibl.ai:** ibl.ai suits regulated organizations and enterprises that need agents, compliance, support, and model freedom in one owned stack.

**Onyx:** Onyx suits teams that want a free, code-available search assistant and are comfortable operating it themselves.

**Verdict:** Both keep data on your infrastructure; the decision is scope and support, not whether you can self-host.

## FAQ

**Q: Is ibl.ai an alternative to Onyx?**

Yes. Both self-host on your infrastructure, but ibl.ai is a full owned agentic platform — search plus agents, workflows, learning, and content — with enterprise support and compliance, whereas Onyx is a focused open-source search-and-chat tool.

**Q: What's the main difference between Onyx and ibl.ai?**

Scope and support. Onyx is open-source enterprise search you run yourself; ibl.ai adds owned agents and workflows across any LLM, plus enterprise SLAs, forward-deployed engineering, and HIPAA/FERPA/SOC 2 compliance.

**Q: Can both Onyx and ibl.ai run air-gapped?**

Yes. Both can be self-hosted on-premise or fully air-gapped with local models and no external calls, so your data stays in your environment either way.

**Q: Does ibl.ai support any LLM like Onyx?**

Yes. ibl.ai is model-agnostic and routes across any open or commercial model by cost, latency, and capability; Onyx also supports configurable models, with more manual routing.

**Q: Is Onyx free?**

Onyx's open-source core is free to self-host; paid support is available through its commercial/cloud offering. ibl.ai is a commercial platform you own, with support and services included.

**Q: How does ibl.ai fit in?**

ibl.ai is a model-agnostic, self-hosted AI Operating System you own and run on your own servers — on-premise or air-gapped — for enterprise search, agents, and apps, with enterprise support and SOC 2, HIPAA, and FERPA compliance by design.