Karakeep vs Anybox: Which is better? (2026)
Executive verdict & bottom line
Karakeep (formerly Hoarder) is a self-hosted, open-source AI bookmark manager with full Docker control; Anybox is a native, closed-source Apple utility with iCloud sync and Raycast integration.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Karakeep | Anybox | Marqly |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI auto-tagging | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Semantic search (find by meaning) | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| AI summaries | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| YouTube AI (summary, chat, transcript) | — | — | ✓ |
| AI Q&A over your saves | — | — | ✓ |
| Web highlighter | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Notes on highlights | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Save page as PDF | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Full-text search | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Save all open tabs | — | — | ✓ |
| Public sharing (boards/collections) | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Pocket import | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Browser bookmarks import | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Offline reading | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| iOS app | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android app | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Browser extension | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Free tier | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Public API | ✓ | — | — |
| Self-hostable | ✓ | — | — |
| Price | Free · Self-hosted: free. Karakeep Cloud Pro: $4/month | Free · $14.99/year, $1.99/month, or $39.99 lifetime | Free · $72/year (≈$6/mo) or $9/month |
- Karakeep
- Free · Self-hosted: free. Karakeep Cloud Pro: $4/month
- Anybox
- Free · $14.99/year, $1.99/month, or $39.99 lifetime
- Marqly
- Free · $72/year (≈$6/mo) or $9/month
Pricing
- Karakeep: Karakeep has a free tier; paid plans are Self-hosted: free. Karakeep Cloud Pro: $4/month. The self-hosted app is fully free and open source; AI features need your own OpenAI-compatible API key or a local Ollama model. Karakeep Cloud (public beta) has a $0 tier capped at 10 bookmarks and a Pro tier at $4/month — the exact annual price is not published.
- Anybox: Anybox has a free tier; paid plans are $14.99/year, $1.99/month, or $39.99 lifetime. Free tier caps at 50 saved links and 12 Anydock slots; no time-limited trial, the free tier serves that role. One universal purchase covers Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Vision Pro.
- Marqly: Marqly has a free tier; paid plans are $72/year (≈$6/mo) or $9/month. 7-day free trial of Pro. Free tier needs no card and stores up to 2,000 bookmarks with search across your whole library; every AI feature is Pro — auto-tagging, summaries, semantic search, AI Q&A over saves and video chat.
About Karakeep
Karakeep is an open-source "bookmark everything" app, launched as Hoarder and renamed in early 2025. It is built for self-hosting: a Docker install stores links, notes, images, videos, and PDFs on your own server, with full-page archiving to guard against link rot. AI does the filing — automatic tagging and summaries run through any OpenAI-compatible API or a local Ollama model, so nothing has to leave your machine. Search is Meilisearch-backed full text, with semantic and hybrid modes added in 2026. Around the core are browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari, iOS and Android apps with offline reading, highlights, shareable public lists with RSS feeds, a REST API, and an MCP server for AI agents. Imports cover Pocket, browser bookmark HTML, Omnivore, Instapaper, Linkwarden, and mymind exports. A hosted Karakeep Cloud is in public beta, with a Pro tier at $4 per month.
About Anybox
Anybox is a native bookmark manager for Apple platforms, built by an independent developer and sold as one universal purchase covering Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Vision Pro. Links live in a local-first library organized with nested tags, folders, and rule-based Smart Lists, and each bookmark can be archived as a PDF, web archive, or screenshot for offline access. Sync runs entirely through iCloud, with no account and no data collection. Deep system integration is the signature: Spotlight search, widgets, Siri Shortcuts, AppleScript, x-callback-url, and companions for Raycast, Alfred, and PopClip. A floating dock called Anydock keeps frequent links one click away. Safari gets a first-class extension, while the Chrome, Edge, and Firefox extensions relay saves through the Mac app. Imports cover browser bookmark HTML files and Pocket exports, and the whole library exports to JSON or HTML. The free tier holds 50 links; Pro costs $1.99 a month, $14.99 a year, or $39.99 lifetime.
Which should you choose?
Karakeep and Anybox target different privacy and system architectures:
Choose Karakeep if:
- You want 100% self-hosted ownership over your data using Docker.
- You want automated AI tagging, OCR, and local-model semantic search.
- You need cross-platform apps for web, Android, and iOS.
- You prefer open-source software without vendor lock-in.
Choose Anybox if:
- You do not want to manage servers, Docker containers, or model weights.
- You want a native Swift interface integrated with macOS Menubar, Raycast, and Shortcuts.
- You want simple one-time pricing ($39.99 lifetime) with iCloud sync.
The hosted alternative: If you want Karakeep’s zero-filing AI tagging and semantic search without server maintenance, and Anybox’s clean design with web/Windows/Android accessibility, Marqly is purpose-built for you.
The option both sides overlook
If the real problem is finding things again, neither Karakeep nor Anybox fully solves it. Marqly auto-tags and summarizes every save with AI and lets you retrieve any of them by describing what you remember — plus a highlighter, YouTube summaries with transcripts, and save-as-PDF. There's a free tier with no card required.
Karakeep vs Anybox FAQ
Can I run Anybox on my own server like Karakeep?
No. Anybox is a closed-source native Apple app that uses iCloud for synchronization. Karakeep is open source and can be self-hosted with Docker on your own hardware or VPS.
Which has better AI search?
Karakeep includes automated AI tagging, OCR, and semantic search (using local models like Ollama or cloud OpenAI APIs). Anybox relies primarily on keyword search and manual tags.
