How to Compare Local AI Models Side by Side on Linux in 2026 (One Question, Up to Six Models)

Posted on Oct 29 • Originally published at getoffgridai.co

You run Ollama, LM Studio or a llama.cpp server on your Linux box, you have pulled a handful of models, and you want to know which one writes the best answer for your own prompts. Off Grid AI Desktop splits its chat into two to six panes. Each pane runs on its own model, one question goes to all of them, and the answers stream in next to each other in one window.

Every pane has a Model for this pane picker at the top. It offers two kinds of choice:

To compare different models, put one pane on Active model and point the others at models from Ollama, LM Studio or another machine.

Saving a new server with a chat model also moves the app's chat to that server. To keep Active model on your downloaded model, click the chip icon at the top right ( Active models ) and pick your local model again.

Every chat model a saved server offers appears in the pane pickers.

Two or three panes sit in one row, four make a two by two grid, and five or six make three columns and two rows. Active models and Settings show once, in the top right pane, because they apply to the whole app.

The app remembers each pane's choice. The next time you split, every pane starts on the model you gave it last time. Split view itself does not survive a restart: after you reopen the app, Chat opens as one chat, and your pane choices wait for the next split.

With split view on, the panes share one input at the bottom of the window. This is the default, shown as One input for every pane in the top right controls.

For a follow-up to one model only, switch to An input in each pane. Each pane then gets its own input.

Each pane keeps its own chat tabs, its own gallery and its own tasks. Press Ctrl+T to start a new chat in the pane you are typing in; the other panes keep their chats.

Models on one machine share its memory. If the app's model and your server models together are larger than your GPU's VRAM, the overflow moves to system RAM and that pane answers more slowly. Pick smaller quantizations or fewer panes, or put the bigger models on a second machine. If a pane's server is turned off or removed, that pane tells you so and asks you to pick another model, rather than answering with a different one.

Click the same split icon again. Its tooltip now reads One chat. Your pane chats are saved like any other chat. The window narrows to 450 pixels wide, so it fits beside your editor when you tile windows. On GNOME, Super+Left and Super+Right snap it to half the screen.

How do I compare two local LLMs on Linux? Add Ollama, LM Studio or llama-server as a server under Settings > Remote in Off Grid AI Desktop, then click Open tabs side by side in Chat. Set one pane to Active model, the other to a server model, and send one question.

How many models can I compare at once? Up to six. Each pane can use a different model, as long as your machine or servers can hold them in memory.

Can I compare Ollama models with each other? Yes. Add Ollama once as a server, then give each pane a different Ollama model from Model for this pane. If they do not all fit in VRAM, Ollama unloads one model to load the next, which adds a pause before that pane answers.

Can a pane use a model on another Linux machine? Yes. Add that machine's address under Remote, for example http://192.168.1.20:11434. Ollama listens only on 127.0.0.1 by default, so on the other machine run sudo systemctl edit ollama, add Environment="OLLAMA_HOST=0.0.0.0" under [Service], restart the service, and allow port 11434 through your firewall, for example with sudo ufw allow 11434/tcp.

Does comparing models send my prompt to the cloud? No. Each pane sends the question only to its own model: the one inside the app, or the server address you typed. If every server is on your machine or home network, the prompt stays there.

Is split view free on Linux? Yes. It is part of the free Off Grid AI Desktop app, with no account.