Character.AI vs JanitorAI: how the two approaches differ
Updated
Character.AI hosts everything itself: the characters and the models, so you pick a character and chat with no setup. JanitorAI is a character library where you can bring the model yourself by connecting a proxy or API key, which gives more control but asks for some setup. Neither suits everyone. UnsavedAI sits between: hosted characters in the browser, plus API keys for apps like JanitorAI.
Try it now, free, no account neededStart a story with The NarratorAny story you want, you chooseTwo different approaches
The biggest difference is who supplies the model, the part that actually writes the replies.
- Character.AI runs its own models. The service decides how replies are generated, and you never see a settings screen for it.
- JanitorAI lets you connect a model through a proxy: you paste an API address and key from a provider you choose, and its replies power your chats. That means you can swap models and adjust settings yourself.
Everything else follows from that choice.
What it means day to day
With a fully hosted service, starting is immediate. Open a character and type. The trade-off is that you take the model and its behaviour as they come.
With a bring-your-own-model setup, the first evening goes into setup: getting a key, filling in the proxy fields, choosing generation settings. Once done, you can change models when you want a different style, and tune things like temperature and reply length. When something goes wrong, there are more pieces to check: the site, the proxy and the provider.
Cost works differently too. On a hosted service, whatever you pay goes to that service. With your own model, the character site and the model provider are separate, so check each one's terms.
Each service also has its own content rules. Read them for whichever you use, rather than assuming they match.
Who each tends to suit
- Hosted, like Character.AI: people who want to chat right away, mostly on a phone, and would rather not think about models at all.
- Bring-your-own-model, like JanitorAI: people who enjoy tinkering, want to try different models with the same characters, or already use tools like SillyTavern.
- Plenty of people use both, for different kinds of stories.
Moving characters between them
Characters on both are written in plain text: a name, a greeting or first message, and a description of personality and scenario. That makes moving them mostly a copy and paste job. Only move characters you made, or ones whose creators are happy to share them. How to move a Character.AI character has the details.
Where UnsavedAI fits
UnsavedAI works both ways. In the browser it is hosted: 90+ house characters, no setup, first messages without an account, and a context of about 61,000 tokens. For JanitorAI, SillyTavern and similar apps, an OpenAI-compatible API key from /setup plugs into the proxy fields, so the same account covers both styles. The proxy explainer shows how the key fits in.
Questions people ask
Is JanitorAI harder to use than Character.AI?
It asks for more setup if you connect your own model, because you have to add a proxy and choose settings. After that, chatting itself is similar.
Can I use the same character on both?
Yes, if you can see its greeting and description. Copy them across, and only move characters you made or that their creators share openly.
What is a proxy in JanitorAI?
It is the connection to the model that writes your replies: an API address and key from a provider you choose. See what a proxy is.
