Both sit in the memory layer with similar commercial terms, so the practical split is language: Honcho targets Python and Cognee targets Python.
Treats memory as a reasoning problem, not a retrieval one — you ask its Dialectic API a question about the user and get a synthesised answer.
A fine-tuned model extracts preferences, beliefs and contradictions in the background rather than embedding transcripts. Managed at api.honcho.dev, or self-host the FastAPI server. Hermes Agent uses it for user modelling.
Builds a graph + vector memory layer over your agent's history and documents.
| Honcho | Cognee | |
|---|---|---|
| Licence | Open source | Open source |
| Pricing | freemium | open source |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Languages | Python, TypeScript | Python |
| Install | — | pip install cognee |
| Keys required | None | None |
Both sit in the memory layer with similar commercial terms, so the practical split is language: Honcho targets Python and Cognee targets Python. Honcho: Treats memory as a reasoning problem, not a retrieval one — you ask its Dialectic API a question about the user and get a synthesised answer. Cognee: Builds a graph + vector memory layer over your agent's history and documents.
Honcho can run on your own infrastructure. Cognee can run on your own infrastructure.
Honcho is open source (freemium). Cognee is open source (open source).
Every page here answers to Accept: text/markdown and returns the same content at roughly a tenth the tokens. No separate site, no toggle — same URL.
curl -s -H "Accept: text/markdown" https://newagent.build/compare/honcho-vs-cognee