LiveKit Agents vs Vapi
Two of the most-asked-about agents in the voice-agents space. Here's how they actually stack up.
LiveKit Agents
Open-source framework for building real-time voice and multimodal AI agents that run in production
Free
Read full review →Vapi
Developer-focused voice AI platform for building production-grade voice agents via API
Free tier
Read full review →Side-by-side comparison
| LiveKit Agents | Vapi | |
|---|---|---|
| Tagline | Open-source framework for building real-time voice and multimodal AI agents that run in production | Developer-focused voice AI platform for building production-grade voice agents via API |
| Pricing | Free | Free tier |
| Categories | voice-agents, developer-tools, open-source | voice-agents, api, conversational-ai |
| Made by | LiveKit Inc. | Vapi |
| Launched | 2024-03 | 2022 |
| Platforms | Self-hosted, Linux, Web | API, Web, Phone |
| Status | active | active |
LiveKit Agents highlights
- + Python and Node.js SDKs for building voice AI agents with real-time WebRTC transport
- + Pre-built pipelines for STT, LLM, and TTS with configurable providers at each stage
- + Multimodal support for voice plus video plus text in unified agent sessions
- + Plugin system supporting OpenAI Realtime API, Cartesia, Deepgram, ElevenLabs, and others
- + Worker pool architecture for handling many concurrent agent sessions
Vapi highlights
- + Real-time streaming voice with sub-500ms response latency on most configurations
- + Bring your own LLM: works with OpenAI, Anthropic, Groq, Together, and local models
- + Bring your own STT and TTS providers including Deepgram, ElevenLabs, and Play.ht
- + Phone number provisioning and outbound/inbound call management via API
- + Function calling and tool use for external integrations mid-conversation
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, LiveKit Agents or Vapi?
Neither is universally better. LiveKit Agents (Free) leans into voice-agents, while Vapi (Free tier) is closer to voice-agents. Pick based on which workflow you actually do every day.
What is the price difference between LiveKit Agents and Vapi?
LiveKit Agents is free. Vapi is free tier. See the pricing row in the comparison table.
Can I use LiveKit Agents and Vapi together?
In most cases, yes. They serve overlapping but distinct needs, so running them side by side is common until you decide which fits your workflow.