LangChainThe open agent platform to own your intelligence
vs
OpenAI Agents SDKOpen-source Python and TypeScript framework for building AI agents.
Comparison · AI Agents · weekly run Nov 3
LangChain vs OpenAI Agents SDK
Which one do AI engines recommend, and how do they differ on price, fit and features?
The short answer
OpenAI Agents SDK is the stronger AI pick in AI Agents: it has a visibility score of 31.4 versus 10.4 for LangChain, and ranks ahead in 92% of the answers that name both.
Choose LangChain if…
- You need a self-hosted or on-premises option
- Stateful multi-agent orchestration via state graphs
- Strong open-source adoption with large download numbers
- Suited to enterprise agent loops
Choose OpenAI Agents SDK if…
- You want the brand AI engines rank higher (31.4 vs 10.4)
- AI answers describe it more positively (45% vs 17% positive)
- You need SOC 2 Type 2 or ISO/IEC 27001:2022 or ISO/IEC 27701:2019 or CSA STAR Level 1 coverage
- Widely adopted platform for enterprise and developer agents
AI visibility side by side
Latest weekly run · Nov 3
| Metric | LangChain | OpenAI Agents SDK |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility score | 10.4% | 31.4% |
| Change vs last week | New | New |
| Rank in AI Agents | #12 | #2 |
| Share of voice | 2.7% | 5.8% |
| Mentions this run | 18 | 38 |
| Positive in AI answers | 17% | 45% |
The stronger value in each row is marked with a ✓.
Visibility score trend
Weekly runs over the last 60 days
LangChain 0pp · OpenAI Agents SDK 0pp over 0 weekly runs.
Engine by engine
OpenAI Agents SDK leads on 3 of 3 engines
ChatGPT
AI Mode
Perplexity
LangChainOpenAI Agents SDK
Head to head in AI answers
13 engine answers name both brands
1LangChain ranked higher
12OpenAI Agents SDK ranked higher
| Prompt | Engine | LangChain | OpenAI Agents SDK |
|---|---|---|---|
| What are the best AI Agents tools in 2026? | ChatGPT | #13 | #1 |
| Best AI agent platform for startups | ChatGPT | #9 | #5 |
| Best AI agent platform for startups | AI Mode | #2 | #3 |
| Compare the leading AI Agents platforms | Perplexity | #7 | #6 |
| Alternatives to the most popular AI agent platform | ChatGPT | #7 | #2 |
| Best AI agent platform with AI features | ChatGPT | #14 | #10 |
| Which AI Agents vendors do analysts recommend? | ChatGPT | #21 | #14 |
| Is there a free AI agent platform for small teams? | AI Mode | #8 | #1 |
| Official website of the top AI agent platform vendors | ChatGPT | #24 | #1 |
| Official website of the top AI agent platform vendors | Perplexity | #12 | #1 |
| Where can I sign up for an AI agent platform? | ChatGPT | #2 | #1 |
| Who makes the most used AI agent platform? | ChatGPT | #7 | #1 |
Features, pricing & fit
| Dimension | LangChain | OpenAI Agents SDK |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per seat | — |
| Entry price | Free; paid from $39 per seat / mo | — |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Deployment | Cloud (SaaS), hybrid (SaaS control plane with self-hosted data plane), or self-hosted in the customer's VPC | Runs inside the customer's own application; the customer controls deployment, storage and approvals. |
| Compliance | — | SOC 2 Type 2, ISO/IEC 27001:2022, ISO/IEC 27701:2019, CSA STAR Level 1 |
| Support | Community forum, Support portal, Email support, Slack | — |
| Founded | 2023 | — |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, CA, United States | 1455 and 1515 Third Street, San Francisco |
| Employees | 201–500 | — |
| Funding | Series B, led by IVP | $122 billion round closed March 31, 2026 at $852 billion post-money, anchored by Amazon, Nvidia and SoftBank · $180000M raised |
| Best for | Teams building agents that need control over models, context, memory and deployment, and the ability to test, govern and improve them in production | Teams already building on OpenAI models that want a lightweight framework to write their own agent logic. |
Plans side by side
LangChain
Developer$0seat per month, then pay as you go
Plus$39seat per month, then pay as you go
EnterpriseCustomcustom pricing, then pay as you go
OpenAI Agents SDK
Pricing not available.
Pros and cons
Themes from the AI answers that mention each brand
LangChain
- Stateful multi-agent orchestration via state graphs
- Strong open-source adoption with large download numbers
- Suited to enterprise agent loops
- Heavy developer framework that requires coding
OpenAI Agents SDK
- Widely adopted platform for enterprise and developer agents
- Streamlined framework for native GPT integration and function calling
- Good for rapid prototyping
- Access to foundational models and agent workflows via the OpenAI Platform
- A framework rather than a complete enterprise automation suite
- Requires separate payment for OpenAI model API usage
Data collected ·ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Mode·coverage 100%·next run
Cite as: SlateIndex, “LangChain vs OpenAI Agents SDK”, https://slateindex.ai/compare/langchain-vs-openai-agents-sdk, data of Nov 3, 2026. Licence: CC BY 4.0.