Advanced CLI tool that analyzes your hardware and intelligently recommends the optimal Ollama LLM models for your system with automatic installation detection.
Designed specifically for Ollama - Integrates with 177+ models from the complete Ollama model library to find the best models for your hardware configuration.
--limitflag: Show multiple compatible models instead of just one- Ranked display: See top 3, 5, or 10 models with compatibility scores
- Smart alternatives: Get backup options with unique installation commands
- Hardware-aware filtering: Automatically excludes unreasonably large models
- Real-time detection: Automatically detects already installed Ollama models
- Smart Quick Start: Shows
ollama runfor installed models,ollama pullfor new ones - Status indicators: Clear "Already installed" vs "Available for installation" status
- No duplicate suggestions: Won't suggest installing models you already have
- 7 specialized categories: coding, creative, reasoning, multimodal, embeddings, talking, general
- Typo tolerance: Handles common misspellings (e.g., "embedings" → "embeddings")
- Smart filtering: Each category shows models optimized for that specific use case
- Category-aware scoring: Different scoring weights for different use cases
- 177+ models with accurate size data from Ollama Hub
- Real file sizes: Uses actual model sizes instead of parameter estimates
- Pre-classified categories: All models categorized by capabilities
- Static database: Stable, reliable model information without dynamic updates
- Multi-objective ranking with hardware-size matching
- Hardware utilization scoring: Penalizes models that underutilize high-end hardware
- Smart size filtering: Filters out models too large for your system
- Cross-platform compatibility: macOS, Windows, Linux with GPU detection
npm install -g llm-checker- Node.js 16+
- Ollama installed and running (Download here)
# Get the best model for your hardware
llm-checker check
# Show top 5 compatible models
llm-checker check --limit 5
# Get coding-specific models
llm-checker check --use-case coding --limit 3
# Find creative writing models
llm-checker check --use-case creative --limit 5| Use Case | Description | Example Models |
|---|---|---|
coding |
Programming and code generation | CodeLlama, DeepSeek Coder, CodeQwen |
creative |
Creative writing and content | Dolphin, Wizard, Uncensored models |
reasoning |
Logic and mathematical reasoning | DeepSeek-R1, Phi4-reasoning, Llama3.2-vision |
multimodal |
Image analysis and vision tasks | Llama3.2-vision, LlaVa |
embeddings |
Text vectorization and search | BGE, E5, embedding models |
talking |
General conversation and chat | Llama, Mistral, Qwen (excluding specialized) |
general |
Balanced, versatile models | Mixed selection prioritizing chat/reasoning |
# Hardware analysis with model recommendations
llm-checker check [options]
# Get intelligent recommendations
llm-checker recommend [options]
# List available models
llm-checker list-models
# AI-powered model evaluation
llm-checker ai-check
# Ollama integration info
llm-checker ollama# Show multiple models
--limit <number> Number of models to show (default: 1)
# Use case filtering
--use-case <case> Specify use case (coding, creative, reasoning, etc.)
# Output control
--no-verbose Clean, minimal output
--include-cloud Include cloud-based models
# Filtering
--filter <type> Filter by model type
--ollama-only Only show Ollama-available models# Single best model
llm-checker check
# Output: Shows #1 model with installation command
# Multiple options
llm-checker check --limit 5
# Output: Shows top 5 ranked models with scores# Coding models
llm-checker check --use-case coding --limit 3
# Output: CodeLlama, DeepSeek Coder, CodeQwen with install commands
# Creative writing
llm-checker check --use-case creative --limit 5
# Output: Dolphin, Wizard, creative-optimized models
# Reasoning tasks
llm-checker check --use-case reasoning --limit 3
# Output: DeepSeek-R1, Phi4-reasoning, specialized reasoning modelsllm-checker check --limit 5 --use-case codingExample output:
TOP 5 COMPATIBLE MODELS
#1 - CodeLlama 7B
Size: 3.8GB
Compatibility Score: 84.88/100
Status: Already installed in Ollama
#2 - Qwen 2.5 7B
Size: 5.2GB
Compatibility Score: 83.78/100
Status: Available for installation
QUICK START
1. Start using your installed model:
ollama run codellama:7b
Alternative options:
2. ollama pull qwen2.5:7b
3. ollama pull codeqwen
- Flagship: RTX 5090/H100 tier → 30B-175B models (new!)
- Ultra High: RTX 4090/A100 tier → 20B-105B models
- High: RTX 4080/Apple Silicon 32GB → 8B-50B models
- Medium: RTX 4070/Apple Silicon 16GB → 3B-20B models
- Low: Budget systems → 1B-8B models
- Ultra Low: Very limited systems → <3B models
- Automatically excludes models >25GB for systems with <32GB RAM
- Penalizes tiny models on high-end hardware
- Prioritizes models in the "sweet spot" for your hardware tier
- Removes duplicate commands from alternatives
- macOS: Apple Silicon optimization with unified memory
- Windows: NVIDIA/AMD GPU detection with device ID mapping
- Linux: Full GPU compatibility with proper driver detection
- Installation guidance: For Ollama on Linux, prefer official package managers or documented methods rather than piping remote scripts into the shell. See the official installation docs: https://github.com/ollama/ollama/blob/main/docs/linux.md
- Cache location: The Ollama model cache used by LLM Checker is stored at
~/.llm-checker/cache/ollama. - Backward compatibility: Existing cache files in the legacy path (
src/ollama/.cache) are still read if present, but new cache writes go to the home directory.
- NEW Flagship Tier: RTX 5090, H100, A100 now properly recognized
- Enhanced RTX 50xx Support: Up to 50% RAM offload capacity (was 30%)
- Smarter Memory Utilization: 95% VRAM efficiency for flagship GPUs
- Better Model Range: Flagship systems now handle 30B-175B models
- Realistic Thresholds: Compatible 65%+ (was 75%+), Marginal 45-64%
- Better Category Filtering: All use cases now work correctly on both platforms
- Cross-Platform Parity: Windows and Mac now have similar model counts
- Hardware Match Priority: Increased from 5% to 30% weight for better sizing
- Platform-Specific Optimization: Apple Silicon vs Windows GPU paths
- Quality-Speed Balance: Reduced speed emphasis for high-end hardware
- Chat Category Filter: Now correctly excludes coding models
- Embeddings Fallback: Proper filtering when no compatible models found
- Score Display: Fixed 5/100 score bug in CLI output
- Platform Detection: Now uses hardware OS for simulation support
Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.
git clone https://github.com/Pavelevich/llm-checker.git
cd llm-checker
npm install
# Run locally
node bin/enhanced_cli.js check --limit 5MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.
Pavel Chmirenko - GitHub | Email
If you find LLM Checker useful, please consider:
- Starring the repository ⭐
- Contributing improvements 🛠️
- Reporting issues 🐛
- Sharing with others 📢
Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/pavelchmirenko