LM Studio
A desktop client for selecting and running compatible language models locally, with opt-in cloud inference and web search features.
Score calculation
(2 + 9 + 5 + 1 + 7) ÷ 5 = 4.8
5 of six dimensions rated. Unrated dimensions are excluded from the average.
Full scoring method ↗Setup details
LM Studio desktop app using downloaded local models, with optional Cloud Services such as cloud models or web search assessed as a separate route.
What fits your needs
LM Studio desktop app using downloaded local models, with optional Cloud Services such as cloud models or web search assessed as a separate route.
Good fit
Use it to chat with local models through a desktop interface or choose a cloud feature for extra capacity.
Tradeoffs to expect
Tradeoffs
Local messages and documents stay on device under the app policy; cloud requests are processed by external providers under a stated zero-retention commitment.
How to switch
Switching
Keep downloaded models, chat exports and settings; move model files to another compatible local runtime if needed.
Practical questions
Before use
Check which model and route are selected before sending documents; disable cloud tools for offline local use and review model-specific licenses.
LM Studio has identifiable product documentation, but no measured energy footprint or clean-electricity sourcing evidence for the assessed route.
See the evidence
The official sources describe how LM Studio is delivered and used. They provide no dated, quantitative energy or water report for this product and no evidence tying its requests to clean electricity. The pages reviewed also name no energy-saving workload or compute control.
1 + 1 reporting + 0 electricity + 0 controls = 2/10. This grades documented practices and transparency.
Per-request electricity and water use, regional power mix and independently verified clean-electricity sourcing for LM Studio remain unpublished.
- Reporting1/3
- The LM Studio documentation identifies the service route, but provides no dated, quantitative energy or water report for this product.
- Electricity sourcing0/3
- No reviewed official source ties this workload to metered, regional or hourly clean electricity; this is an evidence gap.
- Resource controls0/3
- The reviewed LM Studio documentation names no energy-saving compute or workload setting for this route; no physical savings are inferred from speed, pricing or general configuration choices.
Water disclosure
Water reporting has not been assessed for this choice.
Training-data rights vary with the model selected for LM Studio; check that model’s source and license.
See the evidence
LM Studio lets the user select a model; assess that model’s training data separately.
LM Studio can use different model routes. Its product policy describes how requests are handled, while training-data provenance and permissions depend on the selected model. Review that release’s source disclosure, license and creator controls separately.
The selected model name, version and provider can vary by feature or setting. Those details are needed for a model-specific training-data review.
Local chats and documents stay on the device; optional cloud models and web search process requests transiently under a stated zero-retention commitment.
See the evidence
LM Studio’s June 2026 desktop privacy policy says local conversations and files are not transmitted. It describes cloud requests as transient, not retained after completion or used for other purposes, and says inference/search providers operate under zero-retention or equivalent terms. Model downloads and update checks still send limited technical information.
Check that local inference is selected before attaching sensitive files; cloud search and model options change the route, and the app itself is not open-source.
LM Studio offers local model downloads and a desktop client, but its current app terms do not grant a source-code license. Model weights remain governed by each model publisher’s license.
See the evidence
The cited product pages do not provide a complete source release, reproducible model pipeline and license package for the full assessed service. Individual model licenses and artifacts can differ.
Public sources for LM Studio describe the product, but do not report pay, worker voice or independent safeguards for the people who build and support it.
See the evidence
The official pages reviewed for LM Studio do not report worker pay and conditions, representation or independent follow-through across employees, contractors and AI supply-chain workers. The low evidence score records what those sources leave unanswered; it is not a finding of mistreatment.
1 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 1/10. Documented worker protections; missing disclosure is an evidence gap.
Pay, contractor protections, grievance outcomes and independent checks for LM Studio's wider workforce remain unreported in the cited product documentation.
- Pay & conditions0/3
- The reviewed product and legal pages give no qualifying pay or conditions disclosure for AI supply-chain workers.
- Worker voice & remedy0/3
- No worker representation, grievance or remedy mechanism was established in these cited official materials.
- Evidence & follow-through0/3
- No independent worker-level assurance covering the product supply chain was established.
No military relationship for LM Studio was identified in the official sources reviewed for this profile.
See the evidence
The cited product and policy material does not describe a defense customer or military deployment by LM Studio. The score reflects an unverified relationship with no published safeguards in these sources, not a confirmed absence.
7 base + 0 safeguard adjustment = 7/10 (0 of 9 safeguard points; every 3 adds 1). No military relationship was established in the cited sources. This ranks above known defense ties without claiming a verified clean record.
This source review does not cover undisclosed customers, contracts, subcontractors or deployments.
- Use restrictions0/4
- No binding military-specific restriction was found in the cited public pages.
- Enforcement & oversight0/3
- No military-specific oversight or remedy was established in the cited public pages.
- Relationship disclosure0/2
- The cited material does not disclose a relevant military relationship.
The official pages reviewed describe the product, service and user terms; they do not identify a defense relationship or deployment. No identity, nationality or unrelated-company inference is used.
Military rubric ↗LM Studio is not named in the two official BNC campaign lists; this is not an endorsement.
See the evidence
The check is limited to the BNC consumer-boycott guide and No Tech campaign. Neither list names LM Studio; the result says nothing about other campaigns or suppliers.
This check does not cover every BDS campaign, local campaign, supplier, investment or subsequent list change; it is not an endorsement or clean-record conclusion.