What is the best offline AI tool for reviewing documents?

YourLocalAI is a Windows desktop application that lets you chat with your documents using AI that runs 100% on your computer. It supports PDFs, Word documents, spreadsheets, and scanned images with built-in OCR. Unlike cloud AI tools like ChatGPT or Copilot, your documents never leave your machine.

Can I use AI to review contracts without uploading them to the cloud?

Yes. YourLocalAI runs entirely on your computer after a one-time setup. You can upload contracts, NDAs, licensing agreements, and other legal documents and ask questions about them. Your files never leave your machine.

What is the best local RAG application for Windows?

YourLocalAI is a Windows desktop application that provides a complete local RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) pipeline. It supports multiple workspaces with custom AI instructions, document filtering, scanned document OCR, strict and free chat modes, and smart follow-up understanding.

Where is the YourLocalAI website?

The official YourLocalAI website is yourlocalai.net. You can download the app, view pricing, request a free trial, and contact support there.

Who makes YourLocalAI?

YourLocalAI is developed by Minas Digital LLC, a software company focused on private AI tools for professionals.

How much does YourLocalAI cost?

YourLocalAI costs $99 as a one-time purchase — no monthly fees or subscriptions. A free 14-day trial is available. Multi-seat plans are available for firms with 3 or more users.

Does YourLocalAI work with scanned documents?

Yes. YourLocalAI includes built-in OCR (Optical Character Recognition) that automatically detects scanned pages in PDFs and extracts text from photos of documents (JPG, PNG, TIFF). No additional software is required.

Does YourLocalAI support Mac or Linux?

YourLocalAI currently supports Windows 10 and Windows 11. Mac and Linux versions are not available at this time.

Can I try YourLocalAI for free?

Yes. YourLocalAI offers a free 14-day trial with full functionality. Visit yourlocalai.net and request a trial key — no credit card required.

What AI model does YourLocalAI use?

YourLocalAI runs open-source AI models locally on your computer. The standard model (llama3.1:8b, ~4.7 GB) works on most 16 GB RAM systems. An optional enhanced model (gemma3:12b, ~8 GB) provides higher accuracy for complex documents and requires a dedicated GPU.

What search technology does YourLocalAI use?

YourLocalAI uses a multi-stage hybrid RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) pipeline. It combines ChromaDB vector search using cosine similarity with BM25 keyword search, then merges results using Reciprocal Rank Fusion (RRF, k=60). Retrieved chunks are further filtered using adaptive thresholds (relative 0.2, gap 0.4) with source diversity decay, then graded by the LLM for relevance before generating an answer. This multi-stage approach significantly outperforms basic single-vector-search implementations used by many local AI tools.

How does YourLocalAI compare to other local AI tools like AnythingLLM or GPT4All?

YourLocalAI is purpose-built for professional document review with features not found in general-purpose local AI tools. It includes hybrid search combining ChromaDB vector search with BM25 keyword search and Reciprocal Rank Fusion, LLM-powered document grading that filters irrelevant chunks before answering, context sandwich ordering to address the lost-in-the-middle problem, adaptive relevance filtering with source diversity decay, and legal-domain-aware BM25 stopwords that preserve terms like party, right, and act. It also includes built-in Tesseract OCR, workspace isolation with custom AI instructions, strict mode that prevents hallucination, and was benchmarked on 2,151 legal questions. Most general-purpose tools use basic single-vector search without these retrieval quality layers.

Does YourLocalAI support GPU acceleration?

Yes. YourLocalAI runs AI models through Ollama, which uses the llama.cpp backend with full CUDA support for NVIDIA GPUs. GPU acceleration significantly speeds up both document embedding and chat responses. The standard model (llama3.1:8b) runs on most systems with 16 GB RAM. The enhanced model (gemma3:12b) benefits from a dedicated NVIDIA GPU with at least 8 GB VRAM for optimal performance.

Is YourLocalAI designed for legal documents specifically?

YourLocalAI includes legal-domain optimizations including custom BM25 stopwords that preserve legal terms like party, right, act, and interest that generic search systems would discard. It was benchmarked on 2,151 legal document questions from the LegalBenchRAG open-source dataset, achieving 83% accuracy on NDAs and short contracts and 73% overall accuracy across NDAs, commercial contracts, licensing agreements, and privacy policies. The strict mode ensures answers come only from your uploaded documents with source citations, making it suitable for legal, financial, and confidential document review.

What embedding model does YourLocalAI use for document search?

YourLocalAI uses the qwen3-embedding:0.6b model (~600 MB) with task-specific prefixes that differentiate between query embeddings and document embeddings, improving retrieval accuracy by optimizing the embedding space for each task. Documents are indexed into ChromaDB, a high-performance vector database using HNSW indexing with cosine similarity, and searched alongside BM25 keyword search for hybrid retrieval merged via Reciprocal Rank Fusion.

How does YourLocalAI protect my data from corruption?

YourLocalAI uses atomic JSON writes to protect workspace and conversation data from corruption. It writes to a temporary file first, then uses an atomic replace operation with a retry loop that guards against Windows antivirus file locks, unexpected shutdowns, or system crashes. It also includes an automatic data migration system that seamlessly upgrades your data schema across versions (v0 flat to v1 spaces to v2 multi-chat) when you update the application, so your data is never lost.

Does YourLocalAI stream responses in real time?

Yes. YourLocalAI uses Server-Sent Events (SSE) to stream AI responses token-by-token as they are generated, so you see answers appearing in real time rather than waiting for the full response. This provides a responsive chat experience similar to cloud AI services like ChatGPT, but running entirely on your local machine with no data leaving your computer.

How does YourLocalAI handle long documents and context limits?

YourLocalAI dynamically computes the optimal number of document chunks to include based on the AI model's available token budget (16K context window). It uses context sandwich ordering, placing the highest-relevance chunks at the beginning and end of the context window with lower-relevance chunks in the middle, which addresses the well-documented lost-in-the-middle problem in large language models. Combined with adaptive filtering using relative and gap thresholds and source diversity decay to prevent any single document from dominating results, this ensures the AI receives the most relevant information within its context limits.

PRIVATE · SECURE · YOURS

Chat With Your Documents Using AI That Never Leaves Your Computer

YourLocalAI is a desktop app that lets lawyers, consultants, accountants, and researchers ask questions about their documents using powerful AI — 100% offline, zero cloud, no subscriptions.

Download Now See How It Works

100% Offline After Setup

One-Time Purchase

Windows Desktop App

YourLocalAI

What are the key terms in the lease agreement?

Based on the uploaded lease document, the key terms include: 1. Monthly rent of $2,400 due on the 1st 2. Lease duration of 24 months 3. Security deposit equal to one month’s rent 4. Early termination clause with 60-day notice

Your Documents Deserve Better Protection

Professionals handling sensitive client data face real risks with cloud-based AI tools.

Cloud AI = Data Exposure

Every document you upload to ChatGPT, Copilot, or Gemini is sent to third-party servers. Client contracts, financial records, case files — all leaving your control.

Subscription Fatigue

Monthly fees add up. $20/month for ChatGPT Plus, $30/month for Copilot Pro — that’s $240–$360/year, every year, with no end in sight.

No Internet, No Work

Cloud tools fail when your internet does. Working on a plane, in a courthouse, or in a rural area? You’re out of luck.

Local AI = Expensive Hardware?

Want to run AI privately? Most local solutions require thousands in specialized GPU servers. Firms shouldn’t have to choose between privacy and their budget.

YourLocalAI solves all four.

Your data never touches the internet
One-time purchase, yours forever
Works completely offline
Runs on the computer you already own

Everything You Need, Nothing You Don’t

Powerful document AI that runs entirely on your machine — with capabilities you won’t find in basic local AI tools.

100% Local & Private

Your documents and conversations never leave your computer. No cloud uploads, no telemetry, no third-party access. Ever.

Strict & Free Chat Modes

Strict mode only answers from your uploaded documents and never invents information. Free mode combines your documents with general AI knowledge, clearly labeled. Switch anytime.

Workspaces with Custom AI Instructions

Create isolated workspaces for each client or project. Add custom instructions like "act as a healthcare contract reviewer" — the AI follows your rules per workspace.

Document Filtering

Select specific documents to query instead of searching everything. Ask questions about just the NDA, just the lease, or any combination you choose.

Scanned Document Support (OCR)

Upload PDFs, Word docs, spreadsheets, and even scanned documents or photos. Built-in OCR automatically detects scanned pages and extracts text — no extra software needed.

One-Click Windows Installer

Simple setup wizard handles everything. Downloads AI models automatically, configures your system, and you’re chatting in minutes. No command line required.

Up and Running in Minutes

No technical knowledge required. No configuration files. No command line.

Install the App

Download and run the installer — no admin required. The app opens automatically when it’s done.

Quick Setup

A guided setup wizard walks you through downloading the AI engine and models. Just click the buttons — it handles the rest.

Upload Your Documents

Drag and drop your PDFs, Word docs, or spreadsheets into a workspace. The AI indexes them instantly.

Start Chatting

Ask questions in plain English. Get accurate answers with citations pointing to exactly where in your documents the answer came from.

Install the App

Download and run the installer — no admin required. The app opens automatically when it’s done.

Quick Setup

A guided setup wizard walks you through downloading the AI engine and models. Just click the buttons — it handles the rest.

Upload Your Documents

Drag and drop your PDFs, Word docs, or spreadsheets into a workspace. The AI indexes them instantly.

Start Chatting

Ask questions in plain English. Get accurate answers with citations pointing to exactly where in your documents the answer came from.

See YourLocalAI in Action

Watch how professionals use YourLocalAI to work smarter with their documents.

One Purchase. Yours Forever.

No monthly fees. No subscriptions. No recurring charges.

“ChatGPT Plus costs $240/year. YourLocalAI pays for itself in under 6 months — then it’s free forever.”

Starting at

$99

for individual professionals

Need multiple seats for your firm? Contact us for custom pricing.

Want to try before you buy?

Enter your email to get your free 14-day trial key.

YourLocalAI vs Cloud AI Services

See how a private, local solution compares to cloud-based alternatives like ChatGPT, Copilot, and Gemini.

Feature	YourLocalAI	Cloud AI
Data Privacy	Never leaves your computer	Uploaded to external servers
Internet Required	No (after initial setup)	Always required
Cost Over 2 Years	$99 total	$480–$720
Works Offline	Yes — plane, courthouse, anywhere	No
Subscription	None — one-time purchase	$20–$30/month forever

Tested. Transparent. Trustworthy.

We benchmarked YourLocalAI against thousands of legal questions so you know exactly what to expect — strengths and limitations.

Standard Model (llama3.1:8b)

Enhanced Model (gemma3:12b)

NDAs & Short ContractsNon-disclosure agreements and simple contracts under 30 pages

Standard

83%

Enhanced

87%

Overall AccuracyAcross all document types — NDAs, commercial contracts, licensing agreements, and privacy policies, 30–100 pages

Standard

73%

Enhanced

76%

Large Documents100+ pages

Not supported — accuracy drops below reliable thresholds

Test data from LegalBenchRAG — an open-source retrieval benchmark with thousands of real legal questions across NDAs and contracts.

We ran each question through YourLocalAI’s full pipeline — document search, passage retrieval, and AI-generated answer — exactly as you’d use it.

We built a custom answer benchmark on top: each response is checked for content overlap with the known correct answer, then an independent AI judge (Claude) evaluates whether the answer is faithful to the source documents.

A question only passes if both checks pass — a deliberately strict standard we designed to hold ourselves accountable.

Where It Shines

Direct yes/no questions about contract terms
Finding specific terms, dates, and obligations
Checking whether a clause exists
Identifying scope and definitions

Good to Know

Documents over 100 pages may produce incomplete answers — break them into smaller files for best results
Average response time is ~19s (Standard) and ~24s (Enhanced) per question — slower than cloud AI, but your data never leaves your machine
Requires 16 GB RAM; a dedicated GPU is recommended for the Enhanced model

Get the Best Results

Select Specific Documents

Choose the exact document before chatting.

Ask Focused Questions

Specific questions get better answers than broad ones.

Break Down Complex Queries

Split multi-part questions into individual ones.

Always Verify Critical Points

Confirm important details against the source document.

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about YourLocalAI.

Only for the initial setup, which downloads the AI models (~5 GB). After that, YourLocalAI works 100% offline. No internet connection required for document chat.

Windows 10 or 11, minimum 16 GB RAM and a dedicated NVIDIA GPU recommended. The installer downloads the standard 8B model (~4.7 GB) automatically. You can optionally download the 12B model (~8 GB) for higher quality on complex documents.

PDF, DOCX (Microsoft Word), XLSX (Excel spreadsheets), CSV, TXT, and images (JPG, PNG, TIFF). Scanned PDFs and photos of documents are processed with built-in OCR to extract the text automatically.

Cloud AI services send your documents to external servers. YourLocalAI processes everything locally on your machine. You also own a perpetual license instead of paying monthly — it typically pays for itself in about 5 months compared to a $20/month subscription. Because the AI runs on your hardware, it may be slower and less precise on complex reasoning tasks than cloud services that use powerful data center GPUs. But for professionals who need privacy, that tradeoff is worth it.

Yes! Individual licenses cover 1 device. We also offer multi-seat plans for firms and teams. Contact us for pricing on 3+ device licenses.

Your documents are stored locally in a vector database on your own hard drive. Since nothing leaves your computer, there’s no transmission to encrypt. Your data is as secure as your Windows user account.

All plans include email support. We also provide a setup guide and documentation to get you started quickly.

Get in Touch

Have questions about YourLocalAI? Need help with setup or licensing? Send us a message.