{"slug":"continue-vs-ollama)","title":"Continue vs Ollama","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)","faqCount":5,"faqs":[{"question":"Can I use Continue without paying for OpenAI or Claude API keys?","answer":"Yes. Continue can use Ollama as a free backend, allowing you to run open-source models like Mistral or Llama 2 entirely locally. You can also configure Continue to use other free options like LocalAI. However, if you want access to GPT-4 or Claude, you'll need paid API keys."},{"question":"Does Ollama work as a backend for Continue?","answer":"Yes. Ollama integrates seamlessly with Continue. You can run Ollama locally (e.g., 'ollama run mistral') and configure Continue to route all requests to your local Ollama instance, creating a fully private, zero-cost AI coding setup."},{"question":"Which is faster for code generation—Continue or Ollama?","answer":"Continue with a paid API (OpenAI GPT-4o, Claude 3.5) is typically faster for quality responses due to larger models. Ollama's speed depends on your hardware; on a modern GPU, Mistral 7B (running in Ollama) can generate code in 1-3 seconds, while CPU-only setups may take 10-30 seconds."},{"question":"Can Ollama be used in production or just for local development?","answer":"Ollama can be deployed in production. It exposes a REST API (default localhost:11434) that can be containerized with Docker, run on servers, or integrated into applications. Many teams use Ollama to power private LLM backends for cost-sensitive or privacy-critical applications."},{"question":"Does Continue work offline?","answer":"Not by default—Continue requires internet to reach cloud LLM providers. However, if you configure it to use Ollama (running locally), then yes, Continue works fully offline with zero external API calls."}],"faqPageSchema":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)#faq","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)","inLanguage":"en-US","name":"Continue vs Ollama — FAQ","description":"Frequently asked questions about Continue vs Ollama","dateModified":"2026-07-07T11:41:37.426Z","author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://www.aversusb.net/#organization","name":"A Versus B"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://www.aversusb.net/#organization","name":"A Versus B"},"isPartOf":{"@type":"Article","@id":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)#article"},"license":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/","speakable":{"@type":"SpeakableSpecification","cssSelector":["#faq",".faq-item"]},"mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Can I use Continue without paying for OpenAI or Claude API keys?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes. Continue can use Ollama as a free backend, allowing you to run open-source models like Mistral or Llama 2 entirely locally. You can also configure Continue to use other free options like LocalAI. However, if you want access to GPT-4 or Claude, you'll need paid API keys.","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Does Ollama work as a backend for Continue?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes. Ollama integrates seamlessly with Continue. You can run Ollama locally (e.g., 'ollama run mistral') and configure Continue to route all requests to your local Ollama instance, creating a fully private, zero-cost AI coding setup.","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Which is faster for code generation—Continue or Ollama?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Continue with a paid API (OpenAI GPT-4o, Claude 3.5) is typically faster for quality responses due to larger models. Ollama's speed depends on your hardware; on a modern GPU, Mistral 7B (running in Ollama) can generate code in 1-3 seconds, while CPU-only setups may take 10-30 seconds.","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Can Ollama be used in production or just for local development?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Ollama can be deployed in production. It exposes a REST API (default localhost:11434) that can be containerized with Docker, run on servers, or integrated into applications. Many teams use Ollama to power private LLM backends for cost-sensitive or privacy-critical applications.","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Does Continue work offline?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Not by default—Continue requires internet to reach cloud LLM providers. However, if you configure it to use Ollama (running locally), then yes, Continue works fully offline with zero external API calls.","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/continue-vs-ollama)"}}]}}