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LangChain vs LlamaIndex

General LLM orchestration vs data-focused framework.

LangChain is a broad toolkit for LLM apps. LlamaIndex is specifically focused on connecting LLMs to data (RAG, knowledge bases, indexing).

At a glance

LangChainLlamaIndex
FocusBroad LLM appsData + RAG
AbstractionsMany, sometimes heavyData-focused
RAG featuresGoodBest-in-class

When to pick LangChain

General agent apps, need broad LLM tooling.

When to pick LlamaIndex

RAG-heavy, complex data indexing, specialized retrieval strategies.

My verdict

For RAG-focused apps, LlamaIndex has better primitives. For general agents, LangChain (or LangGraph).

Further reading