This is the second tutorial in the Getting Better Results series. Your Interest descriptions are solid — now let's make sure the AI behind them is the right fit.
Engaggit supports 7 AI providers, each with different cost, speed, and quality tradeoffs. The provider you choose affects two things directly: how well Engaggit scores posts for relevance, and how natural your draft replies sound. This guide walks through the options so you can pick the right one without overthinking it.
Your AI Provider Options
| Provider | Cost | Speed | Quality | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ollama (local) | Free | Fast | Good | Privacy, unlimited use |
| OpenAI (GPT-5.6 Sol) | $$$ | Fast | Excellent | Best quality |
| OpenAI (GPT-5.6 Terra) | $$ | Fast | Excellent | Quality on a budget |
| OpenAI (GPT-5.6 Luna) | $ | Fastest | Very Good | High-volume, cost-sensitive |
| Gemini (2.5 Flash) | $ | Fast | Very Good | Cost-effective |
| DeepSeek (V4) | $ | Fast | Good | Budget-friendly |
| Grok (4.6) | $$ | Fast | Good | X/Twitter integration |
| OpenRouter | Varies | Varies | Varies | Model flexibility |
| Custom | Varies | Varies | Varies | Self-hosted or proprietary |
The key distinction: Ollama runs locally on your machine — your data never leaves your computer. Everything else is cloud-based — faster, sometimes higher quality, but your post content is sent to external servers.
Quality Comparison
Quality isn't just about which model sounds best — it's about whether Engaggit picks the right posts and writes drafts you actually want to post.
| Aspect | Ollama | GPT-5.6 Luna | GPT-5.6 Terra | GPT-5.6 Sol |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Relevance scoring | Good | Very Good | Excellent | Excellent |
| Draft quality | Good | Very Good | Excellent | Excellent |
| Context understanding | Good | Very Good | Excellent | Excellent |
| Tone naturalness | Good | Very Good | Excellent | Excellent |
What this means in practice:
- Ollama will catch the obvious matches — someone explicitly asking for your product category. It sometimes misses nuance, like posts where the problem is described indirectly. Drafts tend to be competent but slightly formulaic.
- GPT-5.6 Luna handles most scenarios well at the lowest cost. It picks up on indirect intent and writes drafts that sound like a real person wrote them. Ideal for high-volume scanning where cost per post matters.
- GPT-5.6 Terra is the sensible default for most users. OpenAI positions it as competitive with previous flagship models at roughly half the price, making it the best balance of quality and cost.
- GPT-5.6 Sol understands context deeply — it catches posts where the user hasn't named the problem directly but is clearly describing it. Drafts read naturally and reference specific points from the post. Sol scores 53.6 on Agents' Last Exam, an evaluation of long-running professional workflows.
When to Use Ollama (Local)
Ollama is the right choice when:
- Privacy matters — your Reddit analysis, Interest descriptions, and draft generation all happen on your machine. Nothing is sent anywhere.
- You scan heavily — unlimited usage means you never worry about hitting API limits or racking up costs across multiple Interests.
- You have decent hardware — a computer with 8GB+ RAM handles most models comfortably. A GPU speeds things up significantly.
- You want zero ongoing cost — install Ollama once, pull a model, and you're set. No API keys, no billing, no quotas.
The tradeoff: relevance scoring and draft quality are a step below cloud providers. For many users this is perfectly fine — especially if your Interests are well-written and your keywords are targeted.
Recommended Ollama models:
| Model | Size | Good For |
|---|---|---|
gemma3:4b |
Small | Fast scoring, lighter hardware |
gemma4:26b |
Medium | Better quality, needs 16GB+ RAM |
If Ollama isn't running when you scan, Engaggit will show a clear error: "Cannot connect to Ollama. Make sure that Ollama application is running." Open the Ollama app first, then try again.
When to Use Cloud Providers
Cloud providers make sense when:
- You want the best quality — OpenAI GPT-5.6 Sol is the strongest option for both scoring and drafts, with industry-leading performance on agentic tasks and complex reasoning.
- You don't have local processing power — no GPU, limited RAM, or an older laptop.
- You want to test different models — OpenRouter gives you access to dozens of models through a single API key.
- You're comfortable sending post content to external servers — Reddit posts you scan are sent to the provider's API for analysis.
The tradeoff: ongoing cost (however small) and data leaving your machine.
Current Model Pricing (Per 1M Tokens)
For reference, here are the current pricing tiers for popular providers (in 2026):
| Provider | Input | Output | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPT-5.6 Sol | $5 | $30 | Flagship, best for complex tasks |
| GPT-5.6 Terra | $2.50 | $15 | Balanced default choice |
| GPT-5.6 Luna | $1 | $6 | Fastest, most economical |
| Claude Sonnet 5 | $2 | $10 | Strong agentic performance |
| Gemini 2.5 Pro | $1.25 | $10 | 1M context window |
| Gemini 2.5 Flash | $0.30 | $2.50 | Cost-effective |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | $0.22 | $0.66 | Budget-friendly, off-peak |
| Grok 4.6 | $2 | $6 | X/Twitter integration |
How to Choose
If you're not sure where to start, walk through these three questions:
Step 1: Prioritize Privacy?
Yes → Try Ollama first
No → Step 2
Step 2: Need Best Quality?
Yes → GPT-5.6 Sol or Claude Sonnet 5
No → GPT-5.6 Terra or Gemini 2.5 Pro
Step 3: On a Budget?
Yes → GPT-5.6 Luna, DeepSeek, or Gemini 2.5 Flash
No → Any of the above
There's no wrong answer here. The best provider is the one that fits your workflow. You can always start with Ollama (free, private) and switch to a cloud provider later if you want higher quality drafts.
A/B Testing Providers
Not sure if upgrading from Ollama to OpenAI is worth it? Test them side by side:
- Go to Settings → AI Providers and add a second provider (e.g., OpenAI GPT-5.6 Terra)
- Make sure your first Interest is configured with good descriptions
- Run a scan with Ollama active — note the relevance scores and draft quality
- Switch to OpenAI in the provider list — run the same scan again
- Compare: which posts scored higher? Which drafts need less editing?
The same Interest, the same search rules, two different providers — it's the fastest way to see the difference for yourself.
Switching Providers
You can change your active provider anytime:
- Go to Settings → AI Providers
- Click on the provider you want to use (radio button selects it)
- That's it — your next scan uses the new provider
No data is lost when you switch. Your Interests, search rules, and scan history all stay the same. The only thing that changes is which AI is doing the analysis.
You can also have multiple providers configured and switch between them as needed — for example, use Ollama for daily background scans and switch to OpenAI when you're doing a focused prospecting session.
What's Next
You've picked your provider and your Interests are tuned. If something isn't working the way you expected, the next tutorial covers the most common issues and how to fix them.
Next tutorial → Troubleshooting & FAQ — blocked-by-Reddit warnings, Ollama connection errors, scan issues, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can I use multiple AI providers at the same time?
No — only one provider is active at a time. Engaggit sends every post to the same provider during a scan. You can have multiple providers configured and switch between them instantly, but a single scan uses one provider only.
2. Does the provider affect relevance scores?
Yes — different models interpret your Interest descriptions differently. A post that scores 8 with GPT-5.6 Sol might score 6 with Ollama. This is why A/B testing is useful — the "best" provider is the one whose scoring aligns with your judgment.
3. What happens if my API key runs out of credits mid-scan?
Engaggit will stop analyzing posts and report errors for the failed ones. Your scan history and previously analyzed posts are preserved. Add credits or switch to a different provider, then run the scan again.
4. Is Ollama really free?
Yes. Ollama runs entirely on your machine — no API key, no billing, no usage limits. The only cost is electricity and hardware wear. If you have a modern computer with a decent GPU, it's a practical option for ongoing use.
5. Can I use a self-hosted model with Engaggit?
Yes — use the Custom provider. It connects to any OpenAI-compatible endpoint. Enter the base URL of your self-hosted model, add an API key if required, and type the model name manually (there's no model fetching for Custom endpoints).
6. Which provider gives the best drafts?
OpenAI GPT-5.6 Sol consistently produces the most natural, context-aware drafts, with strong performance on complex reasoning tasks. GPT-5.6 Terra and Claude Sonnet 5 are close behind at a lower cost. If draft quality is your priority, start with one of these and compare.
Engaggit is a privacy-first, AI-powered Reddit lead generation app. It runs on your machine, keeps your data to yourself, and helps you never miss a relevant conversation again.