Where the bot runs
Cloud products such as Altrady and Bitsgap run provider-managed services. Gunbot, Hummingbot and Freqtrade run on user infrastructure. HaasOnline, OctoBot and Jesse expose hybrid commercial or deployment boundaries, so one brand can present more than one trust model.
Credential handling
A cloud bot needs usable trading authority in provider systems. A self-hosted bot can keep secrets on the user's machine, but environment files, logs, malware, backups, containers and remote dashboards become part of the threat model.
Hummingbot can add DEX wallet authority, while Freqtrade and Jesse mainly use exchange keys. Local does not mean the credential is harmless or automatically encrypted.
Open source and assurance
Hummingbot, Freqtrade, Jesse and OctoBot publish meaningful source under disclosed licenses. Gunbot is self-hosted but proprietary. Jesse's core is open while its live plugin is separately licensed.
Source availability enables inspection and reproducible issue review; it is not evidence that a comprehensive audit occurred or that the deployed image is free of vulnerable dependencies.
Availability and maintenance
Providers manage cloud patches and uptime. Self-hosted users must monitor processes, apply releases, secure network access and recover from hardware failure. Hummingbot and Freqtrade document frequent release activity, making delayed updates an explicit operational choice.
A practical choice
Choose cloud if you can verify provider controls and value managed operations. Choose self-hosted only if you can maintain the host, secrets, dependencies and observability. In both cases use withdrawal-disabled keys and conservative limits.
Related product research
These profiles illustrate different architectures and evidence limits discussed in this guide.
Sources
Hummingbot release notes — Hummingbot Foundation, accessed August 19, 2026.
Freqtrade Docker quickstart — Freqtrade, accessed August 19, 2026.
Jesse live trading — Jesse, accessed August 19, 2026.
Gunbot security and privacy basics — Gunbot, accessed August 19, 2026.
Educational disclaimerThis guide is informational, not financial, investment, legal or security advice. Product and exchange controls change; verify current settings directly.