---
title: Agent Architectures
subtitle: Explore all available agent architectures and compare their capabilities
slug: guides/agents/architectures
no-image-zoom: true
hide-toc: true
layout: overview
---

<style>{`
  .architecture-card {
    margin: 0;
    padding: 10px;
    background-color: var(--card-background, var(--grayscale-surface));
    border: 1px solid var(--border, var(--grayscale-a5));
    box-shadow: 0 1px 2px var(--tw-shadow-color, var(--grayscale-a3));
    cursor: pointer;
  }

  .architecture-card:hover {
    border-color: var(--accent-a11) !important;
  }

  .architecture-link {
    text-decoration: none;
    color: inherit;
  }

  .architecture-image {
    margin: 0;
    padding: 0;
    pointer-events: none;
  }

  .architecture-title {
    margin-top: 15px;
    padding: 0;
    line-height: 1.2;
  }

  .architecture-description {
    margin-top: 4px;
    padding: 0;
    line-height: 1.2;
  }
`}</style>

<CardGroup cols={3}>

<a href="/guides/agents/architectures/memgpt" className="architecture-link">
<div className="architecture-card">
<img className="dark architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_memgpt_b.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<img className="light architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_memgpt.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<div className="text-md font-semibold architecture-title">MemGPT agents</div>
<div className="text-(color:--grayscale-a11) text-sm architecture-description">Agents that can edit their own memory</div>
</div>
</a>

<a href="/guides/agents/architectures/sleeptime" className="architecture-link">
<div className="architecture-card">
<img className="dark architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_sleeptime_b.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<img className="light architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_sleeptime.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<div className="text-md font-semibold architecture-title">Sleep-time agents</div>
<div className="text-(color:--grayscale-a11) text-sm architecture-description">Memory editing via subconscious agents</div>
</div>
</a>

<a href="/guides/agents/architectures/low-latency" className="architecture-link">
<div className="architecture-card">
<img className="dark architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_lowlatency_b.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<img className="light architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_lowlatency.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<div className="text-md font-semibold architecture-title">Low-latency (voice) agents</div>
<div className="text-(color:--grayscale-a11) text-sm architecture-description">Agents optimized for low-latency settings</div>
</div>
</a>

<a href="/guides/agents/architectures/react" className="architecture-link">
<div className="architecture-card">
<img className="dark architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_react_b.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<img className="light architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_react.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<div className="text-md font-semibold architecture-title">ReAct agents</div>
<div className="text-(color:--grayscale-a11) text-sm architecture-description">Tool-calling agents without memory</div>
</div>
</a>

<a href="/guides/agents/architectures/workflows" className="architecture-link">
<div className="architecture-card">
<img className="dark architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_workflow_b.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<img className="light architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_workflow.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<div className="text-md font-semibold architecture-title">Workflows</div>
<div className="text-(color:--grayscale-a11) text-sm architecture-description">LLMs executing sequential tool calls</div>
</div>
</a>

<a href="/guides/agents/architectures/stateful-workflows" className="architecture-link">
<div className="architecture-card">
<img className="dark architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_sworkflow_b.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<img className="light architecture-image" src="/images/avatar_sworkflow.png" alt="Agent architecture card"/>
<div className="text-md font-semibold architecture-title">Stateful workflows</div>
<div className="text-(color:--grayscale-a11) text-sm architecture-description">Workflows that can adapt over time</div>
</div>
</a>

</CardGroup>

## Comparing the architectures

<Note>
**Unsure of which architecture to use?**

Consider starting with our default agent architecture (MemGPT), which is highly autonomous and has long-term self-editing memory.
You can constrain the behavior to be more deterministic (ie more "workflow-like") by adding [tool rules](/guides/agents/tool-rules) to your agent.
</Note>

| Architecture | Reasoning Traces | Tool Calling | Tool Rules | Persistent Messages | Long-term Memory | Usecase |
|--------------|------------------|--------------|------------|---------------------|------------------|---------|
| [MemGPT agents](/guides/agents/architectures/memgpt) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Long-running (perpetual) stateful agents |
| [Sleep-time agents](/guides/agents/architectures/sleeptime) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Async (subconscious) memory processing |
| [Low-latency (voice) agents](/guides/agents/architectures/low-latency) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Stateful agents with latency constraints |
| [ReAct agents](/guides/agents/architectures/react) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | - | Simple memory-less tool-calling agents |
| [Workflows](/guides/agents/architectures/workflows) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | - | - | Predefined, sequential processes |
| [Stateful workflows](/guides/agents/architectures/stateful-workflows) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | - | ✓ | Workflows that can adapt over time |