SHSelfHostIndex

AFFiNE vs Outline

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
AFFiNE Workspace for docs, whiteboards and databases VS Outline Team knowledge base and wiki
FeatureAFFiNEOutline
Deploy effortUnder-an-hour setupUnder-an-hour setup
Health score100 · Excellent99 · Excellent
CategoryNotes & Knowledge BaseNotes & Knowledge Base
LicenseMITBSL-1.1
LanguageTypeScriptTypeScript
Setup difficultyMediumMedium
Min. RAM1,024 MB1,024 MB
Deploymentdockerdocker
GitHub stars★ 72,916★ 40,682
First released20222017
ReplacesNotion, MiroNotion, Confluence

What are AFFiNE and Outline?

AFFiNE

AFFiNE is an open-source knowledge base that combines documents, whiteboards, and databases in a single workspace. It targets users wanting an all-in-one alternative to Notion and Miro. It is deployed via Docker.

  • Docs, whiteboard and database in one
  • Local-first data model
  • Real-time collaboration
  • Edgeless canvas mode

Read the full AFFiNE guide →

Outline

Outline is a fast, collaborative knowledge base and wiki for teams with real-time editing and powerful search. It targets organizations that want a self-hosted documentation hub. It is deployed via Docker with PostgreSQL and Redis.

  • Real-time collaborative editing
  • Fast full-text search
  • SSO and team permissions
  • Slack and API integrations

Read the full Outline guide →

AFFiNE vs Outline: key differences

Both projects are written in TypeScript. Licensing differs — MIT for AFFiNE versus BSL-1.1 for Outline. Outline is the more established project (first released 2017), while AFFiNE arrived in 2022.

Why pick each one

Choose AFFiNE if…

  • Versatile workspace
  • Local-first design
  • Modern UI

Watch out for

  • Self-hosting still maturing
  • Resource intensive
AFFiNE details

Choose Outline if…

  • Polished team wiki
  • Great search
  • Strong integrations

Watch out for

  • Requires Postgres and Redis
  • BSL is not fully open source
Outline details

Frequently asked questions

Is AFFiNE or Outline better?

Neither is universally better. AFFiNE has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are AFFiNE and Outline free and open-source?

Yes. AFFiNE is licensed under MIT and Outline under BSL-1.1. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run AFFiNE and Outline with Docker?

AFFiNE: yes. Outline: yes.

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