Anytype vs Notea
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Anytype
Local-first encrypted knowledge workspace
VS
Notea
Archived
Self-hosted note-taking app stored on S3
| Feature | Anytype | Notea |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 92 · Excellent | 15 · At risk |
| Status | Actively maintained | Archived |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 8,844 | ★ 2,147 |
| First released | 2023 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Notion | Notion, Evernote |
What are Anytype and Notea?
Anytype
Anytype is a local-first, encrypted knowledge management app for notes, tasks, and objects with a flexible data model. It targets users wanting a private Notion-like tool. It uses peer-to-peer sync and an optional self-hosted sync node.
- Local-first encrypted storage
- Flexible object-based model
- Peer-to-peer sync
- Self-hostable sync node
Notea
Notea is an open-source, self-hosted note-taking application with a Notion-like editor that stores all data on S3-compatible object storage. It runs serverlessly and requires no traditional database.
- Notion-like editor
- Stores data on S3
- No database required
- Markdown support
Anytype vs Notea: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Notea's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Anytype is actively maintained. Both projects are written in TypeScript. Notea is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Anytype. Notea is the more established project (first released 2021), while Anytype arrived in 2023. Anytype has the considerably larger community, at 8,844 GitHub stars versus 2,147.
Why pick each one
Choose Anytype if…
- Strong privacy model
- Flexible structure
- Works offline
Watch out for
- Self-hosting sync is advanced
- Ecosystem still young
Choose Notea if…
- Simple storage model
- Clean editing experience
Watch out for
- Development has slowed
- Single-user focused
Frequently asked questions
Is Anytype or Notea better?
Neither is universally better. Anytype has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Anytype and Notea free and open-source?
Yes. Anytype is licensed under MIT and Notea under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Anytype and Notea with Docker?
Anytype: yes. Notea: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Anytype or Notea?
Notea has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Anytype. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.