AppFlowy Cloud vs Trilium Notes Next
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | AppFlowy Cloud | Trilium Notes Next |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 15 · At risk | 15 · At risk |
| Status | Archived | Archived |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Rust | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,004 | ★ 2,926 |
| First released | 2023 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Notion | Evernote, OneNote, Notion |
What are AppFlowy Cloud and Trilium Notes Next?
AppFlowy Cloud
AppFlowy Cloud is the self-hostable backend service that powers collaboration and sync for the AppFlowy open-source workspace and note-taking application. It lets teams keep documents and data on their own servers.
- Self-hosted sync backend
- Real-time collaboration
- Document storage
- Open-source server
Trilium Notes Next
TriliumNext is the actively maintained community continuation of Trilium Notes, a hierarchical note-taking application for building large personal knowledge bases. It supports rich text, code notes, and scripting.
- Hierarchical note tree
- Rich text and code notes
- Scripting and automation
- Note encryption
AppFlowy Cloud vs Trilium Notes Next: key differences
Note that both projects' repositories are archived — neither is actively developed. AppFlowy Cloud is written in Rust, while Trilium Notes Next is built with TypeScript. Trilium Notes Next is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for AppFlowy Cloud.
Why pick each one
Choose AppFlowy Cloud if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
Choose Trilium Notes Next if…
- Excellent for large knowledge bases
- Powerful and extensible
Watch out for
- Steeper learning curve
- Primarily single-user
Frequently asked questions
Is AppFlowy Cloud or Trilium Notes Next better?
Neither is universally better. Trilium Notes Next has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are AppFlowy Cloud and Trilium Notes Next free and open-source?
Yes. AppFlowy Cloud is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Trilium Notes Next under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run AppFlowy Cloud and Trilium Notes Next with Docker?
AppFlowy Cloud: yes. Trilium Notes Next: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, AppFlowy Cloud or Trilium Notes Next?
Trilium Notes Next has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for AppFlowy Cloud. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.