AppFlowy vs Memos

Last reviewed Aug 26, 2026 · 548 words

Directories file both of these under "Notion alternatives," but only AppFlowy is actually competing with Notion. Memos is competing with Google Keep, Apple Notes, and the chat channel where you message yourself links. Deciding between them is less about features than about naming which of those two habits you are trying to self-host.

Two different jobs

AppFlowy (AGPL-3.0, 75,954 stars, started 2021) is a workspace: Notion-style blocks, databases with views, wikis, and project management, wrapped in native cross-platform apps built in Dart, with mobile clients and offline-first, local data storage. You go there to structure things — a trip plan, a team wiki, a content calendar.

Memos (MIT, 62,536 stars, started 2022) is a stream: a timeline of Markdown notes with tags, filtering, and a REST API, deliberately closer to a private microblog than a document system. You go there to get a thought out of your head in under ten seconds. The catalogue tags it single-user for a reason — it is a personal tool first.

Self-hosting effort is not close

Memos is about as easy as self-hosting gets: one container, SQLite inside, 64 MB of RAM minimum, rated Easy. It will run indefinitely on hardware you forgot you owned, alongside whatever else lives on the box.

AppFlowy is more layered. The apps themselves are local-first and work fine without a server; what you self-host is the sync backend that keeps devices and collaborators in step. That backend is the newest part of the project — the catalogue flags it as still maturing — and it wants 1,024 MB minimum at Medium difficulty. Expect occasional migration work as the project moves fast; the flip side is genuinely active development toward a full Notion replacement.

Honest failure modes

Memos falls over exactly where you would guess: it is not for long structured documents, and organization tops out at tags and search. Try to write a 3,000-word design doc with nested sections in it and you will resent it within the hour.

AppFlowy's weakness is the inverse: capture friction. Opening a workspace app, picking a location, and creating a page is a heavy ritual for "buy oat milk," which is how workspace tools end up as beautifully organized graveyards. Its maturity also lags its ambition — some Notion features you may rely on arrive gradually.

Decision table

What I'd do

Deploy Memos today whichever way you lean — at 64 MB and one container the trial is effectively free, and quick capture is a habit that improves every other system you keep, including topping up an AppFlowy workspace later. Add AppFlowy only once you have a concrete structured use in mind, because a workspace adopted without a purpose becomes clutter. If you are weighing AppFlowy against its closest true rival instead, that matchup is AFFiNE vs AppFlowy, and the wider field lives in the notes category.