AppFlowy vs Tangent Notes
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?
AppFlowy
Open-source workspace and Notion alternative
VS
Tangent Notes
Local-first Markdown note editor with linked notes
| Feature | AppFlowy | Tangent Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Dart | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 75,074 | ★ 534 |
| First released | 2021 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Notion, Evernote | Obsidian, Roam Research |
Why pick each one
Choose Tangent Notes if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in TypeScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is AppFlowy or Tangent Notes better?
Neither is universally better. AppFlowy has the larger community, while Tangent Notes is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are AppFlowy and Tangent Notes free and open-source?
Yes. AppFlowy is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Tangent Notes under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run AppFlowy and Tangent Notes with Docker?
AppFlowy: yes. Tangent Notes: check the project docs for container support.