Athens Research vs SilverBullet
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Athens Research | SilverBullet |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 22 · At risk | 91 · Excellent |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | EPL-1.0 | MIT |
| Language | Clojure | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 6,298 | ★ 6,142 |
| First released | 2020 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Roam Research, Obsidian | Notion, Obsidian |
What are Athens Research and SilverBullet?
Athens Research
Athens is an open-source knowledge graph and networked note-taking tool inspired by Roam Research, supporting block references and bidirectional links. It can be self-hosted with a multiplayer server for shared knowledge bases.
- Block references
- Bidirectional links
- Multiplayer self-hosting
- Knowledge graph view
SilverBullet
SilverBullet is an extensible, Markdown-based note-taking web app that you can run on your own server and access from any browser. It targets users who want a programmable personal knowledge tool. It is deployed via Docker or Deno.
- Markdown-based with live queries
- Extensible via Space Script
- Works offline as a PWA
- Plain file storage
Athens Research vs SilverBullet: key differences
Athens Research is written in Clojure, while SilverBullet is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — EPL-1.0 for Athens Research versus MIT for SilverBullet. SilverBullet is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Athens Research. Athens Research is the more established project (first released 2020), while SilverBullet arrived in 2022.
Why pick each one
Choose Athens Research if…
- Released under the EPL-1.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 6.3k GitHub stars
- Written in Clojure
Choose SilverBullet if…
- Highly hackable
- Lightweight
- Files stay portable
Watch out for
- Niche and DIY-oriented
- Smaller community
Frequently asked questions
Is Athens Research or SilverBullet better?
Neither is universally better. Athens Research has the larger community, while SilverBullet is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Athens Research and SilverBullet free and open-source?
Yes. Athens Research is licensed under EPL-1.0 and SilverBullet under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Athens Research and SilverBullet with Docker?
Athens Research: yes. SilverBullet: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Athens Research or SilverBullet?
SilverBullet has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Athens Research. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.