BookStack vs Notable
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
BookStack
Simple self-hosted documentation and wiki platform
VS
Notable
Markdown-based note-taking app for plain files
| Feature | BookStack | Notable |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 96 · Excellent | 28 · At risk |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 19,050 | ★ 23,496 |
| First released | 2017 | 2018 |
| Replaces | Confluence, Notion | Evernote, Notion |
What are BookStack and Notable?
BookStack
BookStack is a self-hosted platform for organizing and storing documentation in a books, chapters, and pages structure. It targets teams that want an approachable wiki without complexity. It is deployed via Docker or a LAMP stack.
- Books, chapters and pages structure
- WYSIWYG and Markdown editors
- Roles, permissions and SSO
- Full-text search
Notable
Notable is a note-taking application that stores notes as plain Markdown files on disk. It offers a clean editor, tags, and full-text search while keeping all data in portable files.
- Plain Markdown file storage
- Tag-based organization
- Full-text search
- Clean editor
BookStack vs Notable: key differences
BookStack is written in PHP, while Notable is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — MIT for BookStack versus AGPL-3.0 for Notable. Notable is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for BookStack. BookStack lists first-class Docker deployment; Notable does not.
Why pick each one
Choose BookStack if…
- Very easy to learn
- Clean organized structure
- Good permissions
Watch out for
- Rigid structure for some
- Fewer integrations than rivals
Choose Notable if…
- Notes stay as portable files
- Simple and focused
Watch out for
- Development has slowed
- Desktop only
Frequently asked questions
Is BookStack or Notable better?
Neither is universally better. Notable has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are BookStack and Notable free and open-source?
Yes. BookStack is licensed under MIT and Notable under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run BookStack and Notable with Docker?
BookStack: yes. Notable: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, BookStack or Notable?
Notable has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for BookStack. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.