CherryTree vs Dnote

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?
FeatureCherryTreeDnote
CategoryNotes & Knowledge BaseNotes & Knowledge Base
LicenseGPL-3.0AGPL-3.0
LanguageC++Go
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM128 MB128 MB
Deploymentbinary, sourcedocker, binary, source
GitHub stars★ 3,925★ 3,051
First released20092017
ReplacesOneNote, EvernoteEvernote, Simplenote

Why pick each one

Choose CherryTree if…

  • Highly portable single-file notes
  • Good for structured notes
CherryTree details

Choose Dnote if…

  • Stays out of the way for developers
  • Quick capture from terminal
Dnote details

Frequently asked questions

Is CherryTree or Dnote better?

Neither is universally better. CherryTree has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are CherryTree and Dnote free and open-source?

Yes. CherryTree is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Dnote under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run CherryTree and Dnote with Docker?

CherryTree: check the project docs for container support. Dnote: yes.

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