Docspell vs Teedy
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted document management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Docspell
Personal document organizer with automatic metadata
VS
Teedy
Open-source document management system for teams
| Feature | Docspell | Teedy |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 72 · Good | 67 · Good |
| Category | Document Management | Document Management |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | Elm | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,333 | ★ 2,566 |
| First released | 2019 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Evernote, DEVONthink | Evernote, SharePoint |
What are Docspell and Teedy?
Docspell
Docspell is a personal document organizer that automatically suggests tags, correspondents, and dates for uploaded files. It performs OCR and full-text search so you can quickly find any document.
- Automatic metadata suggestions
- OCR and full-text search
- Correspondent detection
- Multi-user support
Teedy
Teedy, formerly Sismics Docs, is an open-source document management system for organizing scanned and digital documents. It offers full-text search, OCR, tagging, and granular access control for teams.
- Document management
- OCR and full-text search
- Tagging and workflows
- LDAP and access control
Docspell vs Teedy: key differences
Docspell is written in Elm, while Teedy is built with Java. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Docspell versus GPL-2.0 for Teedy. Teedy is the lighter option, starting around 1,024 MB of RAM against 2,048 MB for Docspell. Teedy is the more established project (first released 2016), while Docspell arrived in 2019.
Why pick each one
Choose Docspell if…
- Smart automatic organization
- Powerful search
Watch out for
- JVM memory usage
- Multiple components to run
Choose Teedy if…
- Good team features
- Mature codebase
Watch out for
- Java memory footprint
- Interface feels dated
Frequently asked questions
Is Docspell or Teedy better?
Neither is universally better. Teedy has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Docspell and Teedy free and open-source?
Yes. Docspell is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Teedy under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Docspell and Teedy with Docker?
Docspell: yes. Teedy: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Docspell or Teedy?
Teedy has the smaller minimum footprint at 1,024 MB of RAM, compared to about 2,048 MB for Docspell. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.