Feather Wiki vs Zim
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted wikis & documentation options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Feather Wiki
Tiny single-file personal wiki for note taking
VS
Zim
A desktop wiki and personal knowledge base
| Feature | Feather Wiki | Zim |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Wikis & Documentation | Wikis & Documentation |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 32 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 900 | ★ 2,194 |
| First released | 2021 | 2008 |
| Replaces | Notion, TiddlyWiki | OneNote, Notion |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Feather Wiki or Zim better?
Neither is universally better. Zim has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Feather Wiki and Zim free and open-source?
Yes. Feather Wiki is licensed under MIT and Zim under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Feather Wiki and Zim with Docker?
Feather Wiki: check the project docs for container support. Zim: check the project docs for container support.