SHSelfHostIndex

Flatnotes vs Mindforger Web

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?
FL Flatnotes Self-hosted, database-less note-taking web app VS MI Mindforger Web Thinking notebook combining notes with mind mapping
FeatureFlatnotesMindforger Web
CategoryNotes & Knowledge BaseNotes & Knowledge Base
LicenseMITGPL-3.0
LanguageVueTypeScript
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM128 MB256 MB
Deploymentdocker, sourcebare-metal, binary
GitHub stars★ 3,172★ 4,049
First released20212016
ReplacesEvernote, SimplenoteEvernote

Why pick each one

Choose Flatnotes if…

  • Trivial to back up
  • Very lightweight
Flatnotes details

Choose Mindforger Web if…

  • Developer-friendly
  • Files you control
Mindforger Web details

Frequently asked questions

Is Flatnotes or Mindforger Web better?

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

Are Flatnotes and Mindforger Web free and open-source?

Yes. Flatnotes is licensed under MIT and Mindforger Web under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Flatnotes and Mindforger Web with Docker?

Flatnotes: yes. Mindforger Web: check the project docs for container support.

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