Flatnotes vs Trilium Notes
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Flatnotes
Self-hosted, database-less note-taking web app
VS
Trilium Notes
Hierarchical note-taking for building knowledge bases
| Feature | Flatnotes | Trilium Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | ≈5-minute setup |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 99 · Excellent |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Vue | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,230 | ★ 37,958 |
| First released | 2021 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Evernote, Simplenote | Evernote, Notion |
What are Flatnotes and Trilium Notes?
Flatnotes
Flatnotes is a self-hosted web application for taking notes, with a focus on simplicity and storing all notes as flat Markdown files. It has no database and keeps notes easy to back up and access.
- Flat Markdown file storage
- No database required
- Full-text search
- Clean minimal interface
Trilium Notes
Trilium Notes is a hierarchical note-taking application designed for building large personal knowledge bases with rich linking and scripting. It targets power users who want a structured second brain. It is deployed via Docker as a server with desktop and web clients.
- Deep hierarchical note tree
- Note attributes and relations
- Scripting and automation
- Encrypted protected notes
Flatnotes vs Trilium Notes: key differences
Flatnotes is written in Vue, while Trilium Notes is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — MIT for Flatnotes versus AGPL-3.0 for Trilium Notes. Flatnotes is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Trilium Notes. Trilium Notes is the more established project (first released 2017), while Flatnotes arrived in 2021. Trilium Notes has the considerably larger community, at 37,958 GitHub stars versus 3,230.
Why pick each one
Choose Flatnotes if…
- Trivial to back up
- Very lightweight
Watch out for
- Basic feature set
- Single-user oriented
Choose Trilium Notes if…
- Powerful for big knowledge bases
- Flexible structure
- Scriptable
Watch out for
- Steep learning curve
- Single-user oriented
Frequently asked questions
Is Flatnotes or Trilium Notes better?
Neither is universally better. Trilium Notes has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Flatnotes and Trilium Notes free and open-source?
Yes. Flatnotes is licensed under MIT and Trilium Notes under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Flatnotes and Trilium Notes with Docker?
Flatnotes: yes. Trilium Notes: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Flatnotes or Trilium Notes?
Flatnotes has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Trilium Notes. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.