Gollum vs OutWiker
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?
Gollum
A simple, Git-powered wiki with a sweet API
VS
OutWiker
Tree-structured notes and wiki desktop application
| Feature | Gollum | OutWiker |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Wikis & Documentation | Wikis & Documentation |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Ruby | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary, docker, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 14,308 | ★ 330 |
| First released | 2010 | 2010 |
| Replaces | Confluence, Notion | Notion, OneNote |
Why pick each one
Choose OutWiker if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in Python
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Gollum or OutWiker better?
Neither is universally better. Gollum has the larger community, while OutWiker is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Gollum and OutWiker free and open-source?
Yes. Gollum is licensed under MIT and OutWiker under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Gollum and OutWiker with Docker?
Gollum: yes. OutWiker: check the project docs for container support.