Many Notes vs SilverBullet
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Many Notes
Markdown note-taking web app designed for simplicity
VS
SilverBullet
Hackable note-taking for the self-hosted web
| Feature | Many Notes | SilverBullet |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 83 · Excellent | 91 · Excellent |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,087 | ★ 6,142 |
| First released | 2024 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Obsidian, Notion | Notion, Obsidian |
What are Many Notes and SilverBullet?
Many Notes
Many Notes is a self-hosted Markdown note-taking web application built with Laravel. It supports multiple vaults per user, links and backlinks, tags, templates, and OAuth login from many providers.
- Multiple vaults per user
- Links, backlinks, and tags
- Smart Markdown editor
- Wide OAuth provider support
SilverBullet
SilverBullet is an extensible, Markdown-based note-taking web app that you can run on your own server and access from any browser. It targets users who want a programmable personal knowledge tool. It is deployed via Docker or Deno.
- Markdown-based with live queries
- Extensible via Space Script
- Works offline as a PWA
- Plain file storage
Many Notes vs SilverBullet: key differences
Many Notes is written in PHP, while SilverBullet is built with TypeScript. SilverBullet is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Many Notes. SilverBullet is the more established project (first released 2022), while Many Notes arrived in 2024. SilverBullet has the considerably larger community, at 6,142 GitHub stars versus 1,087.
Why pick each one
Choose Many Notes if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.1k GitHub stars)
- Written in PHP
Choose SilverBullet if…
- Highly hackable
- Lightweight
- Files stay portable
Watch out for
- Niche and DIY-oriented
- Smaller community
Frequently asked questions
Is Many Notes or SilverBullet better?
SilverBullet is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Many Notes if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Many Notes and SilverBullet free and open-source?
Yes. Many Notes is licensed under MIT and SilverBullet under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Many Notes and SilverBullet with Docker?
Many Notes: yes. SilverBullet: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Many Notes or SilverBullet?
SilverBullet has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Many Notes. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.