Mark Text vs Turtl
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?
Mark Text
Real-time preview Markdown editor for the desktop
VS
Turtl
Encrypted note-taking and bookmarking for privacy
| Feature | Mark Text | Turtl |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 59,781 | ★ 632 |
| First released | 2017 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Typora | Evernote, Google Keep |
Why pick each one
Choose Mark Text if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 59.8k GitHub stars
- Written in TypeScript
Frequently asked questions
Is Mark Text or Turtl better?
Mark Text is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Turtl if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Mark Text and Turtl free and open-source?
Yes. Mark Text is licensed under MIT and Turtl under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Mark Text and Turtl with Docker?
Mark Text: check the project docs for container support. Turtl: check the project docs for container support.