Mayan EDMS vs Papermerge

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted document management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
FeatureMayan EDMSPapermerge
CategoryDocument ManagementDocument Management
LicenseApache-2.0Apache-2.0
LanguagePythonPython
Setup difficultyHardMedium
Min. RAM2,048 MB1,024 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metal, sourcedocker, bare-metal, source
GitHub stars★ 1,100★ 521
First released20112017
ReplacesDocuWare, M-FilesEvernote, DEVONthink

Why pick each one

Choose Mayan EDMS if…

  • Powerful workflow engine
  • Enterprise-grade features
Mayan EDMS details

Choose Papermerge if…

  • Familiar folder structure
  • Good PDF handling
Papermerge details

Frequently asked questions

Is Mayan EDMS or Papermerge better?

Neither is universally better. Mayan EDMS has the larger community, while Papermerge is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.

Are Mayan EDMS and Papermerge free and open-source?

Yes. Mayan EDMS is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Papermerge under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Mayan EDMS and Papermerge with Docker?

Mayan EDMS: yes. Papermerge: yes.

Related comparisons