mdSilo vs org-roam
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | mdSilo | org-roam |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 63 · Good | 68 · Good |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Emacs Lisp |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | source, binary | source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 851 | ★ 6,030 |
| First released | 2022 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Obsidian, Roam Research | Roam Research, Obsidian |
What are mdSilo and org-roam?
mdSilo
mdSilo is an open-source note-taking and personal knowledge management application that supports backlinks, a graph view, and Markdown editing. It can run on the desktop or be self-hosted as a web app for personal use.
- Bidirectional backlinks
- Graph visualization
- Markdown editor
- Built-in RSS reader
org-roam
Org-roam is a plain-text personal knowledge management system for Emacs that brings Zettelkasten-style note-taking on top of Org-mode files. It maintains a database of links between notes for backlinks and graph views.
- Zettelkasten workflow
- Backlinks panel
- Org-mode based
- Link graph
mdSilo vs org-roam: key differences
MdSilo is written in TypeScript, while org-roam is built with Emacs Lisp. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for mdSilo versus GPL-3.0 for org-roam. Org-roam is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for mdSilo. Org-roam is the more established project (first released 2020), while mdSilo arrived in 2022. Org-roam has the considerably larger community, at 6,030 GitHub stars versus 851.
Why pick each one
Choose mdSilo if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in TypeScript
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Choose org-roam if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Mature project with 6k GitHub stars
- Written in Emacs Lisp
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is mdSilo or org-roam better?
Neither is universally better. org-roam has the larger community, while mdSilo is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are mdSilo and org-roam free and open-source?
Yes. mdSilo is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and org-roam under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run mdSilo and org-roam with Docker?
mdSilo: check the project docs for container support. org-roam: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, mdSilo or org-roam?
org-roam has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for mdSilo. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.