SHSelfHostIndex

mdSilo vs Tangent Notes

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?
MD mdSilo Networked note-taking and knowledge base app VS TA Tangent Notes Local-first Markdown note editor with linked notes
FeaturemdSiloTangent Notes
Deploy effortRead-the-docs projectRead-the-docs project
Health score63 · Good75 · Good
CategoryNotes & Knowledge BaseNotes & Knowledge Base
LicenseAGPL-3.0MIT
LanguageTypeScriptTypeScript
Setup difficultyEasyEasy
Min. RAM256 MB256 MB
Deploymentsource, binarysource
GitHub stars★ 851★ 556
First released20222022
ReplacesObsidian, Roam ResearchObsidian, Roam Research

What are mdSilo and Tangent Notes?

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

Tangent Notes

Tangent is a free, local-first note-taking application that stores notes as plain Markdown files and links them together into a connected map. It focuses on capturing and connecting ideas without a cloud dependency.

  • Local-first storage
  • Linked note map
  • Plain Markdown files
  • Session history

mdSilo vs Tangent Notes: key differences

Both projects are written in TypeScript. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for mdSilo versus MIT for Tangent Notes.

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
mdSilo details

Choose Tangent Notes if…

  • Released under the MIT license
  • Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
  • Written in TypeScript
  • Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Tangent Notes details

Frequently asked questions

Is mdSilo or Tangent Notes better?

Neither is universally better. mdSilo has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are mdSilo and Tangent Notes free and open-source?

Yes. mdSilo is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Tangent Notes under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run mdSilo and Tangent Notes with Docker?

mdSilo: check the project docs for container support. Tangent Notes: check the project docs for container support.

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