Notabase vs NoteDiscovery
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
NoteDiscovery
Self-hosted Markdown knowledge base with graph view
| Feature | Notabase | NoteDiscovery |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 73 · Good | 87 · Excellent |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | source, bare-metal | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 912 | ★ 2,812 |
| First released | 2021 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Roam Research, Obsidian | Obsidian, Notion |
What are Notabase and NoteDiscovery?
Notabase
Notabase is an open-source personal knowledge base that connects notes through links and block references to support networked thinking. It offers a WYSIWYG editor and can be self-hosted on a Supabase backend.
- Linked notes and block references
- WYSIWYG rich-text editor
- Markdown export
- Self-hostable on Supabase
NoteDiscovery
NoteDiscovery is a self-hosted Markdown knowledge base featuring wikilinks, a graph view, a drawing editor, and LaTeX and Mermaid rendering. It is designed for building and exploring a connected personal knowledge base.
- Wikilinks and graph view
- Drawing editor
- LaTeX and Mermaid support
- Self-hosted knowledge base
Notabase vs NoteDiscovery: key differences
Notabase is written in TypeScript, while NoteDiscovery is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Notabase versus MIT for NoteDiscovery. NoteDiscovery is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Notabase. Notabase is the more established project (first released 2021), while NoteDiscovery arrived in 2024. NoteDiscovery has the considerably larger community, at 2,812 GitHub stars versus 912. NoteDiscovery lists first-class Docker deployment; Notabase does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Notabase if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Written in TypeScript
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Choose NoteDiscovery if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.8k GitHub stars)
- Written in JavaScript
Frequently asked questions
Is Notabase or NoteDiscovery better?
NoteDiscovery is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Notabase if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Notabase and NoteDiscovery free and open-source?
Yes. Notabase is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and NoteDiscovery under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Notabase and NoteDiscovery with Docker?
Notabase: check the project docs for container support. NoteDiscovery: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Notabase or NoteDiscovery?
NoteDiscovery has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Notabase. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.