Notesnook vs SiYuan
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Notesnook
Private, end-to-end encrypted note-taking app
VS
SiYuan
Privacy-first personal knowledge management system
| Feature | Notesnook | SiYuan |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 94 · Excellent | 100 · Excellent |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 14,628 | ★ 46,488 |
| First released | 2021 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Evernote, OneNote, Notion | Notion, Evernote |
What are Notesnook and SiYuan?
Notesnook
Notesnook is an open-source, privacy-focused note-taking app with end-to-end encryption on all notes. Its sync server can be self-hosted so users keep complete control of their encrypted data.
- End-to-end encrypted notes
- Self-hostable sync server
- Rich text editor
- Cross-platform apps
SiYuan
SiYuan is an open-source, privacy-first personal knowledge management system that supports block-level references and bidirectional links. It can run locally or be self-hosted for access across devices.
- Block-level referencing
- Bidirectional links
- Self-hosted or local mode
- End-to-end encrypted sync
Notesnook vs SiYuan: key differences
Both projects are written in TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Notesnook versus AGPL-3.0 for SiYuan. SiYuan has the considerably larger community, at 46,488 GitHub stars versus 14,628.
Why pick each one
Choose Notesnook if…
- Strong privacy by default
- Polished apps on all platforms
Watch out for
- Self-hosting is relatively new
- Some features tied to subscription
Choose SiYuan if…
- Powerful block-based model
- Works offline and self-hosted
Watch out for
- Documentation strongest in Chinese
- Some advanced features are paid
Frequently asked questions
Is Notesnook or SiYuan better?
Neither is universally better. SiYuan has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Notesnook and SiYuan free and open-source?
Yes. Notesnook is licensed under GPL-3.0 and SiYuan under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Notesnook and SiYuan with Docker?
Notesnook: yes. SiYuan: yes.