Tangent Notes vs Outline
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?
Tangent Notes
Local-first Markdown note editor with linked notes
VS
Outline
Team knowledge base and wiki
| Feature | Tangent Notes | Outline |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | MIT | BSL-1.1 |
| Language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | source | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 534 | ★ 40,034 |
| First released | 2022 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Obsidian, Roam Research | Notion, Confluence |
Why pick each one
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
Frequently asked questions
Is Tangent Notes or Outline better?
Neither is universally better. Outline has the larger community, while Tangent Notes is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Tangent Notes and Outline free and open-source?
Yes. Tangent Notes is licensed under MIT and Outline under BSL-1.1. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Tangent Notes and Outline with Docker?
Tangent Notes: check the project docs for container support. Outline: yes.