Overleaf vs WBO
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted office suites options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Overleaf
Online real-time collaborative LaTeX editor
VS
WBO
Online collaborative whiteboard for sketching
| Feature | Overleaf | WBO |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Office Suites | Office Suites |
| License | AGPL-3.0-or-later | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 18,007 | ★ 2,627 |
| First released | 2023 | 2013 |
| Replaces | — | Miro, Microsoft Whiteboard |
Why pick each one
Choose Overleaf if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0-or-later license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Mature project with 18k GitHub stars
- Written in JavaScript
Choose WBO if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.6k GitHub stars)
Frequently asked questions
Is Overleaf or WBO better?
Neither is universally better. Overleaf has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Overleaf and WBO free and open-source?
Yes. Overleaf is licensed under AGPL-3.0-or-later and WBO under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Overleaf and WBO with Docker?
Overleaf: check the project docs for container support. WBO: yes.