TriliumNext Notes vs VNote
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?
TriliumNext Notes
Cross-platform hierarchical note taking application with focus on
VS
VNote
Markdown note-taking application built for programmers
| Feature | TriliumNext Notes | VNote |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | TypeScript | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes | bare-metal, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 37,298 | ★ 12,885 |
| First released | 2026 | 2017 |
| Replaces | — | Evernote, OneNote |
Why pick each one
Choose TriliumNext Notes if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 37.3k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is TriliumNext Notes or VNote better?
Neither is universally better. TriliumNext Notes has the larger community, while VNote is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are TriliumNext Notes and VNote free and open-source?
Yes. TriliumNext Notes is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and VNote under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run TriliumNext Notes and VNote with Docker?
TriliumNext Notes: yes. VNote: check the project docs for container support.