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Notesnook vs SiYuan

Learn how Notesnook and SiYuan differ in their key features, development activity, technology stack and community adoption, so you can decide which of these note-taking tools is best for you.

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Favicon of Notesnook

Notesnook

End-to-end encrypted note-taking app with zero-knowledge architecture, cross-device sync, web clipper, and a self-hostable sync server.
14,455stars+126(+0.9%)

Last 30 days

Sponsor Notesnook onopencollective.com
Screenshot of Notesnook
Favicon of SiYuan

SiYuan

Personal knowledge management system with WYSIWYG block editing, bidirectional links, spaced repetition flashcards, a relational database, and end-to-end encrypted sync.
45,943stars+552(+1.2%)

Last 30 days

Sponsor SiYuan onld246.com
Screenshot of SiYuan

Detailed Comparison

SiYuan appears to have several advantages over Notesnook, particularly in popularity and growth. Consider your specific needs regarding popularity, growth, activity, technology, maturity, licensing and features when making your decision.

SiYuan wins
Community & Popularity

SiYuan significantly outpaces Notesnook in community adoption with 45,943 stars compared to 14,455 stars on GitHub. This 3.2x difference suggests SiYuan has a much larger and more active community. In terms of developer contributions, SiYuan has 2,960 forks, indicating strong developer engagement.

SiYuan wins
Growth Momentum

SiYuan is growing faster, adding 552 stars in the last 30 days (+1.2%) against adding 126 stars for Notesnook (+0.9%). SiYuan is both larger and pulling further ahead.

Comparable
Development Activity

Both projects show recent activity, with Notesnook last updated 3 days ago and SiYuan 9 hours ago.

Comparable
Technology Stack

Both tools share common technology foundations, being built with JavaScript, CSS, Typescript. However, they differ in their additional technology choices: Notesnook uses JSX, C, Objective-C, Java, Swift, Ruby, Kotlin, MATLAB, Remix while SiYuan leverages Bash, Python, SCSS, Golang.

Comparable
Project Maturity

Both projects started around the same time, with Notesnook beginning 5 years ago and SiYuan 6 years ago.

Comparable
Licensing

The projects use different licenses: Notesnook is licensed under GPL-3.0 while SiYuan uses AGPL-3.0. Consider the licensing requirements when choosing for your project.

Comparable
Use Cases & Features

Both tools serve similar use cases in Note-Taking, Personal Knowledge Management (PKM). However, they also have distinct specializations: Notesnook also focuses on Secure & Encrypted Notes.

Comparable
Hosting & Deployment

Both Notesnook and SiYuan offer self-hosting capabilities, giving you full control over your data and infrastructure.