head to head · open source
AppFlowy vs SurfSense
AppFlowy has 78,112 GitHub stars, 6,160 forks, 1,030 open issues and last shipped 6 days ago. SurfSense has 16,717 stars, 1,597 forks, 130 open issues and last shipped yesterday. AppFlowy leads on adoption by 367% (78,112 vs 16,717 stars). AppFlowy is written in Dart under AGPL-3.0; SurfSense is written in Python under Apache-2.0. AppFlowy has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, SurfSense 10%. SurfSense was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| AppFlowy | SurfSense | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 78K | ★ 17K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Dart | Python |
| Last push | 2026-10-28 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.2K | ⑂ 1.6K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick AppFlowy if
- You weight community size — 78K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Dart
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick SurfSense if
- You want the SurfSense feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and SurfSense fits your workflow better
About AppFlowy
AppFlowy ⭐️ The Open Source Alternative To Notion ⭐️ AppFlowy is the AI workspace where you achieve more without losing control of your data Website • Forum • Discord • Reddit • Twitter User Installation Download AppFlowy Desktop (macOS, Windows, and Linux) Other channels: FlatHub, Snapcraft, Sourceforge Available on App Store: iPhone Play Store: Android 10 or above; ARMv7 is not supported Self hosting AppFlowy Source Built With Flutter Rust Stay Up to Date Getting Started with development Please view the documentation for OS specific development instructions Roadmap AppFlowy Roadmap ReadMe AppFlowy Public…
read the full AppFlowy overview →
About SurfSense
English Español Português हिन्दी 简体中文 SurfSense: The Open Source NotebookLM Alternative for Open Web Research SurfSense is the open source NotebookLM alternative for AI agents , an open web research platform with live data connectors. Your agents research the live web with structured data from Reddit, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Amazon, Walmart, Google Maps, Google Search, Indeed, and any page on the open web , through one REST API or MCP server . Scheduled and event triggered agents turn what they find into briefs and alerts, and a built in knowledge base keeps every finding searchable with citations. [!NOTE]…
read the full SurfSense overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is AppFlowy or SurfSense more popular?
AppFlowy has 78,112 GitHub stars and SurfSense has 16,717. AppFlowy has the larger community by that measure.
Are AppFlowy and SurfSense free?
Both are open source. AppFlowy is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and SurfSense under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between AppFlowy and SurfSense?
AppFlowy is written in Dart and SurfSense in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, AppFlowy or SurfSense?
Choose AppFlowy if you want the larger community (78,112 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose SurfSense if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.