head to head · open source
SiYuan vs Docmost
SiYuan has 46,409 GitHub stars, 3,012 forks, 18 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Docmost has 21,710 stars, 1,567 forks, 326 open issues and last shipped yesterday. SiYuan leads on adoption by 114% (46,409 vs 21,710 stars). SiYuan is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; Docmost is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. SiYuan has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, Docmost 7%. SiYuan was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (knowledge-base), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
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
| SiYuan | Docmost | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 46K | ★ 22K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 1.6K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick SiYuan if
- You weight community size — 46K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Docmost if
- You want the Docmost feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Docmost fits your workflow better
About SiYuan
SiYuan is an open source, self hosted knowledge management system built for privacy first workflows. It operates as a local first workspace where users store data in encrypted repositories on their own infrastructure, avoiding reliance on third party cloud services. The project lives in the productivity and utilities ecosystem, specifically targeting note taking and knowledge management use cases, and positions itself as a privacy respecting alternative to Notion.
read the full SiYuan overview →
About Docmost
Docmost is an open source collaborative wiki and documentation software written in TypeScript and licensed under the AGPL 3.0 license. It positions itself as an open alternative to Atlassian Confluence and Notion, and its tagline describes it as a self hosted wiki with AI, compliance, and real time editing. The project lives in the knowledge management and note taking ecosystem, where teams manage documentation and knowledge base content.
read the full Docmost overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is SiYuan or Docmost more popular?
SiYuan has 46,409 GitHub stars and Docmost has 21,710. SiYuan has the larger community by that measure.
Are SiYuan and Docmost free?
Both are open source. SiYuan is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Docmost under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between SiYuan and Docmost?
SiYuan is written in TypeScript and Docmost in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, SiYuan or Docmost?
Choose SiYuan if you want the larger community (46,409 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Docmost if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.