head to head · open source
docsify vs open-knowledge
docsify has 31,513 GitHub stars, 5,789 forks, 94 open issues and last shipped yesterday. open-knowledge has 4,241 stars, 279 forks, 38 open issues and last shipped yesterday. docsify leads on adoption by 643% (31,513 vs 4,241 stars). docsify is written in JavaScript under MIT; open-knowledge is written in TypeScript under GPL-3.0. docsify has attracted 18% as many forks as stars, open-knowledge 7%. open-knowledge was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (docs), 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
| docsify | open-knowledge | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 32K | ★ 4.2K |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.8K | ⑂ 279 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick docsify if
- You weight community size — 32K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick open-knowledge if
- You want the open-knowledge feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and open-knowledge fits your workflow better
About docsify
Docsify is a client side documentation site generator that turns one or more Markdown files into a website with no build process, aimed at developers and maintainers who want to publish documentation from a static host such as GitHub Pages.
read the full docsify overview →
About open-knowledge
OpenKnowledge is a markdown IDE and LLM wiki tool in the Content & Publishing / Documentation & Knowledge Base category. It is written in TypeScript, licensed under GPL 3.0, and listed on GitHub with 4214 stars, 275 forks, and 38 open issues. It is an AI native editor for knowledge bases, LLM wikis, specs, and notes, and it is described as private, local, and free.
read the full open-knowledge overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is docsify or open-knowledge more popular?
docsify has 31,513 GitHub stars and open-knowledge has 4,241. docsify has the larger community by that measure.
Are docsify and open-knowledge free?
Both are open source. docsify is licensed under MIT and open-knowledge under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between docsify and open-knowledge?
docsify is written in JavaScript and open-knowledge 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, docsify or open-knowledge?
Choose docsify if you want the larger community (31,513 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose open-knowledge if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.