head to head · open source
docusaurus vs flatnotes
docusaurus has 66,641 GitHub stars, 10,125 forks, 430 open issues and last shipped yesterday. flatnotes has 3,272 stars, 222 forks, 124 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. docusaurus leads on adoption by 1,937% (66,641 vs 3,272 stars). docusaurus is written in TypeScript under MIT; flatnotes is written in Vue under MIT. docusaurus has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, flatnotes 7%. docusaurus 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
| docusaurus | flatnotes | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 67K | ★ 3.3K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | Vue |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-08-29 |
| Forks | ⑂ 10K | ⑂ 222 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick docusaurus if
- You weight community size — 67K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick flatnotes if
- You want the flatnotes feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Vue
- You evaluated both and flatnotes fits your workflow better
About docusaurus
Docusaurus Introduction Docusaurus is a project for building, deploying, and maintaining open source project websites easily. Short on time? Check out our 5 minute tutorial ⏱️! Tip : use docusaurus.new to test Docusaurus immediately in a playground. Simple to Start Docusaurus is built in a way so that it can get running in as little time as possible. We've built Docusaurus to handle the website build process so you can focus on your project. Localizable Docusaurus ships with localization support via CrowdIn. Empower and grow your international community by translating your documentation. Customizable While…
read the full docusaurus overview →
About flatnotes
A self hosted, database less note taking web app that utilises a flat folder of markdown files for storage. Log into the demo site and take a look around. Note: This site resets every 15 minutes. Contents Design Principle Features Getting Started Hosted Self Hosted Roadmap Contributing Sponsorship Thanks Design Principle flatnotes is designed to be a distraction free note taking app that puts your note content first. This means: A clean and simple user interface. No folders, notebooks or anything like that. Just all of your notes, backed by powerful search and tagging functionality. Quick access to a full text…
read the full flatnotes overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is docusaurus or flatnotes more popular?
docusaurus has 66,641 GitHub stars and flatnotes has 3,272. docusaurus has the larger community by that measure.
Are docusaurus and flatnotes free?
Both are open source. docusaurus is licensed under MIT and flatnotes under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between docusaurus and flatnotes?
docusaurus is written in TypeScript and flatnotes in Vue. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, docusaurus or flatnotes?
Choose docusaurus if you want the larger community (66,641 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose flatnotes if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.