head to head · open source
Joplin vs Darkwrite
Joplin has 56,416 GitHub stars, 6,296 forks, 632 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Darkwrite has 315 stars, 14 forks, 8 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. Joplin leads on adoption by 17,810% (56,416 vs 315 stars). Joplin is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; Darkwrite is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. Joplin has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, Darkwrite 4%. Joplin was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (electron, javascript), 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
| Joplin | Darkwrite | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 56K | ★ 315 |
| License | Custom / other | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-15 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.3K | ⑂ 14 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Joplin if
- You weight community size — 56K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Darkwrite if
- You want the Darkwrite 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 Darkwrite fits your workflow better
About Joplin
Joplin is a free, open source, privacy focused note taking and to do application that keeps notes as Markdown on your own device and synchronises them, end to end encrypted, across Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS.
read the full Joplin overview →
About Darkwrite
Darkwrite is an open source, cross platform desktop note taking application written in TypeScript and built on Electron, made for people who want to write notes without distraction, accounts, or a server holding their data.
read the full Darkwrite overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Joplin or Darkwrite more popular?
Joplin has 56,416 GitHub stars and Darkwrite has 315. Joplin has the larger community by that measure.
Are Joplin and Darkwrite free?
Both are open source. Joplin has no licence declared in this registry, and Darkwrite is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Joplin and Darkwrite?
Joplin is written in TypeScript and Darkwrite 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, Joplin or Darkwrite?
Choose Joplin if you want the larger community (56,416 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose Darkwrite if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.