head to head · open source
Joplin vs NotallyX
Joplin has 56,478 GitHub stars, 6,305 forks, 651 open issues and last shipped today. NotallyX has 743 stars, 50 forks, 297 open issues and last shipped 4 days ago. Joplin leads on adoption by 7,501% (56,478 vs 743 stars). Joplin is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; NotallyX is written in Kotlin under GPL-3.0. Joplin has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, NotallyX 7%. Joplin was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (android, note-taking), 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 | NotallyX | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 56K | ★ 743 |
| License | Custom / other | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Kotlin |
| Last push | 2026-09-25 | 2026-09-21 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.3K | ⑂ 50 |
| 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 NotallyX if
- You want the NotallyX feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Kotlin
- You evaluated both and NotallyX 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 NotallyX
NotallyX is a minimalistic, open source Android note taking and task list application written in Kotlin under the GPL 3.0 licence, aimed at Android users who want a lightweight local notes app and who are willing to install and back it up themselves — it is the extended fork of the original Notally app.
read the full NotallyX overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Joplin or NotallyX more popular?
Joplin has 56,478 GitHub stars and NotallyX has 743. Joplin has the larger community by that measure.
Are Joplin and NotallyX free?
Both are open source. Joplin has no licence declared in this registry, and NotallyX is licensed under GPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Joplin and NotallyX?
Joplin is written in TypeScript and NotallyX in Kotlin. 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 NotallyX?
Choose Joplin if you want the larger community (56,478 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose NotallyX if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.