head to head · open source
Joplin vs Standard Notes
Joplin has 56,994 GitHub stars, 6,390 forks, 652 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Standard Notes has 6,695 stars, 565 forks, 99 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Joplin leads on adoption by 751% (56,994 vs 6,695 stars). Joplin is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; Standard Notes is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0. Joplin has attracted 11% as many forks as stars, Standard Notes 8%. Joplin was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (evernote, 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 | Standard Notes | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 57K | ★ 6.7K |
| License | Custom / other | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 6.4K | ⑂ 565 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Joplin if
- You weight community size — 57K 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 Standard Notes if
- You want the Standard Notes 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 Standard Notes fits your workflow better
About Joplin
Joplin is a free, open source note taking and to do application, which can handle a large number of notes organised into notebooks. The notes are searchable, can be copied, tagged and modified either from the applications directly or from your own text editor. The notes are in Markdown format. Notes exported from Evernote can be imported into Joplin, including the formatted content (which is converted to Markdown), resources (images, attachments, etc.) and complete metadata (geolocation, updated time, created time, etc.). Plain Markdown files can also be imported. Joplin is "offline first", which means you…
read the full Joplin overview →
About Standard Notes
Standard Notes Standard Notes is an end to end encrypted note taking app for digitalists and professionals. Capture your notes, files, and life’s work all in one secure place. Why Standard Notes? End to end encrypted sync. Only you can read your notes. Fast, free, and encrypted cross platform sync on unlimited devices. Public source code with ability to self host your own server in a few easy steps. A strong focus on longevity and sustainability. Learn more. Creating your private notes account 1. Launch the web app at app.standardnotes.com. 2. Click Register to create your private notes account. 3. Download…
read the full Standard Notes overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Joplin or Standard Notes more popular?
Joplin has 56,994 GitHub stars and Standard Notes has 6,695. Joplin has the larger community by that measure.
Are Joplin and Standard Notes free?
Both are open source. Joplin has no licence declared in this registry, and Standard Notes is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Joplin and Standard Notes?
Joplin is written in TypeScript and Standard Notes 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 Standard Notes?
Choose Joplin if you want the larger community (56,994 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose Standard Notes if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.