head to head · open source
SiYuan vs Khoj
SiYuan has 46,409 GitHub stars, 3,012 forks, 18 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Khoj has 37,390 stars, 2,483 forks, 148 open issues and last shipped 2 months ago. SiYuan leads on adoption by 24% (46,409 vs 37,390 stars). SiYuan is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; Khoj is written in Python under AGPL-3.0. SiYuan has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, Khoj 7%. SiYuan 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
| SiYuan | Khoj | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 46K | ★ 37K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-08-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 2.5K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick SiYuan if
- You weight community size — 46K stars and counting
- You want the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Khoj if
- You want the Khoj feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and Khoj fits your workflow better
About SiYuan
SiYuan is an open source, self hosted knowledge management system built for privacy first workflows. It operates as a local first workspace where users store data in encrypted repositories on their own infrastructure, avoiding reliance on third party cloud services. The project lives in the productivity and utilities ecosystem, specifically targeting note taking and knowledge management use cases, and positions itself as a privacy respecting alternative to Notion.
read the full SiYuan overview →
About Khoj
Khoj is a self hostable, open source AI second brain written in Python that turns any local or online large language model into a personal research, automation, and agent platform for individuals, small teams, and enterprises that want their documents and queries kept under their own control.
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Frequently asked questions
Is SiYuan or Khoj more popular?
SiYuan has 46,409 GitHub stars and Khoj has 37,390. SiYuan has the larger community by that measure.
Are SiYuan and Khoj free?
Both are open source. SiYuan is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Khoj under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between SiYuan and Khoj?
SiYuan is written in TypeScript and Khoj in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, SiYuan or Khoj?
Choose SiYuan if you want the larger community (46,409 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Khoj if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.