head to head · open source
Open-Notebook vs Blinko
Open-Notebook has 39,087 GitHub stars, 4,527 forks, 110 open issues and last shipped 5 days ago. Blinko has 11,020 stars, 782 forks, 418 open issues and last shipped 22 days ago. Open-Notebook leads on adoption by 255% (39,087 vs 11,020 stars). Open-Notebook is written in TypeScript under MIT; Blinko is written in TypeScript under GPL-3.0. Open-Notebook has attracted 12% as many forks as stars, Blinko 7%. Open-Notebook was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (notebook), 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
| Open-Notebook | Blinko | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 39K | ★ 11K |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-13 | 2026-08-27 |
| Forks | ⑂ 4.5K | ⑂ 782 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Open-Notebook if
- You weight community size — 39K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Blinko if
- You want the Blinko feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the GPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Blinko fits your workflow better
About Open-Notebook
Open Notebook is an open source, privacy focused research notebook that replicates and extends Google’s Notebook LM functionality. It runs locally or self hosted, letting users manage AI powered research workflows without surrendering data to cloud providers. Built with TypeScript, Next.js, React, SurrealDB, and LangChain, it targets researchers, students, and knowledge workers seeking control over their data and tools.
read the full Open-Notebook overview →
About Blinko
Blinko is AI powered note taking app. It lives in Productivity & Utilities / Note Taking & Knowledge Management category. Project targets individuals who need quick capture and organization of fleeting thoughts. It stores notes as plain text with Markdown. It supports self hosted deployment, so users keep notes and data in their own environment. Project uses TypeScript and GPL 3.0 license. GitHub metadata lists 11011 stars, 780 forks, and last push 2026 08 27. Project has 418 open issues. README lists live demo, official site, and documents.
read the full Blinko overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Open-Notebook or Blinko more popular?
Open-Notebook has 39,087 GitHub stars and Blinko has 11,020. Open-Notebook has the larger community by that measure.
Are Open-Notebook and Blinko free?
Both are open source. Open-Notebook is licensed under MIT and Blinko under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Open-Notebook and Blinko?
Open-Notebook is written in TypeScript and Blinko 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, Open-Notebook or Blinko?
Choose Open-Notebook if you want the larger community (39,087 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose Blinko if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.