head to head · open source
Outline vs GitJournal
Outline has 41,158 GitHub stars, 3,652 forks, 78 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. GitJournal has 4,245 stars, 318 forks, 132 open issues and last shipped 5 months ago. Outline leads on adoption by 870% (41,158 vs 4,245 stars). Outline is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; GitJournal is written in Dart under AGPL-3.0. Outline has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, GitJournal 7%. Outline 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
| Outline | GitJournal | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 41K | ★ 4.2K |
| License | Custom / other | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Dart |
| Last push | 2026-11-03 | 2026-05-26 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.7K | ⑂ 318 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Outline if
- You weight community size — 41K 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 GitJournal if
- You want the GitJournal feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Dart
- You evaluated both and GitJournal fits your workflow better
About Outline
A fast, collaborative, knowledge base for your team built using React and Node.js. Try out Outline using our hosted version at www.getoutline.com . This is the source code that runs Outline and all the associated services. If you want to use Outline then you don't need to run this code, A hosted version of the app is offered at getoutline.com. You can also find documentation on using Outline in our guide. If you'd like to run your own copy of Outline or contribute to development then this is the place for you. Installation Please see the documentation for running your own copy of Outline in a production…
read the full Outline overview →
About GitJournal
Mobile first Markdown Notes integrated with Git Summary GitJournal is a note taking app focused on privacy and data portability. It stores all its notes in a standardized Markdown + YAML header format (optional). The notes are stored in a Git Repo of your choice GitHub / Gitlab / Custom provider. This means you can easily self host or host your notes in one of the many Git providers. Screenshots Migrating from Existing Apps Google Keep Day One Classic Narrate Simplenote Contributing Please feel free to open an issue for any bug or feature request. Additionally, you can vote on existing Issues by reacting with a…
read the full GitJournal overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Outline or GitJournal more popular?
Outline has 41,158 GitHub stars and GitJournal has 4,245. Outline has the larger community by that measure.
Are Outline and GitJournal free?
Both are open source. Outline has no licence declared in this registry, and GitJournal is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Outline and GitJournal?
Outline is written in TypeScript and GitJournal in Dart. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Outline or GitJournal?
Choose Outline if you want the larger community (41,158 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose GitJournal if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.