head to head · open source
Outline vs iwe
Outline has 40,671 GitHub stars, 3,576 forks, 78 open issues and last shipped today. iwe has 1,715 stars, 88 forks, 1 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. Outline leads on adoption by 2,271% (40,671 vs 1,715 stars). Outline is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; iwe is written in Rust under Apache-2.0. Outline has attracted 9% as many forks as stars, iwe 5%. 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 | iwe | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 41K | ★ 1.7K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Rust |
| Last push | 2026-09-23 | 2026-09-20 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.6K | ⑂ 88 |
| 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 iwe if
- You want the iwe feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Rust
- You evaluated both and iwe fits your workflow better
About Outline
Outline is an open source knowledge base application built with React and Node.js, designed for teams needing a fast, collaborative documentation platform. It runs as a self hosted service or via a hosted option at getoutline.com, and its source code powers the public instance along with all supporting services. The project lives in the JavaScript/TypeScript ecosystem and uses MobX for state management.
read the full Outline overview →
About iwe
IWE is a local first Rust tool that turns a directory of Markdown files into a knowledge graph, serving the same notes to your editor through a language server and to AI agents through a CLI and MCP server — it is built for anyone who wants database style queries over plain notes they continue to own.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Outline or iwe more popular?
Outline has 40,671 GitHub stars and iwe has 1,715. Outline has the larger community by that measure.
Are Outline and iwe free?
Both are open source. Outline has no licence declared in this registry, and iwe is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Outline and iwe?
Outline is written in TypeScript and iwe in Rust. 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 iwe?
Choose Outline if you want the larger community (40,671 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose iwe if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.