head to head · open source
SiYuan vs Blinko
SiYuan has 46,409 GitHub stars, 3,012 forks, 18 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Blinko has 11,020 stars, 782 forks, 418 open issues and last shipped 22 days ago. SiYuan leads on adoption by 321% (46,409 vs 11,020 stars). SiYuan is written in TypeScript under AGPL-3.0; Blinko is written in TypeScript under GPL-3.0. SiYuan has attracted 6% as many forks as stars, Blinko 7%. SiYuan was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (markdown, self-hosted), 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
| SiYuan | Blinko | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 46K | ★ 11K |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-08-27 |
| Forks | ⑂ 3.0K | ⑂ 782 |
| 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 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 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 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 SiYuan or Blinko more popular?
SiYuan has 46,409 GitHub stars and Blinko has 11,020. SiYuan has the larger community by that measure.
Are SiYuan and Blinko free?
Both are open source. SiYuan is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Blinko under GPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between SiYuan and Blinko?
SiYuan 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, SiYuan or Blinko?
Choose SiYuan if you want the larger community (46,409 stars) or its AGPL-3.0 licence terms. Choose Blinko if its feature set, stack or GPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.