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flatnotes vs TriliumNext Notes: catalog facts
flatnotes	TriliumNext Notes
Free Free to self-host from the public GitHub repository.	Free Free and open source under the AGPL 3.0.
Web, Self-hosted	Windows, macOS, Linux, Web, Self-hosted
No database; notes are plain Markdown files Flat folder storage is easy to back up or sync	Cloning puts one note in several places without copying it Rich text, code notes, canvases, Mermaid diagrams and relation maps
Requires running your own server Flat folder structure offers little hierarchy for large collections	Notes live in a database, not plain files, so lock-in is real The interface is dense and takes a while to get comfortable with
Self-hosted	Downloadable app, Self-hosted
Open source	Open source
License not stated	License: AGPL-3.0
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 24, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.