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Plainpad vs flatnotes: catalog facts
Plainpad	flatnotes
Freemium Free and open source; Markdown editing and offline mode are paid add-ons via custom…	Free Free to self-host from the public GitHub repository.
Web, Self-hosted	Web, Self-hosted
Optional encryption of note content in the database Unlimited users	No database; notes are plain Markdown files Flat folder storage is easy to back up or sync
Markdown editing and offline mode are paid extras Plain-text notes only in the free version	Requires running your own server Flat folder structure offers little hierarchy for large collections
Self-hosted	Self-hosted
Open source	Open source
License: GPL-3.0	License not stated
Not stated if an account is needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 24, 2026

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