Files.md vs HelixNotes

Comparing two open source alternatives to Notion and Obsidian and Evernote . Use the comparison below to decide which one fits your needs.

Files.md

MIT

A simple local-first note-taking app for your plain .md files with Telegram bot access.

Visit Full details

HelixNotes

AGPL-3.0

A fast, privacy-first local markdown note-taking app built with Tauri and SvelteKit. Your notes stay as plain .md files on your device.

Visit Full details

Side-by-side comparison

	Files.md	HelixNotes
License	MIT	AGPL-3.0
Self-hostable	Yes	No
GitHub Stars	3,778	135
Forks	196	11
Open Issues	5	49
Last Commit	Jun 27, 2026	Jul 3, 2026
First Released	May 23, 2023	Feb 9, 2026
Categories	Note Taking & Knowledge Management Tools	Note Taking & Knowledge Management Tools
Tags	#markdown #notes #local-first #pwa #wiki	#markdown #notes #knowledge-management #productivity #privacy

Similar open source alternatives

AppFlowy

Open source Notion alternative that brings projects, wikis, and teams together with AI while keeping you in control of your data.

Alternative to:

Notion

Jotty

Lightweight self-hosted app for managing personal file-based notes and checklists.

Alternative to:

Notion

Outline

The fastest growing-team knowledge base — beautiful, realtime collaborative, feature packed, and markdown compatible Notion and Confluence alternative.

Alternative to:

Notion

memos

A modern, open-source, self-hosted knowledge management and note-taking platform designed for privacy-conscious users and organizations.

Alternative to:

Obsidian

AFFiNE

Open-source knowledge base combining note-taking, whiteboard, and project planning in one workspace.

Alternative to:

Notion

SilverBullet

Markdown-based note-taking app with powerful live queries, templates, and a pluggable scripting system for power users.

Alternative to:

Notion