HelixNotes vs Joplin

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

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.

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Joplin

Privacy-focused, open-source note-taking and to-do app with end-to-end encryption and multi-device sync.

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Side-by-side comparison

	HelixNotes	Joplin
License	AGPL-3.0	—
Self-hostable	No	Yes
GitHub Stars	155	56,559
Forks	15	6,313
Open Issues	57	641
Last Commit	Jul 23, 2026	Oct 2, 2026
First Released	Feb 9, 2026	Jan 16, 2017
Categories	Note Taking & Knowledge Management Tools	Note Taking & Knowledge Management Tools
Tags	#markdown #notes #knowledge-management #productivity #privacy	#note taking #markdown #encryption #self hosted

GitHub stars over time

HelixNotes

Joplin56,559

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