Compare / Logseq vs Joplin
Logseq vs Joplin
Pick Logseq if you want a Roam-shaped local-first graph (the published Roam stack). Pick Joplin if you want AGPL clients and a sync target you choose — do not deploy Joplin Server for a company.
Facts checked 21 Oct 2026. License, language, and GitHub activity come from the catalog or the project's own repo. "Not in the catalog row" means the public catalog dump does not store that number.
Logseq in the catalog Joplin in the catalog Start on Railway
How they compare
| Logseq | Joplin | |
|---|---|---|
| License | AGPL-3.0 (catalog) source | GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 (catalog; clients). Joplin Server is personal-use — not OSI. source |
| Language | Clojure (catalog) | TypeScript (catalog) |
| GitHub activity | 45,324 stars in the catalog source | 56,785 stars in the catalog source |
| Self-host | Published as /stacks/logseq-roam. Local-first Markdown/Org. Sync via Git or a folder you control. | AGPL clients. Sync to a target you pick. Do not deploy Joplin Server for a company. |
| Best for | A Roam-shaped graph. | AGPL notes on every device. |
Self-hosting and resource needs
Logseq is on /stacks/logseq-roam. Joplin is already on /best/notes-apps and /compare/joplin-vs-obsidian. Capture notes stay on /stacks/memos-notes. Official Obsidian Sync stays skipped.
FAQ
- Is this Obsidian?
- No. Obsidian is not open source — /compare/joplin-vs-obsidian. Official Sync stays skipped.
- Logseq or TriliumNext?
- /compare/logseq-vs-trilium. TriliumNext is a tree, not a graph.
- Are these free?
- Logseq is AGPL-3.0. Joplin clients are AGPL. You pay disk. Joplin Server is not the company path.
- How do I deploy Logseq?
- Open /stacks/logseq-roam. Keep notes as files. Sync via Git or a folder you already back up.
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