# Joplin vs TriliumNext Notes

> Pick Joplin if you want native desktop and mobile apps with end-to-end encrypted sync; pick TriliumNext if you want a deeply hierarchical personal knowledge base you host yourself.

## Verdict

Joplin is the better note app for everyday use across phone and laptop: it has native apps everywhere, Markdown notes and many sync targets. TriliumNext is a knowledge-base tool for people who want note trees, cloning, attributes, scripting and a self-hosted server, and who are fine using the mobile web interface on phones.

- Best for Joplin: Markdown note-taking across desktop and mobile with encrypted sync
- Best for TriliumNext Notes: Building a large, scriptable personal knowledge base on your own server

## Key differences

| Aspect | Joplin | TriliumNext Notes |
|---|---|---|
| License | AGPL-3.0-or-later for the apps; Joplin Server uses its own Personal Use License | AGPL-3.0 |
| Architecture | Local-first apps that sync through Joplin Server, Nextcloud, WebDAV, Dropbox, OneDrive, S3 or a folder | Desktop app (Electron) or self-hosted server with a web UI; notes stored in SQLite and synced to your server |
| Mobile apps | Official Android and iOS apps | No native app; a touch-optimized mobile web frontend served by your server |
| Standout features | End-to-end encryption, web clipper, plugins, Markdown editor plus rich text editor | Note cloning in multiple places, attributes, relation maps, per-note encryption, JavaScript scripting |
| Learning curve | Low: notebooks and notes like any other note app | Moderate to high: the tree, attributes and scripting reward time spent learning them |

## GitHub numbers

| Metric | Joplin | TriliumNext Notes |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | 56,611 | 38,217 |
| Forks | 6,316 | 2,570 |
| Commits, last 12 months | 2,019 | 16,949 |
| Last commit | Oct 5, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
| Latest release | v3.7.21 | v0.106.0 |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| License type | Open source | Open source |
| Language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Docker image | No | Yes |
| Repository | https://github.com/laurent22/joplin | https://github.com/TriliumNext/Trilium |

App pages: [Joplin](https://appsgit.com/apps/joplin), [TriliumNext Notes](https://appsgit.com/apps/triliumnext-notes)

## FAQ

### Does TriliumNext have a mobile app?

Not a native one. You use the mobile web interface of a TriliumNext server installation, which is optimized for touch screens.

### Do I need a server to use Joplin?

No. Joplin works fully offline, and you only need a sync target if you want notes on several devices. Joplin Server, Nextcloud, WebDAV and several cloud drives all work.

### Is TriliumNext the same as Trilium Notes?

TriliumNext is the community continuation of Trilium Notes after the original author stepped back. Later TriliumNext versions changed the sync protocol, so check the migration notes before upgrading an old install.

---

Canonical page: https://appsgit.com/compare/joplin-vs-triliumnext-notes
Source: appsgit (https://appsgit.com), the app store for github. Data from the GitHub API, refreshed nightly.
Machine access: JSON API https://appsgit.com/api/v1/apps (OpenAPI: https://appsgit.com/openapi.json), MCP server https://mcp.appsgit.com/mcp, full index https://appsgit.com/llms-full.txt.