BookStack vs An Otter Wiki (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, BookStack grades higher than An Otter Wiki: 2.8 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
BookStack grades higher on value for money, the free plan and features. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
BookStack
Free self-hosted wiki organized into books, chapters and pages
An Otter Wiki
Minimal self-hosted wiki powered by Python, Markdown and Git
Which one is for you
Pick BookStack if
- Fits if you want a free wiki on your own server and someone can run it
- Works for companies that need LDAP, SAML2 or OIDC sign-in without paying for it
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if nobody on the team can look after a PHP app and its database
- Not for you if you want a hosted wiki you just sign up for, because BookStack doesn't run one
- Pricey if you need support with a promised reply, which starts at £450 a year before VAT
- Watch out: it needs PHP 8.2 or later and MySQL 8.0 or MariaDB 10.6, and shared PHP hosting isn't supported
- Skip it if you want phone or desktop apps or many integrations; diagrams.net is the one listed
Pick An Otter Wiki if
- Fits if you want a plain wiki whose pages live as Markdown in a Git repo
- Works for small teams with a server and no budget for a hosted wiki
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a hosted service, because the site describes none
- Not for you if you rely on embeds, which are labeled experimental
- Too light for a large company wiki, since the listing shows accounts but no wider admin features
- Watch out: support is through GitHub issues
How we grade them
| 2.8GPABookStackGood | 2.0GPAAn Otter WikiFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AIt costs nothing. The whole application is MIT licensed with no paid edition at all, so there's no tier to climb; the only thing on sale is support, from £450 a year, and you can do without it. | C$0 under the MIT license, but you host it on your own server, so it sits in the middle for value. |
| Free plan and trial | AFree outright with nothing held back, LDAP, SAML2 and OIDC sign-in and multi-factor authentication included, and no cap a team would reach. Free support is the community, with no promise of a reply. | BFree with no paid plan, and one person could run it. You supply the server. |
| Features | BBooks, chapters and pages for structure, a WYSIWYG editor with an optional Markdown one, search inside a book or across the lot, links to any paragraph, diagrams.net drawing in the editor, page revisions, roles and permissions, and a documented API. The wiki job, covered. | CMarkdown editor, Git backend, page history, attachments and user accounts. It does the wiki job fully but it's a small one, and embeds are experimental. |
| Ease of use | DYou host it yourself, and that's the whole difficulty: a server running PHP 8.2 or later with MySQL 8.0 or MariaDB 10.6, and shared PHP hosting is ruled out. There's no hosted version to sign up for instead. | DNo store rating on record. It is installed on your own server, so there is setup and upkeep. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with no phone or desktop apps on record and diagrams.net the one integration listed. Every install does document an API covering pages, chapters, books, shelves and attachments. | CWeb only. Git is the only integration named, and no phone or desktop apps. |
| Best for | a free wiki on your own server | a small wiki backed by Git |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: BookStack and An Otter Wiki. How we grade
Price against what you get
BookStack starts at about $50.25 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. An Otter Wiki has no paid plan and scores 1.7.
BookStack scores higher, and starts $50.25 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other docs and wiki tools on the chart, 37 score higher than BookStack for less, and none scores higher than An Otter Wiki for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- BookStack also covers templates and diagrams.
At a glance
| BookStack | An Otter Wiki | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free |
| Starts at | £450 per year for an optional support plan; the software itself is free | Free |
| Free plan | The whole application is free and MIT licensed, with no cost to download and install your own instance. Community support carries no assurance of a response. | Free and open source under the MIT license; you host it yourself. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Dan Brown | An Otter Wiki |
| Price read from | bookstackapp.com | otterwiki.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
BookStack
- There is no official hosted version: you install and maintain it yourself, which takes some knowledge of hosting a PHP application and database.
- It needs PHP 8.2 or later with MySQL 8.0 or MariaDB 10.6 or later, and shared PHP hosting is not supported.
- Paid support is priced in pounds, at £450 or £4,500 a year before VAT; free community support has no assured response.
An Otter Wiki
- It is self-hosted only; the site describes no hosted service.
- Embeds are labeled experimental.
- Support is through GitHub issues, per the contributing section.
Key features
BookStack
- Books, chapters and pages
- All content sits in a three-level structure of books, chapters and pages, and pages can be re-sorted across books.
- WYSIWYG and Markdown editors
- Pages are written in a simple WYSIWYG editor by default. An optional Markdown editor shows a live preview as you write.
- Search and paragraph links
- Search works within a single book or across every book, chapter and page, and any paragraph can be linked to directly.
- Built-in diagrams
- The page editor has diagrams.net drawing built in, so diagrams can be created without leaving the documentation.
- Roles, permissions and sign-in
- A role and permission system locks down content and actions. Sign-in supports OIDC, SAML2 and LDAP besides email and password, and multi-factor authentication can be enforced per role.
- Revisions and API
- Page revisions and image management are built in, and each instance documents an API covering pages, chapters, books, shelves and attachments.
An Otter Wiki
- Git backend
- Full changelog and page history, with an optional Git web server.
- Markdown editor
- Editor tools for Markdown, with tables, footnotes, alerts, formulas and mermaid diagrams.
- Attachments
- Files can be uploaded to pages and images pasted straight into the editor.
- User accounts
- Self-registration and password recovery are supported.
- Embeds
- Experimental embeds include page indexes, data tables, includes and video.
Plans
BookStack
BookStack (self-hosted)Free
The full application on your own server, with community support through the project's discussions, Codeberg and Reddit.
Professional Support Plan£450
per year, VAT not included
Email and help-desk support covering installation and updating issues, with high-priority handling of bug and issue reports.
Enterprise Support Plan£4,500
per year, VAT not included
Everything in Professional, plus highest-priority handling, help with API integrations and up to 10 hours of video support a year.
An Otter Wiki
Open source$0
The whole wiki under an MIT license, self-hosted.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, BookStack or An Otter Wiki?
As of Nov 13, 2026, An Otter Wiki is cheaper to start with: it is free, against about $50.25 a month for BookStack. BookStack starts at £450 per year for an optional support plan; the software itself is free, and An Otter Wiki is free.
Which has a free plan, BookStack or An Otter Wiki?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both BookStack and An Otter Wiki have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.