BookStack vs Wikidot (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, BookStack grades higher than Wikidot: 2.8 against 2.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
BookStack grades higher on the free plan and features. Wikidot grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money 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
Wikidot
Hosted wiki sites with free and paid accounts
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 Wikidot if
- Fits if you run a community wiki or hobby project on a tight budget
- Works for a small group that wants a private wiki for up to 5 members free
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: free accounts show ads you cannot control
- Tight if you want an API or custom layout, as both are paid
- Watch out: prices are in US dollars for customers outside the EU, and EU customers see euro prices with 23% VAT
- Watch out: Community Sites cannot be made private and are only for approved sites
How we grade them
| 2.8GPABookStackGood | 2.6GPAWikidotGood | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | APro Lite is $49.90 a year, about $4.16 a month, under 60% of the category's cheapest quarter at $4.20. Pro is $119.90 and Pro Plus $239.90 a year. |
| 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. | BA free account with 5 sites, 300 MB per site, unlimited pages and revisions, and private sites for up to 5 members. Ads are shown with no control over them. |
| 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. | CWiki pages with full history, members and roles, themes and domains, and private sites. Gaps: the XML-RPC API and custom layout are paid, and extra sites and storage are sold in packs. |
| 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. | CNo store rating on record. Wikidot has its own markup and layout to learn, and permissions and themes are yours to set up. |
| 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, with an XML-RPC API on the paid plans. No apps or integrations are listed. |
| Best for | a free wiki on your own server | hosted wikis for communities and small teams |
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 Wikidot. 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. Wikidot starts at $4.16 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.0.
They score the same, and Wikidot starts $46.09 a month lower. Of the other docs and wiki tools on the chart, 32 score higher than BookStack for less, and 5 score higher than Wikidot 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 is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- BookStack also covers Markdown, templates and diagrams.
At a glance
| BookStack | Wikidot | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | £450 per year for an optional support plan; the software itself is free | $49.90 per year |
| 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 account: 5 sites, 300 MB of storage per site, unlimited pages and revisions, private sites with up to 5 members, community support. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Dan Brown | Wikidot Inc. |
| Price read from | bookstackapp.com | wikidot.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Nov 12, 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.
Wikidot
- Paid prices are US dollars for customers outside the EU; EU customers see euro prices that include 23% VAT.
- Free accounts show ads with no control over them, and the API and custom layout are paid features.
- Community Sites cannot be made private and are only for approved sites.
- Extra sites and storage are sold in 5-slot packs: $59.90 a year.
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.
Wikidot
- Wiki pages with full history
- Every plan has unlimited pages and unlimited revisions per page.
- Members, roles and permissions
- Advanced membership, roles and permissions are available on all plans, including the free one.
- Custom themes and domains
- Custom CSS themes, custom domain mapping and HTTPS are on every plan.
- Private sites
- Sites can be made private, with a member cap that rises by plan.
- XML-RPC API
- The paid plans include an XML-RPC API.
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.
Wikidot
Free$0
5 sites with 300 MB of storage each, 25 MB files and private sites for up to 5 members. Ads are shown with no control over them.
Pro Lite$49.90
per year (US dollars, outside the EU)
5 sites and 30 GB of storage, private sites for up to 10 members, custom layout and an XML-RPC API.
Pro$119.90
per year (US dollars, outside the EU)
10 sites and 100 GB of storage, private sites for up to 20 members, web traffic statistics and email support.
Pro Plus$239.90
per year (US dollars, outside the EU)
30 sites and 200 GB of storage, unlimited private-site members, a custom footer and priority email support.
Community Site$0
For approved, high-quality community sites: practically unlimited storage, traffic and members, with priority email support.
Ways to pay less
BookStack
No public discounts listed.
Wikidot
- Other savings
Free Community Site status
Wikidot gives approved, high-quality community-driven sites practically unlimited resources at no charge.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, BookStack or Wikidot?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Wikidot is cheaper to start with: $4.16 a month when paid by the year, 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 Wikidot starts at $49.90 per year.
Which has a free plan, BookStack or Wikidot?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both BookStack and Wikidot 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.