HackMD vs HedgeDoc

HackMD

• Developer teams that write documentation in Markdown
• Open communities publishing notes that anyone can read
• Feeding documentation to scripts and AI agents as Markdown

HedgeDoc

• Teams that write in Markdown and keep notes on their own server
• Building and presenting slide decks from Markdown
• Small servers: the project says it runs on a Raspberry Pi

HackMD

• Free team workspaces stop at 3 members; a larger private team pays per seat for Prime.
• Full-text search and PDF export are not on the Free plan, which also limits images to 1 MB each.
• SSO, role-based access control, custom domains, GitLab integration and self-hosting are Enterprise only.
• HackMD is used in the browser on desktop, tablet and phone; the site mentions browser and VS Code extensions rather than native apps.

HedgeDoc

• There is no hosted service: you install it on your own server, from the release bundle or the Docker image, and put a reverse proxy in front of it.
• PDF export was removed because of security vulnerabilities; the FAQ suggests the browser's print-to-PDF function in the meantime.
• Only one server process can run against a database, so the FAQ rules out running several instances side by side.
• The public demo comes with a warning about its reliability and is meant for trying the editor, not for keeping notes.

HackMD

Real-time Markdown editing

Several people edit a note at once with multiple cursors, in an editor that can show the Markdown source, the rendered result or both side by side.

Comments and suggested edits

Notes take in-line and page comments, mentions and suggested edits. Read, write and comment permissions can each be set to owners, signed-in users or everyone.

Version history

Every edit is tracked so an earlier version can be recovered. The Free plan keeps the 10 most recent versions and Prime keeps them all.

GitHub sync

Notes can be pushed to GitHub: 20 pushes a month on the Free plan and unlimited on Prime. GitLab integration is an Enterprise feature.

Slide and book modes

A note can be organized into slides with a special syntax and presented in slide mode, and book mode turns an ordered list of note links into a collection.

API and CLI

Any note can be pulled as Markdown, or written back, through the REST API or CLI. Free workspaces get 400 API calls a month and a Prime team gets 20,000.

HedgeDoc

Collaborative Markdown editing

Notes are written in Markdown and edited by several people in real time. Sharing a note's link is all it takes to bring co-workers in.

Presentation mode

Slides are written in Markdown and presented straight from the browser, powered by reveal.js.

Graphs and diagrams

Notes can include many types of graphs and diagrams as well as embedded content, all written inside the Markdown.

Permissions and revisions

Each note's permissions are set from a dropdown, and revisions keep track of changes so a note can be reverted to any older version.

Sign-in options

The documentation has setup guides for LDAP, OAuth and SAML, and for signing in with GitHub, GitLab, Keycloak, Mattermost, Nextcloud, Authelia and Microsoft Entra ID.

Light server requirements

It needs Node.js 20 or later and a PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB or SQLite database, and the project says it runs smoothly on a Raspberry Pi.

HackMD

• Free$0

  Unlimited notes, up to 3 teammates, 3 invitees, 3 custom templates, GitHub integration with 20 pushes a month, and images up to 1 MB each.

• Prime (personal)$4

  per month, billed yearly ($6 billed monthly)

  For a personal workspace: full-text search, PDF export, unlimited versions, invites, templates and GitHub pushes, and 10K API calls a month.

• Prime (team)$5

  per seat / month, billed annually ($8 billed monthly)

  For a team workspace: seats beyond the 3 free members, the same Prime features, 20 MB image uploads and 20,000 API calls a month.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Adds SSO through SAML or LDAP, role-based access control, a custom domain and homepage, GitLab integration, self-hosting and priority support.

HedgeDoc

• HedgeDoc$0

  The full editor, installed on your own server from the release bundle or the Docker image, with help from the community forum and Matrix chat.

HackMD

• Annual discount

  Lower Prime prices with yearly billing

  A Prime team seat is $5 a month billed annually against $8 billed monthly, shown as a 37.5% saving. Personal Prime is $4 a month billed yearly against $6.

• Nonprofit

  Non-profit sponsorship program

  Non-profits and educational organizations can apply by email for sponsorship. On approval, a free private team can be expanded from 3 to 20 members.

HedgeDoc

No public discounts listed.