HedgeDoc vs Outline
We give HedgeDoc a 3.0 GPA and Outline a 3.4, out of 4.0. HedgeDoc grades higher on the free plan. Outline grades higher on features and 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.
Outline
Fast team knowledge base and wiki, cloud-hosted or self-hosted
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAHedgeDocVery good | 3.4GPAOutlineVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree and open source under the AGPL 3.0 license. The project's site lists no hosted or paid edition, so there's nothing to buy. | A$10 a month for the whole team, up to 10 members, with SSO, AI answers, the API and the audit log all in. Most rivals charge about that per person. The next tier, 11 to 100 members, is $79, and that's still a flat fee. |
| Free plan and trial | AThe full editor is free to install from the release bundle or the Docker image, with help from the community forum and Matrix chat. The public demo is only for trying it out, not for keeping notes. | BThe self-hosted Community Edition is $0 with unlimited docs, real-time editing, SSO and the API, but no AI answers, guest users or support. On the cloud there's no free plan: you get 30 days, then the workspace turns read-only until you add a payment method. |
| Features | BReal-time Markdown editing, slides powered by reveal.js, graphs and diagrams written in the note, per-note permissions and revisions you can revert to. Solid for a Markdown editor. But PDF export was removed because of security vulnerabilities. | AA Markdown editor with slash commands and embeds, live co-editing with comments and threads, workspace search with AI answers, groups and permissions, public sharing on your own domain, and unlimited documents and version history on every tier. |
| Ease of use | DThere's no hosted service. You install it on your own server, with Node.js 20 or later and a database, and put a reverse proxy in front of it. After that, sharing a link is all it takes to bring people in. | BNo app rating on record. The cloud version means no server to run, and the editor takes Markdown and slash commands. Self-hosting is there if you want it, and that's a bigger job. |
| Platforms and integrations | BIt runs in any browser from your own server. The connections on record are for sign-in and storage: GitHub, GitLab, Nextcloud, Keycloak, Microsoft Entra ID and MinIO among them. No phone or desktop apps. | BWeb plus desktop apps for macOS and Windows, with more than 20 integrations including Slack, Figma, GitHub and Zapier, and an API with webhooks on every tier. No mobile apps are listed. |
| Best for | Markdown notes and slides on your own server | a Markdown-friendly team wiki at a flat price |
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: HedgeDoc and Outline. How we grade
Where they differ
- HedgeDoc is free. Outline starts at $10 per month for a team of 1 to 10 members (cloud-hosted).
- Only Outline lists macOS and Windows apps.
- HedgeDoc also covers notes, diagrams and presentations.
- Outline also covers AI search and wiki.
At a glance
| HedgeDoc | Outline | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free plan |
| Starts at | Free | $10 per month for a team of 1 to 10 members (cloud-hosted) |
| Free plan | HedgeDoc is free and open source under the AGPL 3.0 license. You install it on your own server; a public demo instance exists only for trying it out. | The self-hosted Community Edition costs $0, with limited features and no support. The cloud-hosted version has no free plan, only a 30-day trial. |
| Free trial | None listed | First 30 days free on the cloud version; the workspace then turns read-only until a payment method is added |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Made by | HedgeDoc Project | General Outline, Inc. |
| Price read from | hedgedoc.org | getoutline.com |
| Checked | Oct 6, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Who each one suits
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
Outline
- Teams that want a fast, Markdown-friendly internal wiki
- Organizations that need to host their knowledge base themselves
- Small teams: cloud hosting is a flat $10 a month for up to 10 members
Worth knowing
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.
Outline
- The cloud version has no free plan: after the 30-day trial the workspace is read-only until a payment method is added.
- Cloud pricing goes by team-size tier, so an 11th member moves a team from $10 to $79 a month, and teams over 200 need a quote.
- The free Community Edition lacks AI answers, guest users, SAML 2.0 and the audit log; paid self-hosted licenses need at least 10 users.
- The download page offers desktop apps for macOS and Windows only; no mobile apps are listed.
Key features
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.
Outline
- Markdown-friendly editor
- The editor supports Markdown, slash commands and interactive embeds. Documents and their version history are unlimited on every tier, including the free Community Edition.
- Real-time collaboration
- Several people can edit a document at the same time, and comments, threads and @mentions keep the discussion attached to the text.
- Search and AI answers
- Search covers the whole workspace, and questions about your documents get direct AI answers. AI answers are in every cloud tier but need a paid license when self-hosting.
- Permissions and public sharing
- Read and write permissions, user groups and guest users control access. Documents can be shared publicly by link, with your own brand colors, logo and domain.
- Self-hosting
- Outline can run on your own infrastructure, either as the free Community Edition or with a paid Business or Enterprise license that adds features such as SAML 2.0.
- Integrations and API
- More than 20 integrations cover tools such as Slack, Figma, GitHub, GitLab and Zapier, and an API with webhooks is included on every tier.
Plans
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.
Outline
Community Edition$0
Self-hosted on your own server: unlimited docs, real-time editing, SSO, integrations and the API, with no AI answers, guest users or support.
Cloud, 1–10 members$10
per month for the whole team; annual pricing available
Hosted by Outline with every cloud feature: AI question answering, SSO, templates, groups and permissions, API and webhooks, and a security audit log.
Cloud, 11–100 members$79
per month for the whole team; annual pricing available
The same features as the smaller tier. A team moves to this tier automatically once it has more than 10 members.
Cloud, 101–200 members$249
per month for the whole team; annual pricing available
The same features for 101 to 200 members. Larger cloud teams are asked to contact Outline for pricing.
On-Premises Business$4
per user / month, billed annually, 10-user minimum
Self-hosted license that adds AI question answering, guest users, SAML 2.0, extra security controls, a Confluence importer and the audit log.
On-Premises Enterprise$5
per user / month, billed annually, 100-user minimum
Everything in On-Premises Business, plus removal of Outline branding and a support contract.
Ways to pay less
HedgeDoc
No public discounts listed.
Outline
- Nonprofit
30% off for non-profits
Outline's pricing FAQ offers non-profits a 30% discount on request, and says it will sponsor accounts for non-profits working directly on climate change.
- Education
30% off for educational institutions
The same pricing FAQ extends the 30% discount to educational institutions that contact Outline.
