HedgeDoc vs Trilium Notes (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Trilium Notes grades higher than HedgeDoc: 3.2 against 2.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 6, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Trilium Notes grades higher on ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Trilium Notes
Open-source hierarchical note-taking and personal knowledge base
Free
Which one is for you
Pick HedgeDoc if
- Fits if your team writes in Markdown and wants its notes on its own server
- Works for people who would rather write slide decks in Markdown
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if nobody can run a server, because there's no hosted version to sign up for
- Not for you if you export to PDF a lot, since that feature was removed and the FAQ points to print-to-PDF
- Too light for big deployments, as only one server process can run against a database
- Watch out: the public demo carries a reliability warning and isn't for keeping notes
- Skip it if you want phone or desktop apps or an API, as none are on record
Pick Trilium Notes if
- Fits if you want your notes on your own computer with no account
- Works for people who like organising notes in a tree rather than folders
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want native iPhone or Android apps, as phones use a web app on a server
- Tight if you want sync without running a server, since the paid host listed is third-party
- Not for you if you want a team wiki with shared editing, as the listing describes a personal notes app
- Watch out: the old TriliumNext docs repository is archived and the project now lives at triliumnotes.org
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAHedgeDocGood | 3.2GPATrilium NotesVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree and open source under the AGPL 3.0 licence, and the project's site lists no hosted or paid edition, so there is nothing to buy at any point. You pay for a server and nothing else. | AFree under the AGPL-3.0 license, and you can just download the desktop apps and use them, so it is under the category's cheapest quarter. |
| Free plan and trial | AFree outright. The full editor installs 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. | AFree outright with no account and no paid plan from the team. |
| Features | CReal-time Markdown editing, reveal.js slides, graphs and diagrams in the note, per-note permissions and revisions you can revert to. It does that job fully and it's a smaller job than a wiki: PDF export was removed over security problems, and the FAQ points you at the browser's print dialog. | CNote tree, many note types, search, a REST API, scripting and a web clipper. The listing shows a gap: syncing across devices needs a self-hosted server. |
| Ease of use | DThere's no hosted service at all. You install it yourself with Node.js 20 or later and a PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB or SQLite database, and put a reverse proxy in front. Once that's done, you share a note by its link. | BNo store rating on record, but you install a desktop app and start writing with nothing to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | CBrowser only, served from your own machine, with no phone or desktop app and no API on record. What's listed as integrations is really sign-in and storage: GitHub, GitLab, Nextcloud, Keycloak, Entra ID and MinIO. | BWindows, Mac and Linux apps plus a web app for phones, and a REST API. No native phone apps. |
| Best for | Markdown notes and slides on your own server | a free note tree you keep on your own machine |
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 Trilium Notes. How we grade
Price against what you get
HedgeDoc has no paid plan and scores 1.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Trilium Notes has no paid plan and scores 2.7.
Trilium Notes scores higher for the same starting price. Of the other docs and wiki tools on the chart, none scores higher than HedgeDoc for less, and none scores higher than Trilium Notes 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
- HedgeDoc also covers Markdown, diagrams and presentations.
- Trilium Notes also covers wiki and web clipper.
In commonFree planWebOpen sourceSelf-hostableNotes
At a glance
| HedgeDoc | Trilium Notes | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| 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. | Free and open source under the AGPL-3.0 license, with no account needed. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Made by | HedgeDoc Project | Elian Doran and the community |
| Price read from | hedgedoc.org | triliumnotes.org |
| Checked | Oct 6, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
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.
Trilium Notes
- The download page offers Windows, Linux and macOS desktop apps; phone access is through a web app (PWA) on a server.
- Syncing needs a self-hosted server; the paid host listed is third-party, not affiliated with the team.
- The roster's TriliumNext docs repo is archived; the project now lives at triliumnotes.org.
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.
Trilium Notes
- Note tree
- Notes nest as sub-notes with no folders, and a note can be cloned into several places.
- Many note types
- Text, Markdown, code, spreadsheet, canvas, Mermaid, mind map and file notes.
- Sync and sharing
- A self-hosted or cloud server syncs notes, and a subtree can be published as a public read-only site.
- Search and protection
- Fuzzy title navigation, full-text search including text in images and PDFs via OCR, and password-locked protected notes.
- REST API and scripting
- A built-in REST API and scripting for automation.
- Web clipper
- A browser extension saves pages and screenshots into Trilium.
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.
Trilium Notes
Open source$0
Desktop apps and a self-hostable server, free; third-party paid hosting is available on PikaPods.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, HedgeDoc or Trilium Notes?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both HedgeDoc and Trilium Notes are free to use.
Which has a free plan, HedgeDoc or Trilium Notes?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both HedgeDoc and Trilium Notes have a free plan.
Which platforms do HedgeDoc and Trilium Notes run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Trilium Notes lists macOS, Windows and Linux apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.