QOwnNotes vs Zim
We give QOwnNotes a 3.6 GPA and Zim a 3.4, out of 4.0. QOwnNotes grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
QOwnNotes
Open-source Markdown notes app with Nextcloud and ownCloud support
Free
How we grade them
| 3.6GPAQOwnNotesExcellent | 3.4GPAZimVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree and open source under the GPL. The project says it generates no revenue and runs on donations through PayPal, GitHub Sponsors and Liberapay. There's nothing to buy. | AIt's free. Zim is open source under the GPL 2.0, and its download page lists no paid edition. Paid note apps typically start at about $5.99 a month. |
| Free plan and trial | AThe full desktop app, the Web Companion extension and the Android app are all free. No paid tier exists, so there's no limit to run into. | AThe whole desktop wiki is free on Linux, Windows and macOS, plugins included. There's no paid tier, so nothing is held back. |
| Features | AHierarchical tags, subfolders, [[Note]] links with backlinks, AES-256 encryption for single notes, and a browser clipper. With Nextcloud or ownCloud you can restore old versions and trashed notes and share notes publicly. Scripts install from an in-app repository, and there's a built-in MCP server. | BPages nest like an outline, links are tracked in both directions, and plugins add a task list, an equation editor and calendar pages for a journal. Solid. But notebooks have no encryption or password, and the FAQ sends you to an outside tool for that. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating to go on, so a B is our ceiling. On a computer it's install, pick a folder, write. It gets more involved once you want sync, since the app doesn't sync by itself and leans on a Nextcloud or ownCloud client. | BNo App Store rating on record, so B is as high as we go. There's an installer for Windows and an app for macOS, and most Linux distributions package it. Link to a page that doesn't exist and Zim makes it for you. |
| Platforms and integrations | BLinux, macOS and Windows, a Chrome and Firefox extension, and hooks into Nextcloud, ownCloud, OpenAI and Groq. The Android app is an APK from GitHub that needs a Nextcloud server running Notes, and the site lists no iOS app. That keeps it off the A. | BWindows, macOS and Linux, and the version control plugin talks to Git, Mercurial or Bazaar. No phone or web version. Syncing means copying the notebook folder with something like Dropbox. |
| Best for | Markdown notes on a desktop, paired with Nextcloud | a personal wiki kept as text files on your computer |
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: QOwnNotes and Zim. How we grade
Where they differ
- QOwnNotes is free. Zim is free.
- Only QOwnNotes lists an Android app.
- Only QOwnNotes lists a browser extension.
- QOwnNotes also covers Markdown and web clipper.
- Zim also covers wiki, daily notes and tasks.
In commonFree planWindowsmacOSLinuxOpen sourceLocal-firstNotesLinked notes
At a glance
| QOwnNotes | Zim | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Free and open source under the GPL. The project says it generates no revenue and accepts donations through PayPal, GitHub Sponsors and Liberapay. | Open-source software under the GPL 2.0 license. The download page offers the source, a Windows installer, a macOS app and Linux packages, and lists no paid edition. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Patrizio Bekerle | Jaap Karssenberg |
| Price read from | qownnotes.org | zim-wiki.org |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
QOwnNotes
- Nextcloud or ownCloud users who want a desktop Markdown notes app
- People who keep notes as plain files that any editor can open
- Users who want to script and rearrange their notes app
Zim
- A personal wiki or scratch book kept as files on your own disk
- Daily or weekly journals and meeting or lecture notes
- People who want their notes under Git or another version control system
Worth knowing
QOwnNotes
- The app does not sync notes or attachments itself; syncing across devices depends on a Nextcloud or ownCloud sync client or another file-sync tool.
- The Android app is installed as an APK from its GitHub release page and needs a Nextcloud server running the Notes app. The site lists no iOS app.
- The browser extension works only while the desktop app is running.
- Current builds need Windows 10 or macOS 13 or later; the older Qt5 builds cannot use the built-in updater.
Zim
- Notebooks have no built-in encryption or password protection; the FAQ points to an outside tool such as encfs.
- Zim is written as a single-user program, so shared notebooks rely on a version control system to merge changes.
- The download page covers Linux, BSD, Windows and macOS only, and syncing means copying the notebook folder with a service such as Dropbox.
- The Windows installer supports 64-bit systems only, and the macOS app supports macOS Big Sur through Sequoia.
Key features
QOwnNotes
- Plain Markdown files
- Notes are plain-text Markdown files in a folder you pick, so existing text files work without an import and any other editor can open them.
- Nextcloud and ownCloud integration
- Restores older note versions and trashed notes from the server, shares notes publicly, creates Nextcloud Deck cards and manages server to-do lists.
- Tags, subfolders and wiki links
- Hierarchical tags and note subfolders, plus optional [[Note]] links with autocomplete, heading anchors, aliases and backlinks.
- Web Companion browser extension
- A Chrome and Firefox extension clips selected text or a screenshot of a page into a note and manages bookmarks kept in notes.
- Scripting and AI support
- Scripts install from an in-app repository. Opt-in AI support takes Groq and OpenAI keys, and a built-in MCP server lets outside agents search and fetch notes.
- Optional note encryption
- AES-256 encryption of individual notes is built in, and scripts add Keybase or PGP as alternative encryption methods.
Zim
- Plain-text wiki pages
- Every page is a text file with wiki markup and images are ordinary linked files, so the content stays readable in other editors and file managers.
- Links in both directions
- Linking to a page that does not exist creates it. Zim tracks all links and shows, for each page, which other pages link to it.
- Hierarchical notebooks
- Pages nest as sub-pages in a folder structure, much like an outliner, and each page can carry attachments.
- Plugins
- Plugins add a task list dialog, an equation editor, calendar pages for daily or weekly journals, spell checking and a tray icon.
- Version control
- A Version Control plugin works with Git, Mercurial or Bazaar, which also lets several people merge changes to one notebook.
- HTML export
- Notes can be exported to HTML for publishing; the project's own website is written in Zim.
Plans
QOwnNotes
QOwnNotes$0
The full desktop app for Linux, macOS and Windows, plus the Web Companion extension and the Android app.
Zim
Zim$0
The full desktop wiki for Linux, Windows and macOS, with its plugins.
