Trilium Notes
Open-Source note-taking tool with hierarchical structure and self-hosting
AI Summary
Trilium Notes is a comprehensive open-source application for creating and organizing notes in a personal knowledge database. The software offers hierarchical structures, various note types (text, code, canvas, mind maps), encryption of sensitive content, and synchronization via self-hosted servers. Particularly suitable for technically savvy users who value data control, flexibility, and advanced features like scripting and REST API.
✓ Pros
- + Fully open-source with self-hosting capability for maximum data control
- + Diverse note types: text, code, canvas, Mermaid diagrams, mind maps, Kanban
- + Advanced features like REST API, scripting and encrypted notes
- + Performant even with over 100,000 notes
✗ Cons
- − No official mobile app available (only PWA and unofficial Android app)
- − SQLite database instead of text files makes direct file access difficult
- − Sync can become problematic with very large files (>1GB)
Use Cases
- → Building a personal knowledge database with hierarchical organization
- → Managing code snippets and technical documentation with syntax highlighting
- → Creating diagrams, mind maps and canvas sketches for visual planning
- → Secure storage of sensitive information with password-protected encryption
- → Synchronizing notes across multiple devices via self-hosted server
- → Project and task management with Kanban boards and calendar function
Who is it for?
Ideal for developers, technically savvy users and power users looking for a flexible, extensible knowledge database with full control over their data.
Tags
What is Trilium Notes?
Trilium Notes is an open-source application for building personal knowledge bases. Notes can be organized in a tree structure, where a single entry can be placed in multiple locations at once. Data is stored in a local SQLite database and can be synchronized via a self-hosted server. The project is actively maintained and keeps performance stable even with databases of more than 100,000 notes.
Core features
- Multiple note types: Rich-text editor, code with syntax highlighting, Canvas, mind maps, Mermaid diagrams and Kanban boards are all available side by side.
- Encryption: Individual notes can be password-protected and encrypted without locking the entire database.
- Scripting and REST API: Automations can be written directly in the interface. The REST API allows external integrations.
- Self-hosting and synchronization: The sync server runs on your own infrastructure. Data never leaves third-party services if you prefer to keep it that way.
- Hierarchical organization with cross-references: Notes can be attached to multiple branches, which makes flat tag systems unnecessary in many scenarios.
Who is Trilium Notes for?
Trilium is aimed at developers and technically experienced users who want to run a knowledge base entirely under their own control. Those who want to manage code snippets, technical documentation and project notes in a single tool will find the depth they need here. Setup requires a willingness to configure things, especially when running the sync server. There is no official mobile app. The Android solution is unofficial, and mobile access otherwise runs through a PWA. For users who work primarily from a smartphone, this is a concrete limitation.
Context & alternatives
Trilium belongs to the category of networked note-taking systems that prioritize local data storage. Comparable tools in this space include Obsidian (works with Markdown files instead of SQLite), Logseq (graph-based, also open source) and Joplin (simpler, but with strong mobile support). The key difference from file-based alternatives: Trilium stores everything in a single database file. This simplifies backups but makes direct access via external editors or Git versioning more difficult. Anyone who wants their notes as text files in the file system is better served by Obsidian. Anyone who needs scripting, encrypted entries and a flexible tree structure in a single application will find a depth in Trilium that most alternatives do not reach.
