Logseq

Open SourceAGPL-3.0Self-hostable

Privacy-first, local-first outliner for networked notes and daily journaling over plain markdown files — a popular open alternative to Roam and Obsidian.

Open source alternative to

Obsidian

Roam

Visit Logseq View source

logseq.com

Logseq homepage — privacy-first outliner for networked notes and daily journaling over plain markdown files

About Logseq

Logseq is a privacy-first outliner for networked thought — daily journals, backlinks and block references, all stored as plain markdown files you keep on your own disk. There's no proprietary format locking your notes in.

Every note is a block that can be referenced from anywhere else, so a graph of linked ideas builds up naturally as you write. It's free, fully open source under AGPL-3.0, and extensible with a growing plugin ecosystem.

Key features

Outliner & blocks — Every line is a block you can fold, reference and reuse anywhere else in your notes.
Daily journal first — A running daily journal is the default entry point, encouraging lightweight, consistent capture.
Backlinks & graph view — See every place a note or tag is referenced, visualized as a connected graph.
Plain markdown files — Notes are stored as ordinary markdown files on your device — no proprietary database.

The honest read

What we like

Notes stored as plain markdown files you fully own
Powerful backlinking and graph view for networked thought
Free and open source under AGPL-3.0
Growing plugin ecosystem
Works fully offline

Worth knowing

Clojure codebase is less approachable for outside contributors
Mobile app is less mature than desktop
Sync between devices needs a paid plan or manual setup
Outliner model has a learning curve if you're used to plain documents

FAQ

Is Logseq free to use?

Yes — Logseq is free and open source under AGPL-3.0. An optional paid sync service is available if you don't want to set up your own.

Where are Logseq notes stored?

As plain markdown files on your own device, inside a folder you choose — there's no proprietary database.

How is Logseq different from Obsidian?

Both are local-first markdown tools, but Logseq is outliner-first (every line is a block) and fully open source, while Obsidian uses a more traditional document view and a partly closed-source core.

Does Logseq work offline?

Yes — Logseq is local-first and works fully offline; sync is optional.