Zim Alternatives

Zim is described as 'Brings the concept of a wiki to your desktop. Store information, link pages and edit with WYSISYG markup or directly typing some lightweight markup syntax and see it previewed as-you-type. Creating a new page is easy by either clicking on the "Create new note"' and is a very popular Note-taking tool in the office & productivity category. There are more than 100 alternatives to Zim for a variety of platforms, including Mac, Windows, Linux, Android and iPhone apps. The best Zim alternative is Obsidian, which is free. Other great apps like Zim are Joplin, Notion, Anytype and CherryTree.

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Zim alternatives are mainly Note-taking Tools but may also be Todo List Managers or Task Management Tools.  Filter by these or use the filter bar below if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of Zim.
Zim iconZim
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Zim brings the concept of a wiki to your desktop. Store information, link pages and edit with WYSISYG markup or directly typing some lightweight markup syntax and see it previewed as-you-type. Creating a new page is easy by...

More about Zim
More about Zim
Zim alternatives page was last updated Feb 28, 2025
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Alternatives
  1. sNotes – Students Notes icon

    sNotes – Students Notes

     120 likes
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    Students Notes is a note-taking app designed for online learners to overcome information overload, organization, and memorization challenges.

    48 sNotes – Students Notes alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Online
    sNotes – Students Notes screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight
    3.  Educational

    Features

    1.  Knowledge base
    2.  Note organization
    3.  Hierarchical Structure
    4.  Handwritten Notes
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Works Offline
    7.  No Tracking
    8.  Full-Text Search
    9.  Ad-free

    sNotes – Students Notes VS Zim

     
  2. Simplenote icon

    Simplenote

     593 likes
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    Made by the company behind WordPress, Simplenote enables users to take notes, lists, and ideas. These notes are stored on the cloud and are accessible across multiple devices.

    75 Simplenote alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    Simplenote screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Clean design
    2.  Lightweight
    3.  Minimalistic

    Features

    1.  Cross-device syncing
    2.  Support for MarkDown
    3.  Search by tags
    4.  Simple text editor
    5.  Protected by Password
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  Text Based Format
    8.  Full-Text Search
    9.  Portable
    10.  Works Offline
    11.  No Tracking
    12.  Ad-free

    Simplenote VS Zim

     
    Comments about Simplenote as an Alternative to Zim
    John Fastman
    Negative •Mar 26, 2017
    26

    Simplenote is much less functional than Zim (no rich-text, no attachment to notes) and although it does work on mobile, it syncs your data via web-facing servers on which your info is held unencrypted. In that respect your information is much more vulnerable to hackers and govt agencies than if you used Zim, stored the data locally and maybe - if you need - sync it with an end-to-end encrypted service like Spideroak, Tresorit or Seafile (Seafile encrypts file content, not metadata).

    Guest
    Positive •Oct 26, 2016
    -8

    Free and free of problems. Just simple.

    Zim Icon
    Simplenote icon

    • Some users think Simplenote is a great Zim alternative, some don't.

    • Simplenote is Free and Open SourceZim is also Free and Open Source
    • Simplenote is LightweightZim is not according to our users
  4. TiddlyWiki icon

    TiddlyWiki

     294 likes
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    TiddlyWiki is a single html file with all the characteristics of a wiki - including all of the functionality (including editing, saving, tagging and searching) and the style sheet. Because its a single file, its very portable - you can email it, put it on a web server or share...

    160 TiddlyWiki alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • BSD
    • Self-Hosted
    • Xfce
    • RemoteStorage
    TiddlyWiki screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Standalone
    2.  Cross page linking
    3.  Support for MarkDown
    4.  Wiki
    5.  Portable
    6.  Wiki-like interface
    7.  Personal Information Manager (PIM)
    8.  No registration required
    9.  Ad-free
    10.  Dark Mode
    11.  No Coding Required
    12.  WYSIWYG Support

    TiddlyWiki VS Zim

     
    Comments about TiddlyWiki as an Alternative to Zim
    Guest
    Positive •May 14, 2017
    0

    The single html file of TW is unbelievably simple and platform agnostic. File can be opened in any browser. There TW will open, edit, etc. Works just as well on a phone. File can be hosted/sync'd on DropBox or similar so you don't even need to download/upload (in the usual sense). Very smooth interface to boot. Robust support community constantly adding plugins.

    Zim Icon
    TiddlyWiki icon

    • Most users think TiddlyWiki is a great Zim alternative.

    • TiddlyWiki is Free and Open SourceZim is also Free and Open Source
    • TiddlyWiki is CustomizableZim is not according to our users
  5. Ad
    Screenshot
    Zoho Notebook icon
    Zoho Notebook

    Online Notebook application: Zoho Notebook lets you combine text, images, audio, video, RSS feeds, documents and much more. Online Collaboration: You can share a single image or selection of text from a page rather than the whole...

    https://www.zoho.com
    Learn More
  6. AFFiNE icon

    AFFiNE

     87 likes
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    There can be more than Notion / and Miro. Affine is a next-gen knowledge base that brings planning, sorting and creating all together.

    110 AFFiNE alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • CN flagChina

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
    AFFiNE screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Support for MarkDown
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  Dark Mode
    4.  Goal Tracking
    5.  Real time collaboration
    6.  Kanban Board
    7.  Pomodoro Timer
    8.  Cloud Sync
    9.  Hierarchical Structure
    10.  Works Offline
    11.  Interactive Whiteboard
    12.  Rust

    AFFiNE VS Zim

     
  7. Workflowy icon

    Workflowy

     306 likes
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    Manage your thoughts and projects with infinite levels of indentation, easy syncing with mobile apps, and features like hoisting and inline notes. Suitable for personal use, task management, and seamless team collaboration.

    322 Workflowy alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    Workflowy screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Infinite hierarchical depth
    2.  Tagging
    3.  Nested lists
    4.  Hierarchical Structure
    5.  Kanban Board
    6.  Import/Export OPML Feeds
    7.  Real time collaboration
    8.  Ad-free
    9.  Subtasks
    10.  WYSIWYG Support
    11.  Dark Mode
    12.  Full-Text Search

    Workflowy VS Zim

     
  8. Trilium Notes icon

    Trilium Notes

     92 likes
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    Trilium Notes is a hierarchical note taking application.

    352 Trilium Notes alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Self-Hosted
    • Google Chrome
    • Cloudron
    • Mozilla Firefox
    Trilium Notes screenshot 1
    Discontinued

    Trilium transitions into maintenance mode and don't plan adding any new major functionality. You can take a look at this community fork: https://github.com/TriliumNext

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Distraction-free
    3.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Tree of notes
    2.  Knowledge base
    3.  Note organization
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  No Tracking
    6.  Encrypted Notes
    7.  Works Offline
    8.  End-to-End Encryption
    9.  Ad-free
    10.  Cloud Sync
    11.  REST API
    12.  Web Clipper

    Trilium Notes VS Zim

     
  10. Cryptee icon

    Cryptee

     94 likes
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    Cryptee is a safety and privacy focused, encrypted and cross-platform personal data storage service. You can write personal documents, notes, journals, store photos (including raw photos from DSLR cameras) and all sorts of other files.

    50 Cryptee alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • EE flagEstonia
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    Cryptee screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  End-to-End Encryption
    2.  Encrypted Notes
    3.  Encrypted Photo Storage
    4.  Rich text editing
    5.  Support for MarkDown
    6.  Cloud Hosting
    7.  Dark Mode
    8.  Ad-free
    9.  No Tracking
    10.  File Storage
    11.  Cloud Sync
    12.  WYSIWYG Support

    Cryptee VS Zim

     
  11. SiYuan icon

    SiYuan

     66 likes
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    SiYuan is a desktop Markdown Block-Reference and Bidirectional-Link note-taking application. Support fine-grained block-level reference and Markdown WYSIWYG.

    53 SiYuan alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Google Chrome
    • Flathub
    • Docker
    • Docker Hub
    SiYuan screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Local Storage
    2.  Block reference
    3.  Bidirectional links
    4.  WYSIWYG Support
    5.  Graph view
    6.  Web Clipper
    7.  Works Offline
    8.  End-to-End Encryption
    9.  Support for MarkDown
    10. LaTeX icon  Support for LaTeX
    11.  No registration required
    12.  Cloud Sync

    SiYuan VS Zim

     
  12. Markor icon

    Markor

     79 likes
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    Markor is a TextEditor for Android, versatile, flexible, and lightweight. Markor utilizes simple markup formats like Markdown and todo.txt for note-taking and list management. It is versatile at working with text; it can also be used for keeping bookmarks, copying to clipboard...

    138 Markor alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • AT flagAustria
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    • F-Droid
    Markor screenshot 1
    Markor screenshot 2
    Markor screenshot 3

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Customizable
    3.  Distraction-free
    4.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Markdown preview
    2.  Support for MarkDown
    3.  Share notes
    4.  Offline Reading
    5.  Works Offline
    6.  Export to PDF
    7.  Ad-free
    8.  Code Formatting
    9.  Handwritten Notes
    10.  Dark Mode
    11.  Syntax Highlighting
    12.  Todo.txt based

    Markor VS Zim

     
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