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 Apr 21, 2025
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Alternatives
  1. QOwnNotes icon

    QOwnNotes

     93 likes
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    Plain text notepad with markdown support and todo list manager for Linux, Mac OS X and Windows, that works together with the notes application of ownCloud.

    234 QOwnNotes alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • Qt
    QOwnNotes main screen

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Support for Themes
    3.  Lightweight
    4.  Configurable

    Features

    1.  Support for MarkDown
    2.  Local Storage
    3.  Plain text file
    4.  Tagging
    5. Nextcloud icon  Nextcloud integration
    6.  End-to-End Encryption
    7.  Syntax Highlighting
    8.  Subtasks
    9.  No Tracking
    10.  Dark Mode
    11.  Ad-free
    12.  Synchronization

    QOwnNotes VS Zim

     
    Comments about QOwnNotes as an Alternative to Zim
    Guest
    Positive •Sep 2, 2021
    0

    couse native app and modern view

    Guest
    Positive •Aug 9, 2017
    0

    Because it offers a similar solution.

    Zim Icon
    QOwnNotes icon

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

    • QOwnNotes is Free and Open SourceZim is also Free and Open Source
    • QOwnNotes is Privacy focused and LightweightZim is not according to our users
  2. Docmost icon

    Docmost

     28 likes
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    Docmost is an open-source collaborative wiki and documentation software. It is an open-source alternative to Confluence and Notion.

    66 Docmost alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Self-Hosted
    • Docker
    Docmost screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Full-Text Search
    2.  No Tracking
    3.  Real time collaboration
    4.  File Versioning
    5.  Ad-free
    6.  Built-in Commenting System
    7.  Attachments
    8.  Knowledge Management
    9.  Nested Notes
    10.  Wiki
    11.  Knowledge base
    12.  Activity history

    Docmost VS Zim

     
  4. Turtl icon

    Turtl

     172 likes
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    Whether it's bookmarks or passwords, files or shopping lists...Turtl organizes it all and makes it easy to find later. Sync across your devices. Leave nothing behind.

    174 Turtl alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    • Self-Hosted
    • Google Chrome
    • Firefox
    Turtl screenshot 1
    Discontinued

    The last update is from 2019.

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Encrypted Notes
    2.  End-to-End Encryption
    3.  Support for MarkDown
    4.  Sync on many devices
    5.  Data portability
    6.  Cloud Sync
    7.  Real time collaboration
    8.  To do lists
    9.  Notebook
    10.  List management
    11.  Client side encryption
    12.  Password encryption

    Turtl VS Zim

     
  5. Ad
    Screenshot
    AllMyNotes Organizer icon
    AllMyNotes Organizer

    Efficient hierarchical information manager for Windows, offering note storage in a single file with customizable tree structures, password protection with 1800-bit encryption, instant search, a rich text editor, multiple language...

    https://allmynotes.vladonai.com
    Learn More
  6. Org mode icon

    Org mode

     138 likes
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    Org mode is for keeping notes, maintaining TODO lists, planning projects, and authoring documents with a fast and effective plain-text system.

    264 Org mode alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • GNU Emacs
    Org mode screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Privacy focused
    3.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Literate programming
    2.  Task Time Tracking
    3. GNU Emacs icon  Emacs integration
    4.  Plain text file
    5.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    6.  Outliner
    7.  Hierarchical Structure
    8.  Portable
    9.  Command line interface
    10.  Export to HTML
    11.  Web-Based
    12.  Search by tags

    Org mode VS Zim

     
    Comments about Org mode as an Alternative to Zim
    Guest
    Negative •Apr 11, 2020
    0

    Org mode is based on emacs. In other words, it requires other software. Not only must you have emacs installed, you have to use the PoS. Emacs worshipers say it's great. The rest of us hate it.

    Zim stands alone. It does not require arcane software with arcane interfaces to use.

    Zim Icon
    Org mode icon
    • Org mode is Free and Open SourceZim is also Free and Open Source
    • Org mode is Customizable, Lightweight and Privacy focusedZim is not according to our users
  7. Dendron icon

    Dendron

     65 likes
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    Dendron is an open-source, local-first, markdown-based, note-taking tool built on top of VSCode. It supports all the usual features you would expect like tagging, backlinks, a graph view, split panes, and so forth.

    193 Dendron alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Visual Studio Code
    Dendron screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Local Storage
    2.  Support for MarkDown
    3.  Hierarchical Structure
    4.  Block reference
    5.  Graph view
    6.  VSCode
    7.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    8.  Backlinks
    9.  Quick reference lookup
    10.  Publishing
    11.  Tagging
    12.  Bidirectional links

    Dendron VS Zim

     
  8. Reor icon

    Reor

     27 likes
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    Reor is an AI-powered desktop note-taking app: it automatically links related ideas, answers questions on your notes and provides semantic search. Everything is stored locally and you can edit your notes with an Obsidian-like markdown editor.

    80 Reor alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Mac
    • Linux
    Reor screenshot 1

    Reor Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  Support for MarkDown
    3.  Works Offline
    4.  No registration required
    5.  AI-Powered
    6.  Note organization
    7.  Semantic Search

    Reor VS Zim

     
  10. DokuWiki icon

    DokuWiki

     188 likes
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    DokuWiki is a standards compliant, simple to use Wiki, mainly aimed at creating documentation of any kind. It is targeted at developer teams, workgroups and small companies. It has a simple but powerful syntax which makes sure the datafiles remain readable outside the Wiki and...

    91 DokuWiki alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Self-Hosted
    • Cloudron
    DokuWiki screenshot 1

    DokuWiki Features

    1.  Plain text file
    2.  Wiki
    3.  No database needed
    4.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    5.  Multiple languages
    6.  Access Control
    7.  Support for Multiple Users
    8.  Drag and Drop

    DokuWiki VS Zim

     
  11. MediaWiki icon

    MediaWiki

     175 likes
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    MediaWiki is a free software wiki package written in PHP, originally for use on Wikipedia. It is now used by several other projects of the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation and by many other wikis.

    87 MediaWiki alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Self-Hosted
    • PHP
    • Cloudron
    • Sandstorm
    MediaWiki screenshot 1

    Top MediaWiki Features

    1.  WYSIWYG Support
    2.  File Versioning
    3.  Business-wiki
    4.  Multi-user editing
    5.  Syntax Highlighting
    6.  Semantic Data
    7.  Ad-free
    8.  Wiki
    9.  Suggests DSL format
    10.  Web-Based
    11.  Wiki-like interface
    12.  Structured data

    MediaWiki VS Zim

     
    Comments about MediaWiki as an Alternative to Zim
    42kiwi
    Negative •Jan 27, 2021
    1

    Very powerful and customizable but not a desktop wiki. Not even one of the lightest wiki server software.

    Zim Icon
    MediaWiki icon

    • This alternative is disputed. MediaWiki is a legitimate Zim alternative, but it might have issues that some users think are important.

    • MediaWiki is Free and Open SourceZim is also Free and Open Source
  12. Nuclino icon

    Nuclino

     135 likes
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    Nuclino is a unified workspace where teams can bring all their knowledge, docs, and projects together in one place. It’s a modern, simple, and blazingly fast way to collaborate, without the chaos of files and folders, context switching, or silos.

    301 Nuclino alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Chrome OS
    • iPad
    Nuclino screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Minimalistic

    Features

    1.  Real time collaboration
    2.  Mind Map view
    3.  Kanban Board
    4.  Support for MarkDown
    5.  WYSIWYG Support
    6.  Team Collaboration
    7.  Drag and Drop
    8.  Wiki-like interface
    9.  Infinite hierarchical depth
    10.  Custom fields
    11.  Internal linking
    12.  Hierarchical Structure

    Nuclino VS Zim

     
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