AppFlowy
The open source Notion alternative that keeps your notes on your device
Alternative toNotion
AppFlowy is a workspace for documents, databases, kanban boards and calendars, in the same spirit as Notion. It is AGPL-3.0, works offline as a desktop and mobile app, and can sync through AppFlowy Cloud, which you can self host or pay for.
Best for when
- you want Notion style pages and databases that work offline
- you want your notes on your own device or server, not someone else's
- you are a solo user or small team with simple sharing needs
Watch out for
- imports from Notion lose detail on complex databases, relations and formulas
- real time collaboration and integrations are behind Notion's
- syncing across devices on your own server means running a separate cloud stack
Notion's building blocks, local first
AppFlowy gives you pages made of blocks, plus databases you can view as a grid, a board or a calendar, which is the core of how most people use Notion. It is a native app built with Flutter and Rust, so it opens quickly and keeps working without a connection.
The difference is where your data lives. In Notion, your workspace sits on Notion's servers. In AppFlowy, it sits on your device first, and syncing is optional, through their cloud or an AppFlowy Cloud server you run yourself. It also has AI writing features, including support for local models.
What you miss after leaving Notion
Notion's strength is its polish and its ecosystem: templates, integrations, a public API used by many tools, and sharing pages on the web with one click. AppFlowy covers the common cases but has fewer integrations, and collaboration features are less mature, so test it with your real team before moving everyone.
There is a Notion import, but complex pages with nested databases, relations and formulas rarely come across perfectly. Self hosting AppFlowy Cloud for sync is a separate stack with PostgreSQL, Redis and object storage, more work than running the desktop app alone.
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