Logseq

productivityprivacy

Open-source outliner and knowledge base that stores notes as plain Markdown files locally. Bidirectional links, graph view, task management, and PDF annotation. AGPL-licensed

#notes#knowledge-base#pkm#outliner#markdown#offline
Alternative to ObsidianNotion

Quick Start

docker run --rm -it -v /path/to/graph:/home/logseq/graph ghcr.io/logseq/logseq-publish-spa:latest

Overview

Logseq is an open-source outliner and knowledge base tool that stores everything as plain Markdown or Org-mode files in a local folder. Your notes are always portable, readable without Logseq, and compatible with any version control system or sync service you already use.

The editor is block-based and outline-oriented. Every page is a hierarchy of bullet blocks, and any block can be referenced or embedded from anywhere else in your knowledge base. Bidirectional links, a graph view, and a query system for building filtered views across your notes make it a practical tool for building a long-term knowledge base rather than just a note dump.

Task management is integrated: blocks carry TODO/DONE status, scheduled dates, and deadlines, turning Logseq into a planner as well as a knowledge base. PDF annotation lets you highlight research papers and link highlights back into your notes.

Logseq is AGPL-licensed with 43,000+ GitHub stars. The desktop application runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux. Mobile apps cover iOS, with Android in active development. Because notes are plain files, sync happens through any mechanism you prefer: Syncthing, Nextcloud, a Git repository, or the paid Logseq Sync service.

The main trade-off versus SiYuan is the file format: Logseq’s plain Markdown means you are never locked into the application, but the block references and query metadata that users rely on can sometimes produce additional files alongside your content.

Use Cases

Specific ways to use Logseq for your workflow.

01
Local-first personal knowledge base with bidirectional links
02
Daily notes and task management alongside a long-term knowledge graph
03
Research note-taking with PDF annotation linked back to notes

Deployment Strategy

Recommended ways to host Logseq in your own environment.

docker
self-hosted