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Wiki.js
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Wiki.js

Wiki.js is an open source wiki and knowledge base you can self-host — a Confluence and Notion alternative that writes docs in Markdown or a visual editor, organizes pages in a tree, and keeps full version history for every change.

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What is Wiki.js?

Wiki.js is an open source wiki and knowledge base built on Node.js that you host on your own server. You write pages in Markdown, a visual WYSIWYG editor, or plain HTML, organize them in a folder-style tree, and every edit is versioned so you can compare and roll back. It’s a self-hosted stand-in for Confluence or Notion.

What is Wiki.js best for?

Teams and individuals who want a clean, self-hosted documentation site and care about keeping content on their own infrastructure. It fits internal knowledge bases, product docs, and public wikis — especially where Git-backed Markdown and fine-grained access control matter more than real-time co-editing.

What can Wiki.js do?

  • Write in Markdown (with live preview), a visual WYSIWYG editor, or raw HTML
  • Store pages in your database and sync them to Git — GitHub, GitLab, BitBucket, or Azure DevOps
  • Track full version history with page comparison and rollback
  • Authenticate with local accounts, social login, LDAP, SAML, Auth0, Okta, Azure AD, OAuth2/OIDC, plus 2FA
  • Control access with user groups and page-level rules (exact paths or regex filters)
  • Run on PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, MS SQL Server, or SQLite
  • Deploy via Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, Windows Server, or a Raspberry Pi, in 40+ languages

Where does Wiki.js fall short?

  • The next version has stalled. The v2 branch is stable but effectively in maintenance mode, while the rewritten v3 has sat in developer preview since October 2022 with no release date. If you adopt Wiki.js today, you’re adopting v2 for the foreseeable future.
  • No real-time collaborative editing. Two people can’t edit the same page at once the way they can in Confluence or Notion — it’s a document wiki, not a live co-editing surface.
  • No built-in importer for Confluence or Notion. Migrating existing content means exporting to HTML/Markdown and bringing pages in through the API or a synced Git repository, not a one-click import.

Is Wiki.js free?

Yes — Wiki.js is fully free and open source under the AGPL-3.0 license, with no paid tiers or feature-gated editions. You only pay for the server you run it on. There is no vendor-hosted paid cloud; every feature ships in the same self-hosted package.

What does Wiki.js replace?

Wiki.js is a self-hosted alternative to Confluence and, for team documentation use, Notion. It covers the core wiki job — structured pages, permissions, search, and version history — without per-user subscriptions or your content living in someone else’s cloud. Other open source options in the same space include BookStack, Outline, and Docmost.

FAQ

Is Wiki.js open source? Yes. Wiki.js is released under the AGPL-3.0 license, and the full source is on GitHub. AGPL requires that if you offer a modified version as a network service, you make your changes available.

Can I self-host Wiki.js for free? Yes. Self-hosting is the only way to run it, and the software is free — your only cost is the server and database. It runs comfortably on modest hardware, down to a Raspberry Pi.

Is Wiki.js a good Confluence alternative? For structured docs and wikis, yes — you get Markdown, Git sync, granular permissions, and version history without subscription pricing. If your team relies on real-time co-editing or a rich app ecosystem, Confluence still leads there.

What do I need to run Wiki.js? A server with Node.js (or Docker) and one supported database — PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, MS SQL Server, or SQLite. PostgreSQL is the recommended default.