# tnotes vs other note-taking tools
Honest, feature-by-feature comparisons. Most of these tools are good; the question is whether you want notes as plain files you can drive from a terminal. Each page ends with a recipe for using both on the same folder where that is possible.
| Tool | Runs in the terminal | [[Wikilinks]] | Headless CLI | JSON output for scripts / agents | Sync | Open source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| tnotes | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs Apple Notesdesktop app | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| tnotes vs Dendroneditor plugin | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs Joplindesktop app | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs jrnlCLI | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ~ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs Logseqdesktop app | ✗ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs nbCLI | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs Neorgeditor plugin | ✓ | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs Notionweb app | ✗ | ~ | ✗ | ~ | ✓ | ✗ |
| tnotes vs Obsidiandesktop app | ~ | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ✓ | ✗ |
| tnotes vs Org modeeditor plugin | ✓ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ~ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs Vimwikieditor plugin | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✓ |
| tnotes vs Zettlrdesktop app | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ~ | ✓ |
✓ yes · ~ partial · ✗ no. Full matrix, sources and dates on each page.
- tnotes vs Apple NotesApple's built-in rich-text notes app, synced through iCloud across iPhone, iPad, Mac and the web; zero setup, no files you can point a tool at.
- tnotes vs DendronVS Code extension for hierarchical Markdown notes named a.b.c.md, in maintenance mode since February 2023.
- tnotes vs JoplinOpen-source Evernote-style notes and to-dos with end-to-end encrypted sync, desktop, mobile and terminal clients.
- tnotes vs jrnlPython command-line journal: timestamped entries in one plain-text file, natural-language dates, optional AES encryption.
- tnotes vs LogseqOutliner-style knowledge base with daily journals, block references and a plugin API; file graphs are Markdown or Org files, the newer DB graphs are SQLite.
- tnotes vs nbSingle-script Bash CLI for notes, bookmarks and archives with git versioning, [[links]], tags and encryption.
- tnotes vs NeorgNeovim plugin for structured notes, tasks and journals in its own .norg format, parsed by tree-sitter.
- tnotes vs NotionHosted workspace of pages and databases with real-time collaboration, a REST API and an official MCP server; content lives on Notion's servers, not in files.
- tnotes vs ObsidianDesktop and mobile Markdown knowledge base built around [[links]], a graph and a large plugin ecosystem.
- tnotes vs Org modeEmacs major mode for outlines, TODOs, agendas and literate documents in its own .org plain-text format.
- tnotes vs VimwikiA personal wiki inside Vim: linked text files with their own syntax, a diary, todo lists and HTML export, for people who already live in Vim.
- tnotes vs ZettlrElectron Markdown editor for academic writing: citations, Pandoc export and a Zettelkasten layer on plain files.