Docmost vs Outline

Docmost and Outline are the two picks in this hub that actually feel like the SaaS they replace: both are TypeScript/Node.js applications on PostgreSQL + Redis, both do real-time collaborative editing, and both list a 1 GB RAM floor. They differ on the two things that matter most to a self-hoster once the editor stops being the question — the license and what the free edition holds back — and on how much of a project each one still is.

Same shape, different licenses

Outline is licensed BSL-1.1 — the Business Source License. It is source-available, not OSI open source: you can self-host it, but the license carries commercial-use restrictions that convert to an open license only after a delay. For a personal or internal team wiki that rarely matters in practice; for anyone who needs the software to be open source — a public body, a company with an OSS-only policy, or someone who wants the right to fork — it does.

Docmost's core is AGPL-3.0, a genuinely open license. The catch is an explicit open-core split: the same repository contains enterprise-licensed directories, and Bases (databases), SSO via SAML/OIDC/LDAP, AI features, audit logs, SIEM integration and SCIM provisioning are paid features unlocked with a license key — Bases, SSO and AI on Business, audit logs, SIEM and SCIM Enterprise-only. Business is sold per seat with a minimum seat count; Enterprise is custom-priced.

So the comparison is not "open vs. closed". It is source-available with the whole product versus open-source core with a paid ring around it.

What you get for free

Docmost's AGPL build covers the collaborative-wiki job end to end: spaces, real-time co-editing, groups and permissions, comments, page history, search, file attachments, embeds, and built-in Draw.io, Excalidraw and Mermaid diagrams, translated into 10+ languages. What it does not give you without a license is enterprise login and databases-in-pages — which is exactly the line many teams cross when a wiki grows up.

Outline has no equivalent paywall inside the self-hosted build, but it has a prerequisite instead: it requires an external authentication provider — OIDC, Google, Microsoft Entra, Slack or Discord — before anyone can log in. That is elegant if you already run an identity provider (and this site's SSO hub has several) and a real hurdle if you wanted a wiki with a plain login form.

Setup and footprint

Both run three containers and both list 1 GB, but the effort is not equal. Docmost rates 2/5: the docs tell you to curl the project's compose file, set APP_URL, an APP_SECRET of at least 32 characters, and the database password (which appears twice), and bring it up. Outline rates 3/5 because of the auth-provider requirement and the environment it needs configured before first login.

Note that Docmost's 1 GB is our estimate for the app + Postgres + Redis trio; the project publishes no RAM minimum. Outline's figure is the one on our page from its verified install.

Maturity

Outline has been in development since 2016 and ships 1.x releases. Docmost is pre-1.0 — releases are still 0.x — and it moves quickly. That cuts both ways: Docmost is adding features at a pace Outline is not, and it also means breaking changes between versions are a real possibility until it reaches 1.0. Read its release notes before pulling a new image.

Pick Docmost if…

• The license has to be OSI open source and AGPL-3.0's terms suit you.
• You want a built-in login with no external identity provider to run first.
• Diagrams in-page (Draw.io, Excalidraw, Mermaid) matter to your team.
• You can live without SSO, Bases and audit logs — or you are prepared to buy a Business license (Enterprise for audit logs) when you need them.

Pick Outline if…

• You already run an OIDC provider (or use Google, Microsoft Entra, Slack or Discord) and want the wiki to inherit it.
• You want the more mature codebase with 1.x releases and years of production use behind it.
• Source-available is acceptable to you and the BSL's commercial terms are not a problem for your use.

The honest trade-off

Docmost wins this comparison for most self-hosters on the terms that count here: an open-source core, a compose file the docs hand you directly, and a login you can use on day one — with the paid ring drawn clearly enough that you know before installing whether you will hit it. Outline is the more mature product and the slicker editor, and if you already run an identity provider its auth requirement is a feature rather than a hurdle; its BSL-1.1 license is the part to read twice. If you need SAML or LDAP login for free, neither gives it to you — Outline delegates it to your IdP, Docmost sells it.