Open-source
Joplin is a note-taking app that keeps your notes organized and synced across devices. You can write in Markdown, add to-do lists, and keep your data under your own control.
Platform: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. Best for: Private note-taking and to-do lists. Replaces: Evernote and Notion.
Verified: October 2026
Who Joplin is best for, its limits, and free alternatives
Joplin is best for readers who want a straightforward, private place for everyday notes and to-do lists, kept in sync across their devices. Its Markdown-based approach suits people who like plain, portable notes and keeping their own material under their own control, rather than working inside a heavily designed, all-in-one workspace.
Its limits are a matter of fit rather than quality. If your main way of working is linking many ideas together into a connected knowledge base, or if you need a shared team workspace that brings wikis, projects and notes together in one place, Joplin may feel less natural as a first choice. In those cases, it is worth comparing it with the free alternatives below before settling on one tool.
Free alternatives already published on this site include Logseq, which is presented here as a privacy-first knowledge base for linked notes, research and personal knowledge management, and AppFlowy, which brings notes, wikis, projects and team work together in one workspace that you can run yourself. You can also browse more tools in the same area on the Productivity category page.