Joplinvsscalar
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Joplin | scalar | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 83/100 | 76/100 |
| Rank in category | #2 of 81 in Notes & Editors | #3 of 13 in API |
| GitHub stars | 56 913 | 16 335 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +437 | +156 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 18 | 46 |
| Latest release | v3.7.22 · 28 Oct 2026 | release-2026-10-28-0d01943 · 28 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Easy |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Other | MIT |
| Main language | Typescript | Typescript |
Which one should you pick?
Joplin scores 83/100 against 76/100 for scalar, so it is the safer default.
scalar ships more often: 46 stable releases in the past year, against 18 for Joplin.
If you want the quickest setup, scalar is easier to run; Joplin needs more configuration.
Joplin is growing faster right now (+437 stars in 30 days).
Joplin details →scalar details →
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