nb
Focus: notes and bookmarks. Shares command line and open source with zk. Adds Windows. Same 4.5 rating.
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Linux
4.5Visit
Desktop App
zk
A plain-text note-taking assistant for building a Zettelkasten in the terminal.
Built with love by Shushant Lakhyani. Building bestproductivityresources.com
What is zk?
zk is a free, open-source command-line tool for writing and linking plain Markdown notes. It creates notes from templates, finds them with fast full-text search and tags, shows backlinks and works with editors such as Neovim and VS Code, so your second brain stays in simple text files.
Third-party open-source projects. We are not affiliated with their authors; repositories are provided as-is by their maintainers. Review each project's license, code and security before installing. See our Disclaimer.
Pros
- Notes stay as plain Markdown files
- Fast search and linking
- Free and open source
Cons
- Command line only, no visual app
- Takes time to learn
Who should use zk
Developers and writers who like the terminal and want a simple Zettelkasten.
Who may not need it
Anyone who prefers a visual notes app.
zk alternatives
Similar resources to zk, picked from the directory.
Flatnotes
Focus: self-hosted and search. Shares markdown notes and open source with zk. A web app, not a desktop app. Adds Web. Same 4.5 rating.
Web AppFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.5Visit
SiYuan
Focus: second brain, block editor and backlinks. Shares open source and github with zk. Adds Windows, iOS and Android. Rated 4.7 (zk: 4.5).
Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.7Visit
QOwnNotes
Focus: plain text and nextcloud. Shares markdown notes and open source with zk. Adds Windows. Rated 4.6 (zk: 4.5).
Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.6Visit
SilverBullet
Focus: markdown, wiki and notes. Shares open source and github with zk. A web app, not a desktop app. Adds Web. Rated 4.6 (zk: 4.5).
Web AppFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.6Visit
Alexandrie
Focus: markdown, knowledge base and latex. Shares open source and github with zk. A web app, not a desktop app. Adds Web. Same 4.5 rating.
Web AppFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.5Visit
Free alternatives to zk
Free resources that cover similar ground.
jrnl
Focus: journal, daily log and plain text. Shares command line and open source with zk. Adds Windows. Same 4.5 rating.
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Linux
4.5Visit
Logseq
Focus: PKM, Note-Taking and Graph Database. Shares Open Source with zk. Adds Windows, iOS and Android. Rated 4.6 (zk: 4.5).
Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit
Trilium Notes
Focus: notes, knowledge base and self-hosted. Shares open source with zk. Adds Windows and Web. Rated 4.6 (zk: 4.5).
Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.6Visit
claude-obsidian
Focus: obsidian, claude code and second brain. Shares open source with zk. An AI tool, not a desktop app. Adds Windows. Rated 4.8 (zk: 4.5).
AI ToolFreemacOS, Windows
4.8Visit
Open Knowledge
Focus: markdown editor, ai notes and wiki. Shares open source and github with zk. Rated 4.4 (zk: 4.5).
Desktop AppFreeCross-Platform
4.4Visit
Memos
Focus: quick notes, markdown and self-hosted. Shares open source and github with zk. A web app, not a desktop app. Adds Web. Rated 4.7 (zk: 4.5).
Web AppFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.7Visit
Are you the maker of zk?Get a free Featured badge for your site, a share image and ready-to-paste posts. No sign-up.
Free Notion database
1,100+ ways people are making money online
Real online businesses, creators and projects, broken down by how they make money: apps, online stores, AI tools and more. Free on Gumroad.
Get the free databaseFree Notion database
399+ ways to make money online
Hundreds of online income methods in one place, so you can compare options and pick one to try. Free on Gumroad.
Get the free listFor research and ideas only. Results vary and nothing here is a promise of income. See our Disclaimer.
Weekly newsletter
Everything new, every Monday.
One short email every Monday with everything shipped that week: new free tools and websites, new guides, new free browser tools and what's new in my free Gumroad libraries, plus how the site is growing. Free, and you can unsubscribe anytime.
Join the newsletterYou sign up on Gumroad, which stores your email to send the newsletter. See our Privacy Policy.