Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

BookStack VS MoinMoin

Compare BookStack VS MoinMoin and see what are their differences

BookStack logo BookStack

An open source knowledge management application that's focused on ease of use.

MoinMoin logo MoinMoin

MoinMoin is an advanced, easy to use and extensible WikiEngine with a large community of users.
  • BookStack Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-01-31
  • MoinMoin Landing page
    Landing page //
    2018-09-30

BookStack features and specs

  • Open Source
    BookStack is an open-source platform, meaning it is freely available for anyone to use, modify, and contribute to. This ensures a large community support and continuous updates.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The software has a clean and intuitive interface that makes it easy for users of all skill levels to create and manage documentation.
  • Integrated WYSIWYG Editor
    The application includes a built-in 'What You See Is What You Get' editor, making it simple to format text and add multimedia without HTML knowledge.
  • Permission Management
    BookStack offers granular permission settings, which allow administrators to control access on a per-page, book, or shelf level.
  • Customizable
    With open-source software, the level of customization available is high, allowing organizations to tailor the software to their specific needs.

Possible disadvantages of BookStack

  • Hosting and Maintenance
    As an open-source product, users need to handle their own hosting and maintenance, which could be challenging for those without technical expertise.
  • Limited Integrations
    BookStack does not natively integrate with as many third-party applications compared to some proprietary knowledge management systems.
  • Learning Curve
    While the interface is user-friendly, setting up and customizing the platform may require a learning curve, especially for those unfamiliar with open-source software.
  • Performance
    In some instances, performance issues have been reported, especially when handling a large volume of data or concurrent users.
  • Feature Limitations
    Some advanced features found in proprietary knowledge management systems, such as advanced analytics or AI-driven search, may be lacking.

MoinMoin features and specs

  • Open Source
    MoinMoin is free to use and modify, which allows for flexibility and customization to fit specific needs.
  • Python-based
    Being written in Python, it is relatively easy to extend and integrate for developers familiar with the language.
  • User-friendly Interface
    MoinMoin offers a simple and straightforward user interface which makes it accessible to users without technical expertise.
  • Flexible Markup
    It supports a flexible and easy-to-learn markup language which simplifies content creation for users.
  • Version Control
    Provides robust version control features allowing users to track changes and revert to previous versions easily.

Possible disadvantages of MoinMoin

  • Limited Advanced Features
    Compared to some modern wiki platforms, MoinMoin may lack some advanced features and integrations.
  • Scalability Issues
    MoinMoin might face performance challenges with very large wikis or high traffic due to its design architecture.
  • Smaller Community
    It has a smaller community, which might result in less third-party support and fewer plugins compared to more popular wikis.
  • Less Frequent Updates
    There might be less frequent updates compared to highly active open-source projects, potentially impacting security and feature set.
  • Complex Setup
    The initial setup and configuration can be more complex compared to other wiki solutions that offer more straightforward installation processes.

Analysis of BookStack

Overall verdict

  • BookStack is a good choice for individuals and teams looking for a straightforward, open-source documentation tool. It's ideal for those who prefer a self-hosted solution without incurring additional costs or dealing with the complexities of some enterprise-level systems.

Why this product is good

  • BookStack is an open-source, self-hosted platform designed to make documentation and knowledge sharing easy. It's praised for its user-friendly interface, which resembles a digital version of a traditional book with chapters and pages, making it intuitive for users to navigate and organize content. The platform supports Markdown editing, which allows for easy formatting and media embedding. In addition, it has built-in support for authentication methods and role-based access control, providing flexibility and security for teams. The active community and frequent updates also contribute to its reliability and ongoing improvement.

Recommended for

    Small to medium-sized teams, open-source enthusiasts, educational institutions, and projects that require a user-friendly documentation system with the flexibility of self-hosting.

BookStack videos

BookStack Review- 7 Brief Lessons in Physics

More videos:

  • Review - Bookstack, a free, open source, self hosted documentation wiki with style.
  • Review - Bookstack - Meine favorisierte Wiki Software

MoinMoin videos

The SureFeed Pet Feeder: A Quick Unboxing and Review by Moinmoin

More videos:

  • Review - Drei Schnรคppchenjรคger auf dem Flohmarkt in Los Angeles | MoinMoin mit Etienne, Simon & Dennis
  • Review - Peruanische Snacks & Getrรคnke im Test | MoinMoin mit Kiara & Viet

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to BookStack and MoinMoin)
WiKis
68 68%
32% 32
Note Taking
78 78%
22% 22
Content Collaboration
100 100%
0% 0
Documentation
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using BookStack and MoinMoin. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare BookStack and MoinMoin

BookStack Reviews

Best Gitbook Alternatives You Need to Try in 2023
Bookstack is a simple, self-hosted platform for organizing and storing information, focusing on creating a knowledge base. It is similar to Gitbook in its functionality but differs in how it is organized and presented. It allows you to collect information in a hierarchical structure, similar to a book, with chapters and sections. This can make it easier to navigate large...
Source: www.archbee.com
The 10 Best Self-hosted Wiki Software for Linux System
Another powerful self-hosted Wiki software for Linux is BookStack. One of the most attractive features of BookStack is its cross-book sorting capability. It can sort all books based on tags such as title, author name, publisher, and genre. Users can even use it to search for particular titles based on a keyword. Other features of this open-source software include image...
Best 11 Open-source Free Wiki Engines for teams and enterprise in 2022
The BookStack App is not just a Wiki Engine, but it works the same. It aims for creating books by easing collaboration among writers and editors, we run it for us and some clients as a Wiki Engine, where they use books as projects.
Source: medevel.com

MoinMoin Reviews

Top 12 Self-hosted Wiki Engines for 2024: A Comprehensive Guide
MoinMoin is an advanced, extensible wiki software written in Python. It offers a range of features including a robust ACL system, plugin architecture, internationalization support, and a variety of storage backends. It also supports markup languages, data storage, and has scripting capabilities.
Source: medevel.com

Social recommendations and mentions

BookStack might be a bit more popular than MoinMoin. We know about 4 links to it since March 2021 and only 3 links to MoinMoin. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

BookStack mentions (4)

  • Ask HN: Best self-hosted wiki solution in 2025? Mediawiki or something else?
    Check out https://bookstackapp.com (PHP/Laravel). - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • Customize the theme a bit?
    That said, is it possible to customize the theme a bit? Specifically, how can I set the code-block background to dark-grey? Also, how can I make the horizontal line a bit taller than 1px? I saw the Customizing Visuals page on bookstackapp.com (specifically the "Changing Code Block Themes" topic) but was a little lost on exactly how to make the changes. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Looking to move internal docs from share Onenote to.. ?
    Maybe look at BookStack to see if it fits your needs. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Self hosting WordPress website
    If youโ€™re looking for a books-styled documentation platform, look into https://bookstackapp.com. Source: almost 3 years ago

MoinMoin mentions (3)

  • Best (simple) tool for personal Wiki
    I would highly recommend MoinMoin For a personal wiki -- the navigation provided is first-rate. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Not exactly a programming question per se, but what do you guys use to store notes with sensitive information?
    For an local Wiki, I use MoinMoin http://moinmo.in/. Once again, you can save the data files to a secure backup like Dropbox. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Do you have a personal "wiki" where you store your knowledge?
    One is MoinMoin https://moinmo.in/ which you can on a local server (needs Python 2 installed). Source: about 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing BookStack and MoinMoin, you can also consider the following products

DokuWiki - DokuWiki is a simple to use and highly versatile Open Source wiki software that doesn't require a database.

TiddlyWiki - a non-linear personal web notebook

WackoWiki - WackoWiki is a light and easy to install multilingual Wiki-engine.

MediaWiki - MediaWiki is a free software wiki package written in PHP, originally for use on Wikipedia.

XWiki - A powerful Open Source collaborative platform enhancing collaboration and communication.

Miraheze - Miraheze is a wiki farm (hosts wikis) for free and with no ads, it also provides custom domains...