Outline logo

Outline

✓ Verified FOSSBSL-1.1
Top open-source alternative to Confluence / Slite

The fastest knowledge base for growing teams. Beautiful, realtime collaborative, feature packed, and markdown compatible.

Tech StackTypeScript, Node.js, React, PostgreSQL, Redis
Self-Host DifficultyMedium
License ModelBSL-1.1
GitHub Repositoryoutline/outline

Recommended VPS & Hardware Sizing

Estimated Hosting: $10 - $15/mo (e.g. Hetzner CPX21 or Linode)
Min RAM:2 GB
Rec RAM:4 GB
Compute:2 vCPU
Disk Space:25 GB SSD

Outline vs Confluence / Slite Comparison Matrix

Evaluation CriteriaOutline (Open Source)Confluence / Slite (Proprietary)
Per-User Fee$0 software license; zero per-seat tax$6.05 - $11.50 / user / mo (Confluence)
Editor PerformanceBlazing fast <50ms Markdown renderingBloated, heavy enterprise page load
INTERACTIVE TCO MODELEstimated Rate: $9/user/mo

Financial Impact: Migrating from Confluence / Slite to Self-Hosted Outline

Detailed Stack Calculator →
5 Users (Early Startup)50 Users (Scaleup)200 Users (Enterprise Org)
Confluence / Slite (Cloud SaaS)Per-Seat Tax
$2,700per year ($225/mo)
3-Year Spend:$8,100

* Excludes enterprise SSO add-ons & usage overages

Outline (Self-Hosted)Zero Per-Seat Fee
$120per year ($10/mo Linux VPS)
3-Year Compute:$360

* Commodity Hetzner / DigitalOcean compute instance

Cumulative 3-Year ROI+$7,740Net savings across 36 months (96% reduction)
Annual Free Cash:+$2,580/yr
Need C-Level Buy-In? Generate an instant ROI proposal memo to present to your CTO or CFO.

Core Capabilities & Features

✓Notion-style slash commands and block-based Markdown editor
✓Real-time multiplayer co-editing with presence indicators
✓Lightning-fast instant search with typo tolerance
✓Document revision history with side-by-side diffs

Self-Host Outline with Docker Compose

Tweak configuration ports, secrets, and volumes live. Download or copy your ready-to-run container file:

1-Click Docker Compose Generator

Generate production-ready container definitions with customizable ports and volumes.

OutlineBSL-1.1

The fastest, most beautiful collaborative team knowledge base built with Markdown and rich embeds

Difficulty: Medium40,872 ⭐
Configure Parameters
docker-compose.outline.yml
version: "3"

services:
  outline:
    image: outlinewiki/outline:latest
    environment:
      - NODE_ENV=production
      - DATABASE_URL=postgres://outline:${DB_PASS:-outline_secret}@postgres:5432/outline
      - REDIS_URL=redis://redis:6379
      - SECRET_KEY=${SECRET_KEY:-generate_hex_64_bytes}
      - UTILS_SECRET=${UTILS_SECRET:-generate_hex_64_bytes}
      - URL=${URL:-http://localhost:3000}
      - PORT=3000
    ports:
      - "${SERVER_PORT:-3000}:3000"
    depends_on:
      - postgres
      - redis

  redis:
    image: redis:alpine
    restart: always

  postgres:
    image: postgres:15-alpine
    restart: always
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_USER=outline
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=${DB_PASS:-outline_secret}
      - POSTGRES_DB=outline
    volumes:
      - pgdata:/var/lib/postgresql/data

volumes:
  pgdata:

Frequently Asked Questions: Self-Hosting Outline

How do I self-host Outline using Docker Compose?

You can deploy Outline (outline/outline) on any Linux server by copying the docker-compose.yml template on this page, configuring your desired host port and persistent volume directory, and running 'docker compose up -d'.

How does Outline compare to Confluence / Slite?

Outline is an open-source, self-hosted alternative to Confluence / Slite built with TypeScript, Node.js, React, PostgreSQL, Redis. Unlike Confluence / Slite ($6.05 - $11.50 / user / month (Atlassian Tier)), Outline has zero per-user licensing fees and keeps 100% of your data on your own infrastructure.

What are the minimum VPS RAM and CPU requirements for Outline?

For production self-hosting (Medium difficulty tier), we recommend at least 4 GB RAM (minimum 2 GB), 2 vCPU, and 25 GB SSD storage, which typically costs $10 - $15/mo (e.g. Hetzner CPX21 or Linode).

Is Outline free for commercial business use under the BSL-1.1 license?

Yes. Distributed under the BSL-1.1 license, Outline can be self-hosted internally by businesses and engineering teams of any size without per-seat royalties.

README INTEGRATION // REPO EMBED

Embed Official Outline Badge in GitHub README

Served locally from OSSMatrix with Cloudflare global edge caching. Real-time verified alternative status, zero third-party dependencies, sub-5ms load time.

Live Preview:Outline Badge
Markdown Embed (GitHub / GitLab)
[![OSSMatrix Alternative](https://ossmatrix.com/api/badge/outline)](https://ossmatrix.com/project/outline)
HTML Embed (Docs / Landing Pages)
<a href="https://ossmatrix.com/project/outline" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://ossmatrix.com/api/badge/outline" alt="Outline on OSSMatrix" /></a>
SIMILAR REPOSITORIES // PEER COMPARISON

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