Craft costs $10/mo.
These cost $0.
3 free alternatives to Craft, checked for license, recent activity and real adoption. Each one tells you the catch, so you can switch with your eyes open.
Craft vs Free Alternatives Matrix
Quick side-by-side comparison · $0/mo vs $10/mo
| Alternative | Type | License | Where It Runs | Stars | Head-to-Head |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AppFlowy | open source | AGPL-3.0 | Local or hosted | ★ 75k | Craft vs AppFlowy → |
| AFFiNE | free | MIT AND MPL-2.0 | Local or hosted | ★ $0 forever | Craft vs AFFiNE → |
| Obsidian | free | proprietary, free | Local | ★ $0 forever | Craft vs Obsidian → |
The picks
1 open source · 2 free to use · ranked by fit
- 01
AppFlowy
open sourceAGPL-3.0Local or hosted75kjul 2026A portable document workspace that trades Craft's sheen for local control.
The catch vs CraftIt provides local control and structured documents, but Craft's visual layouts, presentation quality, publishing, and collaboration remain more polished.
Install, platforms & data +
- platforms
- desktopmobilewebself-hostedone-click install
- install
- Install a native desktop/mobile app or use AppFlowy Web/Cloud; self-hosting deploys the AppFlowy Cloud Docker stack and points the clients at it
- setup
- Local offline use installs cleanly, but self-hosted sync is a multi-container deployment with PostgreSQL, Redis, GoTrue authentication, object storage, mail/auth secrets, migrations, and client URL configuration
- engines
- Hosted plans expose managed models such as GPT-5, Gemini 2.5 Pro, and Claude 3.7 Sonnet; local/on-prem use can connect Ollama, LM Studio, or another self-hosted LLM
- your data
- Offline work remains in the device's local AppFlowy store; AppFlowy Cloud syncs it to AppFlowy's service, while the self-hosted stack persists workspace/auth data in PostgreSQL, cache/queues in Redis, and uploads in MinIO or another S3-compatible object store
- checked
- 2026-08-14
- 02
AFFiNE
freeMIT AND MPL-2.0Local or hostedPolished documents, links and canvases, with local workspaces and usable exports.
The catch vs CraftIt approaches Craft's documents and canvases, but typography, sharing, publishing, export consistency, and collaborative polish are less mature.
Install, platforms & data +
- platforms
- desktopmobilewebself-hostedone-click install
- install
- Use AFFiNE Cloud or install the desktop app; self-hosted collaboration uses the official Docker Compose stack with AFFiNE, PostgreSQL, and Redis
- setup
- The desktop app is straightforward, but free self-hosted sync and collaboration require Docker, PostgreSQL, Redis, persistent volumes, configuration, migrations, backups, and a correctly exposed server URL
- engines
- AFFiNE AI supports bring-your-own-key routes for OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, and FAL; local storage is available in the desktop app, while self-host AI is configured server-side
- your data
- A local-only desktop workspace stays on that device; AFFiNE Cloud stores it in AFFiNE's service, while self-hosted workspaces use PostgreSQL for structured data, mounted blob storage for uploads, Redis for cache, and local configuration files
- checked
- 2026-08-14
- 03
Obsidian
freeproprietary, freeLocalLinked documents in ordinary Markdown; beautiful publishing is your own department.
The catch vs CraftIt makes a wonderfully portable linked library, but it lacks Craft's visual block layouts, effortless beautiful documents, and integrated publishing experience.
Install, platforms & data +
- platforms
- desktopmobileone-click install
- install
- Install the native Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, or Android app; no account is required for local use
- your data
- Ordinary Markdown files and attachments in a user-chosen local vault folder, with app settings and plugins under `.obsidian`; optional paid Obsidian Sync stores end-to-end-encrypted replicas in Obsidian's cloud
- checked
- 2026-08-14
Frequently Asked Questions
Direct answers · Craft open-source replacements
What is the best free alternative to Craft?+
The top free alternative to Craft is AppFlowy (open source, AGPL-3.0). A portable document workspace that trades Craft's sheen for local control. Other popular Craft replacements include AFFiNE, Obsidian.
Can I self-host a free replacement for Craft?+
Yes. Of the 3 free alternatives to Craft, 2 can be self-hosted on your own server or local machine: AppFlowy (AGPL-3.0), AFFiNE (MIT AND MPL-2.0).
How much does switching from Craft to a free alternative save?+
Craft starts at $10/month per seat ($120/year). Switching a 5-person team to a free alternative like AppFlowy saves $600 per year in software subscription fees.
Should I vibe-code or build my own Craft clone from scratch?+
Our build verdict for Craft is KINDA (the core, yes. the polish, no). The core loop is buildable, but a dependable replacement becomes a real weekend or multi-day project. For Craft, write visually polished documents, link them, and export a portable personal library. The hard boundary is native apps, sync, publishing, collaboration, and strong block-editor polish, plus sync, collaboration, and capture polish.
What is the catch when switching from Craft to AppFlowy?+
It provides local control and structured documents, but Craft's visual layouts, presentation quality, publishing, and collaboration remain more polished.
