Side by side

Linwood Butterfly vs Memos

Both stand on note-taking apps. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.

Linwood Butterfly

Free plan AndroidiPhoneLinux+4

Butterfly brings handwriting, sketching, imported materials, and reusable assets together on an infinite canvas. Consider its browser limitations and experimental collaboration status when choosing how to use it.

Visit Linwood Butterfly

Memos

Free plan AndroidAPIExtension+6

Memos gives self-hosters a searchable note timeline with flexible storage and sharing choices. Consider the setup and backup responsibilities, and note that importing from other note apps is not supported.

Visit Memos

The facts

	Linwood Butterfly	Memos
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Open source	Not published	Not published
Runs on	Android, iPhone, Linux, Mac, Self-hosted, Web, Windows	Android, API, Extension, iPhone, Linux, Mac, Self-hosted, Web, Windows
Lowest paid plan	Free or on request	Free or on request
Plans published	1	1
Maker	Not published	Not published
Website	butterfly.linwood.dev	usememos.com
On note-taking apps	#40 of 216	#36 of 216

Linwood Butterfly: what it does well

Works offline across listed platforms.
Combines notes with editable photos, PDFs, and SVGs.
Exports to images, PDF, SVG, and more.
Supports local storage and WebDAV, including Nextcloud.
Free and open source under GNU AGPL-3.0.

What to know first

Firefox and Safari lack required web-app WebAssembly features.
Real-time collaboration is experimental.

Memos: what it does well

Notes can be searched by tag, date, or location.
Private by default, with per-note sharing controls.
Supports SQLite, MySQL, and PostgreSQL.
Offers several self-hosted deployment methods.
No subscription, seat, or usage fees.

What to know first

Hosting costs may apply.
Importing exports from other note apps is unsupported.
Instance operators control security policies and infrastructure.

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