Privacy-focused individual note takers Evernote refugees on a budget Self-hosters Cross-device markdown notes

Who is Joplin not for?

Teams needing real-time collaboration Web-first users — weak web app Buyers wanting vendor SLAs and support Sensitive-data teams that won't patch promptly

shouldiuse.io

Joplin Review

Worth it

Should I use Joplin?

Joplin, the open source note-taking application - joplinapp.org

Analyzed September 19, 2026 · 1 month ago

Buy if you want a free, private, cross-device notes app and can tolerate a no-frills UI. Skip if you need team collaboration, a strong web app, or vendor-backed support.

Confidence

Medium. Based on 30+ public sources; irrelevant 'Joplin, Missouri' results excluded. Review snippets were truncated, so quotes are partial.

Ratings

Value for money
Ease of use
Feature depth
Support quality
Security posture

Pricing

Free (apps)

ModelNot disclosed

Monthly feesNot disclosed

HardwareNot disclosed

Free tierYes

Joplin Cloud Basic~€2.40/mo

Best for

Privacy-focused individual note takers
Evernote refugees on a budget
Self-hosters
Cross-device markdown notes

Not for

Teams needing real-time collaboration
Web-first users — weak web app
Buyers wanting vendor SLAs and support
Sensitive-data teams that won't patch promptly

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

Self-hosters must patch fast: server privilege-escalation fix shipped only in version 3.3.3.

medium

Joplin Cloud raised prices after years of flat pricing; budget for increases.

medium

Free app means community-only support; managed hosting costs extra via third parties like Elestio.

medium

Some users report sync stopping entirely after detecting their setup; test sync early.

Pros

Completely free, open source, no subscription for the core apps
Cross-platform: desktop apps plus mobile
Paid sync cheaper than Standard Notes
'Excellent' user satisfaction in third-party comparisons
Plugin ecosystem extends core note features

Cons

'No-frills' experience next to polished rivals
Vocal Reddit minority dislikes it; sentiment is mixed
Users report sync stopping under certain conditions
Weak web app pushes users toward alternatives
Repeated CVEs undermine trust for sensitive notes

Sources & method

Analyzed September 19, 2026 - 14 sources - Open-source project with several CVEs, including a 2.8.8 remote command execution and a Joplin Server privilege escalation fixed in 3.3.3; patch promptly if self-hosting.

official x2review x8security x4

Remote command execution in Joplin 2.8.8, Advisory describes an external attacker able to execute commands; fixed in later versions.
Privilege escalation in Joplin Server, Via user patch endpoint; addressed in version 3.3.3.
CVE-2026-22810 — path traversal, Path traversal vulnerability listed on NVD.
CVE-2026-34600 — information disclosure, Information disclosure vulnerability tracked in SentinelOne's database.

Key stats

Value for money: 5/5
Rating
$0
Starting price
14
Sources
September 19, 2026
Analyzed

Value for money: 5/5. Core apps free; paid sync undercuts rivals
Ease of use: 4/5. Excellent user satisfaction, but no-frills UI
Feature depth: 3/5. Solid core plus plugins; fewer built-ins than rivals
Support quality: 3/5. Active community forum; no vendor SLA
Security posture: 2/5. Multiple CVEs incl. server privilege escalation

4.8/5 G2 rating 5 reviews
Free Starting price Joplin Cloud Basic ~€2.40/mo
Yes Free tier Apps fully free; Cloud sync is paid
Yes Open source Community-developed on GitHub

Pricing

Free (apps)

All desktop and mobile apps
Open source, community supported

Joplin Cloud Basic

~€2.40/mo

Joplin Cloud sync
Web app access

Security

Open-source project with several CVEs, including a 2.8.8 remote command execution and a Joplin Server privilege escalation fixed in 3.3.3; patch promptly if self-hosting.

Remote command execution in Joplin 2.8.8Advisory describes an external attacker able to execute commands; fixed in later versions.¹⁰
Privilege escalation in Joplin ServerVia user patch endpoint; addressed in version 3.3.3.¹¹

CVE-2026-22810 — path traversalPath traversal vulnerability listed on NVD.^⁹
CVE-2026-34600 — information disclosureInformation disclosure vulnerability tracked in SentinelOne's database.¹²

What users say

Users praise Joplin as a reliable free notes workspace, though some find it no-frills and a vocal minority dislikes it.

“Joplin has been perfect for...”

Google Play review

“After using Evernote (for 10 years), ...”

Reddit, r/joplinapp

“Joplin is an excellent text-based not...”

Being Paperless review

Alternatives

Compare Joplin with each alternative.

Obsidian
Local markdown notes with a larger plugin ecosystem
Joplin vs Obsidian
Standard Notes
Simpler encrypted notes; Joplin undercuts it on price
Joplin vs Standard Notes
UpNote
Cheap, polished notes app compared favorably on satisfaction
Joplin vs UpNote

Memos
Lightweight self-hosted notes; simpler than Joplin
Joplin vs Memos

Full analysis

Based on 30+ public sources; irrelevant 'Joplin, Missouri' results excluded. Review snippets were truncated, so quotes are partial.

Free open-source Evernote alternative: great value for personal notes, weak for teams; self-hosters must patch server CVEs.

Methodology

Based on 30+ public sources; irrelevant 'Joplin, Missouri' results excluded. Review snippets were truncated, so quotes are partial.

Read how a report is made.

Sources

Joplin Review — PCMagpcmag.com
review
Joplin Reviews — G2g2.com
review
Why is Joplin so disliked? — Redditreddit.com
review
Joplin — Google Playplay.google.com
review
UpNote vs Joplin — SelectHubselecthub.com
review
Evernote or Joplin — Evernoteevernote.com
review
Joplin Cloud Plans — officialjoplinapp.org
official
Joplin Cloud Price Jump — forumdiscourse.joplinapp.org
official
CVE-2026-22810 — NVDnvd.nist.gov
security
Joplin 2.8.8 RCE — Fluid Attacksfluidattacks.com
security
Joplin Server privilege escalation — GitHub advisorygithub.com
security
CVE-2026-34600 — SentinelOnesentinelone.com
security
Joplin pricing — SoftwareAdvicesoftwareadvice.com
review
Best Open Source Note Taking Appsopensourcealternatives.to
review

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Joplin Review

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