Otter Wiki

A minimal Python wiki that stores pages as Markdown in a Git repository, with page history, attachments, user login and a clean editor.

1.6k stars, 134 forks Python On GitHub since July 2018

Visit website View on GitHub How to run it

Otter Wiki at a glance

Open sourceYes, MITNo paid parts in the repository
Health80 of 100Actively developed
Self-hostingDocker, Helm chartCompose file, 1 service
InterfaceEnglish onlyNo translation files found
Issue repliesWithin ~14 hoursMedian first reply; 100% of recent issues answered

What is Otter Wiki?

An Otter Wiki is a small collaborative wiki built with Flask. Every change is committed to a Git repository, so you get a full changelog and page history, and an experimental Git HTTP server lets you clone, pull and push the content. The CodeMirror editor highlights Markdown and helps with tables, and extended syntax covers footnotes, alerts, fancy blocks and Mermaid diagrams. It offers user authentication, attachments, a customizable sidebar and a dark mode.

Good fit if

  • You want a lightweight wiki for a team or homelab whose content stays in plain Markdown and Git.
  • You prefer a minimal interface over a feature-heavy knowledge base.

Look elsewhere if

  • You need books, chapters and fine-grained permissions: BookStack.
  • You want a wiki with more integrations and editors: Wiki.js.

Before you adopt it

An Otter Wiki is MIT-licensed and has no paid parts. Its author writes most of the code, with a few contributors. The recommended install is Docker Compose, and a Helm chart is provided for Kubernetes.

Drafted with AI from the project's README and repository data, then checked against that data on 31 October 2026. Report a correction

How to run Otter Wiki yourself

Docker
Dockerfile or compose file in the repository
Compose file
docker-compose.yml: 1 service
Setup effort
1 of 5, judged from the compose file
Kubernetes
Helm chart in the repository
Desktop and mobile
No app builds in GitHub releases
Interface languages
English only

Install instructions: otterwiki.com or the README on GitHub.

Otter Wiki health: is it still maintained?

80 of 100, actively developed

Release rhythmEvery ~7 daysLatest: v2.26.3, 5 November 2026
Issue repliesWithin ~14 hoursMedian first reply; 100% of recent issues answered
Bus factorMedium riskThe most active of 5 authors wrote 71% of recent commits
  • Activity
    136 commits in the last 90 days, the latest on 5 November 2026.
    26 / 30
  • Contributors
    5 people wrote the latest 100 commits; the most active wrote 71% of them.
    10 / 20
  • Releases
    15+ releases in the last 12 months; the latest, v2.26.3, on 5 November 2026.
    19 / 20
  • Replies to issues
    Maintainers answered 100% of recent issues, with a median first reply after 14 hours.
    20 / 20
  • Security practices
    No OpenSSF Scorecard for this repository yet, so this part gets a neutral score.
    5 / 10

Read from GitHub on 7 November 2026. How the score works

Otter Wiki license: is it open source?

Otter Wiki uses MIT, an open-source license approved by the OSI.

  1. July 2018First published on GitHub.
  2. TodayMIT.

Otter Wiki for developers

Written in

  • Python 64%
  • JavaScript 20%
  • Jinja 8%
  • HTML 5%
  • CSS 3%
  • Other <1%

Getting involved

Contributing guideNot foundNo CONTRIBUTING file in the repository
Open issues48On GitHub
Authors, 90 days5Of the latest 100 commits

Language shares are GitHub’s count of the code in the repository.

Alternatives to Otter Wiki

  • Wiki.jsWiki.js | Next Generation Open Source Wiki 65 health · AGPL-3.0 · 29.2k stars
  • flatnotesA self-hosted, database-less note taking web app that utilises a flat folder of markdown files for storage. 41 health · MIT · 3.3k stars
  • AFFiNEThere can be more than Notion and Miro. AFFiNE(pronounced [ə‘fain]) is a next-gen knowledge base that brings… 76 health · MIT · 74.3k stars
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All 39 projects in Notes & knowledge bases

Questions about Otter Wiki

Is Otter Wiki open source?

Yes. Otter Wiki is published under MIT, an OSI-approved open-source license.

Is Otter Wiki still maintained?

Its health score is 80 of 100 (actively developed). It had 136 commits in the last 90 days, the latest on 5 November 2026, and its latest release came out on 5 November 2026.

How do I run Otter Wiki?

You can run it with Docker, on Kubernetes with the Helm chart in the repository. The README on GitHub has the exact steps.

What is Otter Wiki written in?

Otter Wiki is written mainly in Python (64% of the code), with JavaScript (20%) and Jinja (8%), by GitHub’s count of the repository.

What are the alternatives to Otter Wiki?

Close alternatives in the Notes & knowledge bases category include Wiki.js, flatnotes, AFFiNE.