5 Best Open Source Miro Alternatives 2026: Self-Hosted & Free

Miro is a web-based whiteboard application that facilitates visual collaboration, making it ideal for remote work. With features tailored for effective brainstorming sessions, such as the ability to create simple wireframes even without design expertise. However, it's important to note that Miro also has notable limitations.

For example, as a proprietary software, Miro's closed-source nature presents potential risks for users (open-source Miro alternatives avoid these issues). Some of the downsides include limited customization options, lack of transparency in the codebase, and dependency on the vendor for updates and bug fixes.

An open-source Miro alternative is a whiteboard-style collaboration tool whose source code is publicly available under a permissive or copyleft license, runs on your own infrastructure if you want, and never locks your data behind a SaaS subscription. Below we cover five truly open-source or open-source-friendly tools, sorted by depth of whiteboard features.

Disclosure: AFFiNE is built by the same team that publishes this article. The comparison below is researched against each tool's official documentation and homepage as of 2026-06-01; we include honest trade-offs for AFFiNE (whiteboard feature catch-up vs. Miro's mature library) alongside the alternatives. Where AFFiNE is the best fit we say so, and where a specific use case favors Excalidraw, AppFlowy, Logseq, or Obsidian we say so as well.

Quick comparison: 5 open-source Miro alternatives at a glance

How 5 open-source Miro alternatives compare on hosting, AI, pricing, and license (as of 2026-06-01). Rows ordered by editor-license permissiveness (MIT first, then AGPL, then freemium core).

The remainder of this guide goes tool by tool with key features, best-fit use cases, self-host setup notes, and trade-offs for each open-source Miro alternative.

1. AFFiNE: The next-gen open-source whiteboard workspace

Key features

As the best of Miro Board Alternatives, AFFiNE's whiteboard (edgeless) mode functions as a whiteboard and project management tool, offering users a secure and private workspace where they have absolute control over their data. AFFiNE's whiteboard mode offers a series of features including shapes with editable size, background, and boundary, pens with different colours, and connectors to visualize and link your ideas.

One of the standout features of AFFiNE is its ability to seamlessly switch between paper mode and whiteboard mode (Page and Edgeless), making it a versatile tool for brainstorming, planning, and collaboration. It also creates separate workspaces for managing personal blogs, team repositories, and personal repositories side by side, so you can organize and manage different types of data simultaneously without juggling multiple platforms.

Best for

Teams and individuals who need both documents and whiteboard in the same workspace, with optional AI for summaries and content generation. Especially strong for engineering, product, and knowledge teams who want one tool instead of Miro plus Notion.

Pricing and self-host

Free forever for personal use, with unlimited local workspaces, 10 GB of Cloud Storage, real-time collaboration with up to 3 members per workspace, and 7 days of version history. Paid Cloud plans start at $6.75/month for the Pro tier; self-hosting the FOSS edition is free for personal and development use under the MIT-licensed editor plus the AFFiNE Enterprise Edition backend. See the full AFFiNE pricing page for cloud plans and self-host options.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Open-source editor under MIT, local-first data ownership, edgeless and page modes in one app, built-in AI, self-host with Docker.
• Cons: Whiteboard feature set is still catching up with Miro's mature library of templates and integrations; ecosystem of community templates is smaller.

Here are some quick view of what you can do with AFFiNE.

• Database: easily create, organize, and track your daily notes like never before. Say goodbye to complex processes and welcome an unprecedented ease-of-use way.
• Powerful Paper mode for note-taking and wiki: build up your content like blocks and let your ideas run wild. Start with an empty space and watch the blocks appear, stack up, and form the building.

If you want to know more about what you can do with AFFiNE:

• Check our latest beta version and see what's new.
• AFFiNE is also an open-source alternative to Notion. you can import data from Notion to AFFiNE in a few clicks.

2. Obsidian: Markdown knowledge base with Canvas whiteboard

Key features

Obsidian is a markdown-first knowledge base that stores every note as a plain .md file on your machine. Its Canvas plugin turns Obsidian into a node-based whiteboard where each card can be a markdown note, an image, or a web embed, with arrows connecting ideas. The plugin and theme ecosystem is huge, with thousands of community-built extensions for everything from Kanban boards to spaced-repetition flashcards.

Best for

Solo knowledge workers, researchers, and writers who already think in markdown and want a personal knowledge base with a visual canvas layer on top, rather than a collaboration-first whiteboard.

Pricing and self-host

Free for personal use forever. Optional paid Sync ($4/month) and Publish ($8/month) services. The core app runs entirely on your device, so technically every Obsidian install is "self-hosted". there is no cloud server to manage.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Plain-markdown data format, runs entirely locally, massive plugin ecosystem, strong for personal knowledge management.
• Cons: Core app is closed-source freemium, real-time multi-user collaboration is limited, the Canvas whiteboard is a plugin rather than a first-class workspace mode. For team whiteboarding, see our broader whiteboard tool roundup.

3. Excalidraw: Lightweight open-source whiteboard for quick sketches

Key features

Excalidraw is a virtual whiteboard with a hand-drawn aesthetic that makes diagrams feel like quick paper sketches. It supports shapes, freehand drawing, sticky notes, arrows, libraries of reusable components, and real-time collaboration via shareable links. Boards export cleanly to PNG, SVG, or .excalidraw JSON, making it easy to embed sketches in documentation or pull request reviews.

Best for

Engineers, designers, and PMs who want a fast, low-friction sketch pad for architecture diagrams, wireframes, and meeting whiteboarding. not a long-term document store. Pairs well with a more permanent docs tool.

Pricing and self-host

Free forever. Self-hosting is a single Docker command: docker run --rm -p 8080:80 excalidraw/excalidraw. The codebase is MIT-licensed on GitHub, so you can fork, customize, or embed it freely. For a more general roundup of zero-cost whiteboards beyond Excalidraw, see our free whiteboard app picks.

Pros and cons

• Pros: MIT-licensed, one-command self-host, instant share links, hand-drawn aesthetic that resists "too polished too fast" syndrome.
• Cons: No persistent documents layer, no database or notes mode, weak structured data. every board is a standalone sketch.

4. AppFlowy: Open-source Notion alternative with whiteboard mode

Key features

AppFlowy positions itself as the open-source Notion alternative, with pages, databases, Kanban boards, calendars, and a Grid view. Its Board view doubles as a project whiteboard, and the platform ships built-in AI features for summaries and content generation. The app is built on Rust plus Flutter, so it runs natively on web, desktop, and mobile with consistent performance.

Best for

Teams that want a Notion-style projects tool with light whiteboarding, where the database and Kanban views matter more than freeform canvas drawing. Strong fit for product, ops, and content teams already familiar with Notion patterns.

Pricing and self-host

Free forever for both Cloud and Self-Hosted Community editions. Self-hosting is via Docker Compose, with detailed setup docs on GitHub. The codebase is AGPL-licensed, which permits modification and commercial deployment as long as derivative network services also publish their source.

Pros and cons

• Pros: First-class Notion-style features, AI built in, AGPL license keeps the ecosystem honest, Rust performance.
• Cons: Whiteboard is one feature among many rather than the focus, freeform canvas is less developed than dedicated tools like Excalidraw or AFFiNE.

5. Logseq: Knowledge graph and outliner with Whiteboards

Key features

Logseq is a privacy-first, outliner-style knowledge base built around block references and bidirectional links. Its Whiteboards feature lets you drop blocks from any page onto an infinite canvas and connect them with arrows, turning your notes into a visual knowledge graph. Everything runs locally by default; optional encrypted sync is available for teams.

Best for

Researchers, students, and analysts who want a knowledge graph and outliner combined with whiteboards, prioritizing privacy and offline use over team collaboration. Especially strong for note-heavy workflows where you connect ideas across many sources.

Pricing and self-host

Free forever. The desktop and mobile apps run entirely on your device, with optional Logseq Sync for end-to-end encrypted multi-device sync. Source code is AGPL-licensed; you can self-host the sync server too if you want full data control.

Pros and cons

• Pros: AGPL-licensed and privacy-first, bidirectional links and block references work great for research, runs locally with optional encrypted sync.
• Cons: Whiteboards module is still in beta, outliner-first UI has a learning curve for users used to traditional pages, less polished than commercial whiteboards.

How to migrate from Miro to an open-source whiteboard

Migrating from Miro to any of the five open-source alternatives above takes one afternoon if you plan it as four discrete steps.

Step 1: Export your Miro boards

In Miro, open each board, click the share menu, and export as PDF or PNG. For board structure and sticky-note data, use Miro's Board Backup export to download a JSON archive of every board.

Step 2: Pick a target open-source tool

Use the comparison table above to pick the tool that fits your team's primary use case. AFFiNE for docs plus whiteboard, Excalidraw for sketches, AppFlowy for project planning, Logseq or Obsidian for knowledge graphs.

Step 3: Recreate or import boards in the new tool

Most open-source alternatives let you drag in the exported PDF or PNG as a reference layer, then rebuild the board natively. AFFiNE and Excalidraw also accept paste-from-clipboard for shapes, sticky notes, and arrows from many web sources.

Step 4: Move your team and archive Miro

Set up team workspaces in the new tool, invite collaborators, and run one week of parallel use to catch missed boards. Once your team is comfortable, downgrade Miro to free or cancel the subscription, keeping the JSON backups for reference.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best free Miro alternative in 2026?

For most teams, AFFiNE is the best free Miro alternative in 2026: it combines a document editor, an edgeless whiteboard, and AI in one open-source workspace, with both cloud and self-hosted options. For pure sketching, Excalidraw is the simplest free alternative.

Can I self-host Miro?

No, Miro cannot be self-hosted. As of 2026, Miro is closed-source SaaS and offers no on-premise or self-host plan. To run a whiteboard on your own infrastructure, use an open-source alternative: AFFiNE (Docker), Excalidraw (one-command Docker), AppFlowy (Docker Compose), or Logseq (local desktop app).

Is Excalidraw a good Miro alternative?

Excalidraw is an excellent Miro alternative for designers and engineers who want fast, hand-drawn sketches, wireframes, and architecture diagrams. It is MIT-licensed, free forever, and self-hostable with one command: docker run --rm -p 8080:80 excalidraw/excalidraw. For persistent team documents and multi-user collaboration with version history, AFFiNE and AppFlowy offer a broader feature set.

Does AFFiNE replace Miro for whiteboarding?

Yes. AFFiNE's edgeless mode covers Miro's core whiteboard use cases: sticky notes, shapes, connectors, frames, and real-time collaboration. AFFiNE also adds document editing and AI in the same workspace, which Miro does not. The free plan includes unlimited local workspaces, 10 GB of Cloud Storage, and up to 3 collaborators per workspace; teams can self-host the full stack under the AFFiNE Enterprise Edition license.

Which open-source Miro alternative is best for designers?

Excalidraw is the most popular open-source Miro alternative for designers and developers who need quick sketches and architecture diagrams. AFFiNE is the better fit if you also need a documents layer and a long-term workspace, not just one-off sketches.

Is Obsidian open-source?

No, Obsidian's core application is closed-source freemium. However, Obsidian stores all data as plain Markdown files on your device, and its plugin ecosystem is open-source under MIT or similar licenses. Obsidian appears in open-source Miro alternative lists because of its open data format and the open-source Canvas plugin that powers its node-based whiteboard.

How do I migrate Miro boards to AFFiNE?

To migrate Miro boards to AFFiNE: export each board as PDF or PNG from Miro's share menu, drag the file into a new AFFiNE edgeless canvas as a reference image, then rebuild the board natively using AFFiNE shapes, sticky notes, and connectors. The four-step migration guide above covers the full process for any open-source Miro alternative in this article.

Conclusion

Looking at open source alternatives to Miro gives you powerful and flexible tools that meet different collaboration needs without the limitations of proprietary software. In 2026, the best open-source Miro alternatives are AFFiNE, Obsidian, Excalidraw, AppFlowy, and Logseq. Each of these has unique features, community-driven improvements, and the ability to fit your specific workflow.

Whether you want a simple and intuitive interface like Excalidraw, a knowledge-base focus like Obsidian, or an open-source multi-purpose visual workspace like AFFiNE, there is an open-source tool that fits your collaboration needs. If you want to compare team-level options further, see our guide to building a team knowledge base or the broader online whiteboard tools roundup.