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AFFiNE vs Open SaaS

Open SaaS is a starter kit for building SaaS products; AFFiNE is a ready-to-use knowledge workspace.

Short answer: Pick AFFiNE if you want all-in-one knowledge OS; pick Open SaaS if you want full-stack SaaS starter with built-in payments. AFFiNE has a free plan, paid from $6.75/month; Open SaaS has a free plan, paid from $9.99/month.

Which to pick

Pick AFFiNE if you want…

  • All-in-one knowledge OS
  • The lower starting price: $6.75/month against $9.99/month

Pick Open SaaS if you want…

  • Full-stack SaaS starter with built-in payments
  • SaaS starter framework

Side by side

What it is
AFFiNE:AFFiNE is an open-source, local-first knowledge workspace that merges docs, whiteboards, databases and AI.
Open SaaS:Open SaaS is a free, open-source full-stack React + Node.js starter kit with built-in auth, payments and AI-ready features.
Best for
AFFiNE:All-in-one knowledge OS
Open SaaS:Full-stack SaaS starter with built-in payments
Who it’s for
AFFiNE:Teams and individuals needing an integrated note-taking, planning and visual collaboration tool.
Open SaaS:Developers building SaaS products who want a ready-made, type-safe stack.
Pricing
AFFiNE:Freemium
Open SaaS:Freemium
Starting price
AFFiNE:$6.75/month (Pro)
Open SaaS:$9.99/month (Hobby)
Free plan or trial
AFFiNE:Free plan (Free (Cloud))
Open SaaS:—
Plans
AFFiNE:Free (Cloud) Free · Pro $6.75 per month · Team $10 per seat per month · Believer $499.99 · AFFiNE AI Add-on $8.9 per month billed annually
Open SaaS:Hobby $9.99/month per month · Pro $19.99/month per month · 10 Credits $9.99
Open source
AFFiNE:Yes, 73,041 GitHub stars
Open SaaS:Yes, 16,015 GitHub stars
Works with
AFFiNE:—
Open SaaS:React, Node.js, Prisma, Stripe, Polar.sh, Lemon Squeezy, Plausible, Google Analytics

AFFiNE features

  • Unified Docs & Whiteboards. Write, draw and organize content on a single canvas without switching tools.
  • AI Copilot. Generate, rewrite, translate and summarize content directly inside AFFiNE.
  • Kanban & Project Boards. Track tasks, milestones and workflows with built-in Kanban views.
  • Local-First & Privacy-Focused. Data lives on the user’s device with optional cloud sync for control.
  • Templates & Moodboards. Ready-made templates for planners, storyboards, knowledge bases and more.
  • Real-time Collaboration. Edit docs and whiteboards together with live sync and version history.
  • Self-Hosted & Cloud Options. Run the full stack on your own servers or use AFFiNE Cloud hosting.
  • Open-Source MIT Editor. The editor is MIT-licensed, allowing unlimited customization.

Open SaaS features

  • Full-stack Type Safety. TypeScript types are auto-generated across the entire stack without extra configuration.
  • Pre-configured Auth. Ready-to-use authentication flow that you own and can customize.
  • Payment Provider Integration. Stripe, Polar.sh and Lemon Squeezy checkout and webhook setup out of the box.
  • Admin Dashboard & Analytics. Built-in dashboard with graphs, tables and Plausible/Google Analytics support.
  • File Uploads via AWS S3. Example code for presigned S3 uploads, fully documented.
  • Built-in Blog with Astro. Markdown-based blog powered by Astro, with SEO-friendly rendering.
  • E2E Tests & CI. Playwright tests and GitHub Actions CI pipeline included.
  • Deploy Anywhere. No vendor lock-in; deploy yourself or use Wasp’s one-click deploy.

AFFiNE vs Open SaaS FAQ

What is the difference between AFFiNE and Open SaaS?+

Open SaaS is a starter kit for building SaaS products; AFFiNE is a ready-to-use knowledge workspace.

Should I use AFFiNE or Open SaaS?+

Pick AFFiNE if you want all-in-one knowledge OS or the lower starting price: $6.75/month against $9.99/month. Pick Open SaaS if you want full-stack SaaS starter with built-in payments or SaaS starter framework.

Is AFFiNE or Open SaaS free?+

AFFiNE has a free plan (Free (Cloud)); paid plans start at $6.75/month (Pro). Open SaaS has a free plan; paid plans start at $9.99/month (Hobby).

Which is cheaper, AFFiNE or Open SaaS?+

AFFiNE is cheaper to start with: AFFiNE's Pro plan ($6.75/month) against Open SaaS's Hobby plan ($9.99/month).

Is AFFiNE or Open SaaS open source?+

Yes, both are open source: AFFiNE (toeverything/AFFiNE on GitHub) and Open SaaS (wasp-lang/open-saas on GitHub, MIT license).

On DevHunt

AFFiNE

5 upvotes · Launched on DevHunt on Apr 29, 2025

Open SaaS

98 upvotes · Launched on DevHunt on Jan 23, 2024

Based on each tool's website and DevHunt data. Details may change; check the official sites.