What is Xournalpp used for?

Xournalpp is an open-source, cross-platform note-taking application for handwritten notes and PDF annotation. It is a good fit for taking handwritten notes for physics problems or travel diaries and creating scientific diagrams with LaTeX.

Is Xournalpp open source?

Yes. Xournalpp is open source under the GPL-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at xournalpp/xournalpp and is written mainly in C++.

Yes. Xournalpp is open source, so the software itself is free to use.

Can I self-host Xournalpp?

Yes. Xournalpp can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.

What is Xournalpp an alternative to?

Xournalpp is an open-source alternative to GoodNotes, Notability, Noteshelf and Microsoft OneNote. Other open-source alternatives to GoodNotes include Butterfly, Logseq and Notesnook.

Is Xournalpp actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to Xournalpp was on 13 October 2026, and the latest release is v1.3.8, published on 26 September 2026. The project has 16k stars on GitHub.

Xournalpp: open-source alternative to GoodNotes, Notability

About Xournalpp

Xournal++ is a handwriting notetaking software with PDF annotation support. It is a modern rewrite of Xournal, written in C++ with GTK3, and supports Linux, macOS, and Windows 10. The software supports pen input from devices such as Wacom tablets.

Key features

Handwrite notes with pressure-sensitive stylus and drawing tablets (Wacom, Huion, XP-Pen)
Customizable pen, highlighter, and eraser tools
Layers and page previews for organizing notes
Add images and create shapes (circles, splines, axis) with snapping to grid or rotation
Built-in LaTeX editor for equations, circuits, and molecular formulas
Audio recording linked to note objects with playback

Good fit for

Taking handwritten notes for physics problems or travel diaries
Creating scientific diagrams with LaTeX

Built with: C++ tools
Tags: handwriting; notetaking; pdf-annotation; open-source; cross-platform; latex

Xournalpp: questions and answers

What is Xournalpp used for?: Xournalpp is an open-source, cross-platform note-taking application for handwritten notes and PDF annotation. It is a good fit for taking handwritten notes for physics problems or travel diaries and creating scientific diagrams with LaTeX.
Is Xournalpp open source?: Yes. Xournalpp is open source under the GPL-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at xournalpp/xournalpp and is written mainly in C++.
Is Xournalpp free?: Yes. Xournalpp is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
Can I self-host Xournalpp?: Yes. Xournalpp can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.
What is Xournalpp an alternative to?: Xournalpp is an open-source alternative to GoodNotes, Notability, Noteshelf and Microsoft OneNote. Other open-source alternatives to GoodNotes include Butterfly, Logseq and Notesnook.
Is Xournalpp actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to Xournalpp was on 13 October 2026, and the latest release is v1.3.8, published on 26 September 2026. The project has 16k stars on GitHub.