AFFiNE
A nightly canary train where the AI platform work hides between dependency bumps
Comparison · Collab
SiYuan vs tufte
A side-by-side editorial comparison of SiYuan and tufte — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
SiYuan vs tufte: at a glance
What is SiYuan?
SiYuan 3.8.0 ships: MCP, an AI agent and semantic search reach general availability
SiYuan is a self-hostable block-based notes application. The 3.8.0 line opened on 4 August with four features it had never shipped - an AI Agent, semantic search over embeddings, Model Context Protocol support and OIDC authentication - then spent eight prerelease builds stabilizing them. The final release landed on 12 August, adding LAN peer-assisted cloud sync and a long tail of cross-platform polish.
What is tufte?
After three quiet years, tufte 0.15 finally lets Tufte-style documents cross-reference.
Almost every release before the latest is a Pandoc compatibility fix — sidenotes breaking on Pandoc 2.15, margin references misplaced on 2.11, table and citation handling in `tufte_handout()`, `--wrap preserve` for margin content on 2.19. Then 0.15.0 in May 2026 breaks the pattern: `tufte_handout2()`, `tufte_book2()` and `tufte_html2()` wrap the corresponding bookdown formats, enabling text references and cross-references in captions, and `margin_fig_pos` gives global control over margin-figure placement.
SiYuan vs tufte: editorial side-by-side
SiYuan
6.3COLLAB
SiYuan 3.8.0 ships: MCP, an AI agent and semantic search reach general availability
◆ Current state
SiYuan is a self-hostable block-based notes application. The 3.8.0 line opened on 4 August with four features it had never shipped - an AI Agent, semantic search over embeddings, Model Context Protocol support and OIDC authentication - then spent eight prerelease builds stabilizing them. The final release landed on 12 August, adding LAN peer-assisted cloud sync and a long tail of cross-platform polish.
◆ Where it's heading
The 3.8.0 cycle is the same pattern as 3.7.0: freeze a feature block early, then iterate builds for a week without changing what is in it. Where 3.7 was about the application's own extensibility - a kernel plugin system, a CLI, a redesigned interface - 3.8 points outward, making the knowledge base something external AI tools can query rather than something you only read yourself. Platform breadth continues underneath both, with HarmonyOS now getting the same attention as Android.
◆ Prediction
On the 3.7 precedent, expect a 3.8.x alpha train to open within days carrying fixes against the newly released AI features; the MCP surface is the most likely thing to widen, since it currently exposes the knowledge base rather than SiYuan's editing operations.
tufte
0.0COLLAB
After three quiet years, tufte 0.15 finally lets Tufte-style documents cross-reference.
◆ Current state
Almost every release before the latest is a Pandoc compatibility fix — sidenotes breaking on Pandoc 2.15, margin references misplaced on 2.11, table and citation handling in `tufte_handout()`, `--wrap preserve` for margin content on 2.19. Then 0.15.0 in May 2026 breaks the pattern: `tufte_handout2()`, `tufte_book2()` and `tufte_html2()` wrap the corresponding bookdown formats, enabling text references and cross-references in captions, and `margin_fig_pos` gives global control over margin-figure placement.
◆ Where it's heading
The package spent years absorbing upstream Pandoc churn without adding anything, and has now moved to sit on top of bookdown rather than reimplement around it. That is the sustainable direction for a format package this small: inherit cross-referencing and text references instead of maintaining a parallel implementation. Release intervals remain long, so this is unlikely to become a fast-moving package.
◆ Prediction
Expect the bookdown-backed formats to absorb further fixes as the recommended path, with the plain `tufte_*()` formats staying frozen against Pandoc changes.
Alternatives to SiYuan and tufte
Other Collab products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either SiYuan or tufte.
pagedown
pagedown is down to one small fix a year, mostly absorbing changes from elsewhere.
xaringan
xaringan has settled into theme upkeep and Pandoc-era compatibility patches.
Double
Double is turning its accounting assistant into the way the work gets done
litedown
litedown grows from a lean renderer into a book and site generator
bookdown
bookdown's output is mature; its free hosting destination is being switched off.
See all SiYuan alternatives → · See all tufte alternatives →
Recent activity from SiYuan and tufte
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 1d agoSiYuanSiYuan v3.8.0
- 2d agoSiYuanSiYuan v3.8.0-beta.4
- 3d agoSiYuanSiYuan v3.8.0-beta.3
- 5d agoSiYuanSiYuan v3.8.0-beta.2
- 5d agoSiYuanSiYuan v3.8.0-beta.1
- 6d agoSiYuanSiYuan v3.8.0-alpha.4
- 2mo agotuftetufte 0.15.0
- 3y agotuftetufte 0.13 fixes margin content on Pandoc 2.19
- 4y agotuftetufte 0.12 restores sidenotes on Pandoc 2.15
- 4y agotuftetufte 0.11 fixes tables and citations in handouts
- 5y agotuftetufte 0.10 fixes margin references with link-citations
- 5y agotuftetufte 0.9 adds CSLReferences for Pandoc 2.11 citeproc
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between SiYuan and tufte?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. SiYuan is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is SiYuan better than tufte?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. SiYuan is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 0.0), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Collab products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to SiYuan?
Top SiYuan alternatives in Collab are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "SiYuan alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/siyuan for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to tufte?
Top tufte alternatives in Collab are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "tufte alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/tufte-r for the full list with editorial commentary on each.