--- title: "ECC vs siyuan" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/affaan-m-ecc-vs-siyuan-note-siyuan" tools: ["affaan-m-ecc", "siyuan-note-siyuan"] --- # ECC vs siyuan *GraphCanon updated Jul 12, 2026* ## Verdict Pick ECC if eCC is a performance optimization system for AI agents built to enhance skills, instincts, memory, security, and development processes; pick siyuan if siyuan is a privacy-focused, self-hosted knowledge management tool written in TypeScript and Golang, specialized for personal digital gardens and integrating with various local storage solutions. [ECC](https://ecc.tools) reports 228k GitHub stars, 35k forks, and 93 open issues, last pushed Jul 9, 2026. [siyuan](https://b3log.org/siyuan) has 45k stars, 2.9k forks, and 334 open issues, last pushed Jul 11, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [ECC's repository](https://github.com/affaan-m/ECC) and [siyuan's repository](https://github.com/siyuan-note/siyuan). | | [ECC](/tools/affaan-m-ecc.md) | [siyuan](/tools/siyuan-note-siyuan.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | The agent harness performance optimization system for AI agents | A privacy-first, self-hosted personal knowledge management software | | Stars | 228,395 | 45,045 | | Forks | 35,037 | 2,882 | | Open issues | 93 | 334 | | Language | JavaScript | TypeScript | | Adopt for | ECC is a performance optimization system for AI agents built to enhance skills, instincts, memory, security, and development processes. | Siyuan is a privacy-focused, self-hosted knowledge management tool written in TypeScript and Golang, specialized for personal digital gardens and integrating with various local storage solutions. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 | | Categories | AI Agents, Developer Tools | Developer Tools | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [ECC](/tools/affaan-m-ecc.md) | [siyuan](/tools/siyuan-note-siyuan.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Days since push | 2d | 0d | | Open issues (now) | 93 | 334 | | Owner type | User | Organization | | Security scan | No MCP manifest | No lockfile | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/affaan-m-ecc/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/siyuan-note-siyuan/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: ECC - **Hosting:** unknown - ECC requires JavaScript environment and is open-source, licensed under MIT. Specific setup details are not provided within repository data. - **Pricing:** freemium - Being open source with an MIT license, ECC itself is free to use, but additional features or support might incur costs outside of the core project. - **Adopt for:** ECC is a performance optimization system for AI agents built to enhance skills, instincts, memory, security, and development processes. ## Decision facts: siyuan - **Adopt for:** Siyuan is a privacy-focused, self-hosted knowledge management tool written in TypeScript and Golang, specialized for personal digital gardens and integrating with various local storage solutions. ## Choose when ### Choose ECC if… - ECC is primarily JavaScript; siyuan is TypeScript. - License: ECC is MIT, siyuan is AGPL-3.0. - ECC requires JavaScript environment and is open-source, licensed under MIT. Specific setup details are not provided within repository data. - Pricing: Being open source with an MIT license, ECC itself is free to use, but additional features or support might incur costs outside of the core project.. - Tags unique to ECC: ai-agents, anthropic, claude, claude-code. - Also covers AI Agents. - When you are specifically working with AI agents like Claude Code and Codex that require advanced performance tuning across multiple dimensions such as skills and memory management. ### Choose siyuan if… - siyuan is primarily TypeScript; ECC is JavaScript. - License: siyuan is AGPL-3.0, ECC is MIT. - Tags unique to siyuan: ai-agent, digital-garden, knowledge-graph, local-first. - siyuan ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. - Siyuan should be used when you require a fully open-source tool that prioritizes privacy and keeps all data locally. ## When NOT to use ECC - For projects focusing solely on traditional software development workflows without AI components, ECC's specialized tools are not necessary. - In scenarios where you're working with closed-source or proprietary AI systems that do not allow for the same levels of customization as open platforms like those optimized by ECC. ## When NOT to use siyuan - Siyuan may not be suitable if you require cloud synchronization features provided by proprietary software as it focuses on local-first operations. - If your preference is for a more visually customizable interface, Siyuan's design might have limitations compared to its competitors that offer extensive theming and UI customization. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between ECC and siyuan? ECC: The agent harness performance optimization system for AI agents. siyuan: A privacy-first, self-hosted personal knowledge management software. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose ECC over siyuan? Choose ECC over siyuan when ECC is primarily JavaScript; siyuan is TypeScript; License: ECC is MIT, siyuan is AGPL-3.0; ECC requires JavaScript environment and is open-source, licensed under MIT. Specific setup details are not provided within repository data; Pricing: Being open source with an MIT license, ECC itself is free to use, but additional features or support might incur costs outside of the core project.; Tags unique to ECC: ai-agents, anthropic, claude, claude-code; Also covers AI Agents; When you are specifically working with AI agents like Claude Code and Codex that require advanced performance tuning across multiple dimensions such as skills and memory management. ### When should I choose siyuan over ECC? Choose siyuan over ECC when siyuan is primarily TypeScript; ECC is JavaScript; License: siyuan is AGPL-3.0, ECC is MIT; Tags unique to siyuan: ai-agent, digital-garden, knowledge-graph, local-first; siyuan ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment; Siyuan should be used when you require a fully open-source tool that prioritizes privacy and keeps all data locally. ### When should I avoid ECC? For projects focusing solely on traditional software development workflows without AI components, ECC's specialized tools are not necessary. In scenarios where you're working with closed-source or proprietary AI systems that do not allow for the same levels of customization as open platforms like those optimized by ECC. ### When should I avoid siyuan? Siyuan may not be suitable if you require cloud synchronization features provided by proprietary software as it focuses on local-first operations. If your preference is for a more visually customizable interface, Siyuan's design might have limitations compared to its competitors that offer extensive theming and UI customization. ### Is ECC or siyuan more popular on GitHub? ECC has more GitHub stars (228,395 vs 45,045). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are ECC and siyuan open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (ECC: MIT, siyuan: AGPL-3.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to ECC or siyuan? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [ECC alternatives](/tools/affaan-m-ecc/alternatives) and [siyuan alternatives](/tools/siyuan-note-siyuan/alternatives) ([ECC markdown twin](/tools/affaan-m-ecc/alternatives.md), [siyuan markdown twin](/tools/siyuan-note-siyuan/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/affaan-m-ecc-vs-siyuan-note-siyuan.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, ECC or siyuan? ECC: Very active. siyuan: Very active. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for ECC and siyuan? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [ECC trust report](/tools/affaan-m-ecc/trust); [siyuan trust report](/tools/siyuan-note-siyuan/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=affaan-m-ecc`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=affaan-m-ecc) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_