Self-host Outline. Skip the infrastructure.
Outline is the fastest team wiki on GitHub. 40.5K stars, 10 years of development, 2,000+ teams using it. But self-hosting means Docker, PostgreSQL, Redis, S3, and external SSO setup. We handle all of that.
Why Teams Choose Outline
Outline is a markdown-native team wiki built for speed. Documents load instantly. Collaboration is real-time: multiple people can edit the same page at once. Full-text search finds what you need in milliseconds. No vendor lock-in: Outline is open source, AGPL-licensed, and works anywhere.
Its feature set is simpler than Notion or Confluence but faster than both. You get:
- Instant, lightning-fast editor (rebuilt in React for speed)
- Real-time collaboration and @mentions
- Nested collections (logical doc hierarchy)
- Slash commands for embeds, callouts, code blocks
- Public sharing with granular permissions
- Full API and webhooks for automation
- Dark mode, 20 languages, RTL support
- Integration with Figma, Loom, GitHub, and 20+ tools
Outline Cloud plans run $10-$249/month depending on team size and features. Self-hosting costs nothing in licensing but requires DevOps expertise.
What Self-Hosting Outline Actually Requires
Outline is engineered as a cloud platform. Self-hosting means you manage its entire tech stack:
Core Services:
- Docker or Docker Compose (containerization)
- Node.js runtime (Outline backend)
- PostgreSQL (database)
- Redis (caching layer)
- S3-compatible storage: AWS S3, MinIO, or similar (document attachments, exports)
- SMTP server (email invites and notifications)
- External SSO provider: Slack, Google Workspace, Microsoft Entra, or self-hosted Keycloak/OAuth
The Real Cost:
Host this stack yourself and you pay in time, not just money. A small cloud VM runs $5-15/month. PostgreSQL managed add-ons cost $15-50/month. Redis, another $10-20/month. S3 storage scales with your docs. But you also need someone to:
- Configure SSO (documented as "tricky" by Outline's own team)
- Manage database backups and restoration
- Handle SSL/TLS certificate renewal
- Monitor uptime and performance
- Apply security patches and Outline updates
- Troubleshoot when something breaks at 2am
A single DevOps engineer at $50k/year costs $24/hour in fully-loaded salary. One hour per month of maintenance work = $24. One hour per quarter of incident response = $6. Add 5 hours of initial setup, and you're already at $150 sunk, before your first month of hosting even begins.
For small teams (5-10 people), that $30/month Opsily plan starts looking very cheap.
Why Teams Choose Opsily for Self-Hosted Outline
Stop configuring infrastructure. Start writing docs.
5-minute deployment
Click 'Install Outline,' and your instance is live. No Docker debugging, no database migrations, no SSO configuration headaches. Your team accesses it immediately with Slack or Google login. We handle the entire stack in the background.
Zero maintenance burden
Updates? We apply them automatically. Backups? Daily encrypted snapshots. Monitoring? Alerts go to us. Your team focuses on creating documents, not managing infrastructure. Outline runs at full speed without your DevOps team's attention.
Complete security and compliance
GDPR-compliant German hosting. SSL/TLS everywhere. Granular access controls. Audit logs. Daily backups tested for restore integrity. OIDC SSO with your identity provider. Security is not your headache—it's ours.
Built for teams who need reliability
Self-hosting Outline costs more than you think
Infrastructure is just the start. Factor in DevOps time, SSL management, backup testing, and incident response. Opsily's flat pricing covers everything. For teams under 50 people, managed hosting is cheaper than DIY.
See pricing plansDeploy Outline on Opsily in 4 Steps
Sign up with email or GitHub. No credit card required for the free trial. Full 30-day access to test Outline with your team.
Search our app catalog, click 'Install Outline,' and choose your workspace name. Opsily provisions the full stack: Node.js, PostgreSQL, Redis, S3, backups, monitoring.
Link your Slack workspace, Google account, or Microsoft Entra in one click. Your team logs in with their existing credentials. No Keycloak config required.
Sign up with email or GitHub. No credit card required for the free trial. Full 30-day access to test Outline with your team.
Search our app catalog, click 'Install Outline,' and choose your workspace name. Opsily provisions the full stack: Node.js, PostgreSQL, Redis, S3, backups, monitoring.
Link your Slack workspace, Google account, or Microsoft Entra in one click. Your team logs in with their existing credentials. No Keycloak config required.
Create your Opsily account
Sign up with email or GitHub. No credit card required for the free trial. Full 30-day access to test Outline with your team.
Install Outline
Search our app catalog, click 'Install Outline,' and choose your workspace name. Opsily provisions the full stack: Node.js, PostgreSQL, Redis, S3, backups, monitoring.
Connect your SSO
Link your Slack workspace, Google account, or Microsoft Entra in one click. Your team logs in with their existing credentials. No Keycloak config required.
Invite your team and start collaborating
Create collections, write markdown, @mention teammates, embed designs and videos. Outline's real-time editor and full-text search are live the same day.
Everything Included With Opsily's Outline Hosting
Self-hosting Outline requires juggling six different services. We manage all of them so you don't have to.
Simple, Transparent Pricing for Outline Hosting
All plans include automatic updates, daily backups, GDPR compliance, and 99.9% uptime SLA. No per-user fees. No hidden costs. Deploy once, pay one price.
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Security and Compliance You Can Trust
Self-hosting Outline opens you to infrastructure risk. Opsily takes that risk off your plate.
GDPR Compliant
All data stored in Germany with EU privacy laws enforced. Regular GDPR audits and compliance reports available.
Encrypted Backups
Daily encrypted snapshots. We test restores monthly to guarantee recoverability. Your data is never lost.
SSL/TLS Everywhere
All traffic encrypted in transit. Certificates auto-renewed 30 days before expiry. Zero downtime, zero manual intervention.
Monitoring 24/7
Real-time uptime checks, performance monitoring, and alerting. If Outline goes down, we know before you do.
Access Controls
Granular OIDC SSO. Audit logs of user actions. IP whitelisting for enterprise deployments. Your team, your rules.
Questions About Self-Hosting Outline
From signup to live instance: about 5 minutes. Click 'Install Outline,' choose your workspace name, connect your SSO (Slack, Google, or Microsoft), and invite your team. The entire stack (Node.js, PostgreSQL, Redis, S3 storage, backups, monitoring) is ready to go. Your team can start writing docs immediately. No Docker debugging, no certificate configuration, no database setup.
Skip the self-hosting headache. Start your Outline instance today.
30 days free. No credit card required. Full access to all features. Pause or cancel anytime.