In the early stages of building a startup, founders often try to balance everything on a shoestring budget. That includes team collaboration, documentation, and knowledge sharing—areas where internal wiki tools come in handy. While tools like Atlassian’s Confluence offer powerful capabilities, they can be costly and overkill for small teams still finding product-market fit.
TLDR: Before startups can afford premium services like Confluence, many rely on free or low-cost internal wiki alternatives. Tools like Notion, Google Docs, and HackMD make collaboration simple and documentation accessible. Some startups even adopt GitHub for internal wikis or turn to AI-powered options like Slite and Obsidian. Choosing the right tool early on ensures smoother scaling later.
Why Internal Wikis Matter Early On
Internal wikis serve as a central hub for company knowledge, processes, and documentation. For early-stage startups, clear knowledge sharing can prevent repeated questions, miscommunication, and wasted time. It also fosters a culture of transparency and organized growth.
For financially-conscious startups, choosing a tool that balances usability with affordability is critical. Below are startup-favorite internal wiki tools that help lay the groundwork—long before corporate-level software enters the scene.
1. Notion
Best for: All-in-one workspace lovers
Notion is a fan favorite in the startup world. With its drag-and-drop simplicity, templates, and collaborative features, it serves as a database, task manager, and wiki all in one.
- Cost: Free for individuals; free plan for teams with fewer than 10 members
- Key features: Rich media support, nested pages, customizable templates, databases
- Why startups love it: Extremely flexible, beautiful UI, and ideal for cross-functional documentation
Notion is particularly appealing for remote startups, who can centralize policies, product notes, and goals on shared pages.
2. Google Docs
Best for: Startups already using Google Workspace
When in doubt, Google Docs often ends up becoming an unintentional wiki. Though it lacks structured layout and integrations designed for wikis, it provides one major advantage—everyone already knows how to use it.
- Cost: Free for personal use; Google Workspace starts at a modest rate
- Key features: Real-time collaboration, version history, easy sharing
- Why startups love it: No learning curve, universal access, strong collaborative editing
The simplicity of Google Docs can’t be overstated. It’s one of the easiest ways to build a lightweight documentation process with almost zero setup time.
3. HackMD
Best for: Technical teams who prefer Markdown
HackMD caters to developers and technical founders who love writing in Markdown. Originally designed for collaborative technical documentation, it has found popularity among engineering-driven startups.
- Cost: Free for public notes; affordable premium tiers for private documents
- Key features: Markdown support, GitHub integration, team workspaces
- Why startups love it: Ideal for documenting codebases, APIs, and meeting notes in a syntax-friendly environment
HackMD also allows embedding graphs, diagrams, and math, making it perfect for technical teams who need a bit more power under the hood.
4. GitHub Wiki
Best for: Developer-centric documentation
If your startup is already using GitHub to manage code, GitHub Wiki becomes a natural extension for team documentation. While it’s relatively basic, it aligns tightly with a development-focused workflow and supports Markdown.
- Cost: Free with GitHub repositories
- Key features: Integrated with repo, Markdown, version control
- Why startups love it: Keeps documentation close to code, encourages developer adoption
It’s not fancy, but it’s functional. Plus, it inherits GitHub’s strengths in versioning and access control.
5. Slite
Best for: Modern teams needing structure + simplicity
Slite is a purpose-built internal wiki tool designed with remote and async teams in mind. It combines simplicity with robust knowledge management features and even incorporates AI to summarize notes and reduce clutter.
- Cost: Free for small teams with limited features; paid plans with more permissions and templates
- Key features: Page hierarchy, powerful search, note templates, AI-helped writing
- Why startups love it: Easy to navigate, collaborative, and cleaner than Notion for purely text-based knowledge
Slite’s minimal design makes it less overwhelming for teams needing a focused documentation hub without distractions.
6. Obsidian
Best for: Solo founders or early technical teams
Obsidian is a knowledge base tool designed around local Markdown files and a powerful linking experience. Unlike cloud-based tools, it ensures full control and privacy, which some early-stage startups appreciate.
- Cost: Free for personal use; commercial license available
- Key features: Bi-directional linking, graph view, local storage
- Why startups love it: Enables deep note linking and knowledge graph creation without dependency on the cloud
It’s well-suited for founders who want to map out ideas, link product plans with research, and keep everything local-yet-organized.
7. Tettra
Best for: Slack-integrated workflows
Tettra is a modern internal knowledge base that works seamlessly with Slack. It allows teams to ask and answer questions, create product documentation, and link to Google Drive or existing knowledge resources.
- Cost: Free plan supports small teams; scalable paid tiers
- Key features: Slack Q&A bot, integrations, structured templates
- Why startups love it: Promotes daily knowledge use and asynchronous asking and answering
If your startup lives in Slack, Tettra brings documentation into the same ecosystem, reducing friction and encouraging contributions.
Quick Comparison Table
| Tool | Best For | Free Plan? | Markdown Support |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notion | All-in-one workspace | Yes | Limited (via text blocks) |
| Google Docs | Full team collaboration | Yes | No |
| HackMD | Technical documentation | Yes | Yes |
| GitHub Wiki | Developers | Yes | Yes |
| Slite | Structured, async teams | Yes | Yes |
| Obsidian | Local and private documentation | Yes | Yes |
| Tettra | Slack-powered wiki | Yes | No |
Conclusion
Before committing to enterprise-level tools like Confluence, startups can gain serious momentum using lighter and often free alternatives. Whether it’s the flexibility of Notion, the developer-ready HackMD, or the Slack-savvy Tettra, the right tool depends on team size, technical needs, and workflow habits. What matters most is starting early with a habit of documentation—