ApiNotes vs Fern
ApiNotes
apinotes.ioFern
buildwithfern.comSide by side
| Figure | ApiNotes | Fern |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $19/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 2 |
| Spec score · API Documentation Tools | 8.3 (#4) | 8.9 (#1) |
| Supported specifications | The site lists full support for OpenAPI 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, and Swagger 2.0 specifications in YAML or JSON. | Fern Docs generates API references from OpenAPI, AsyncAPI, gRPC, and other specifications. |
| What it does | ApiNotes turns OpenAPI or Swagger specifications into hosted interactive documentation and an automatically generated changelog with breaking-change alerts. | Fern turns API definitions and Markdown into hosted documentation sites, SDKs, and command-line tools. |
Plans
In their own words
ApiNotes
ApiNotes turns OpenAPI and Swagger specifications into hosted interactive documentation and a changelog that alerts teams to breaking changes. It accepts OpenAPI 3.0, 3.1, and 3.2, plus Swagger 2.0, in YAML or JSON. Generated references show endpoint parameters, response schemas, code samples in more than 10 programming languages, and a Try-It-Now console. Users can paste, upload, or link a specification and publish documentation at an ApiNotes subdomain. A GitHub Action can publish an updated specification on merge, while the Team plan lists pull request comments about breaking changes. Starter is free and limited to one public API, the last 10 changelog releases, 25 subscribers, and one team member. Team costs $19 a month and includes five APIs, private docs, full changelog history, unlimited subscribers, a custom domain, and five team members. The Team plan has a 14-day trial with no credit card required. Additional APIs are listed at £5/API; Postman, Bruno, and Insomnia integrations are marked as coming soon.