SimpleMindMap (wanglin2/mind-map): a JavaScript mind map library and a self-hosted web app

What SimpleMindMap is, and which half of it you are adopting

The repository holds two different products under one name. The first is an open-source JavaScript mind map library that the README describes as not depending on any framework, intended for building web mind map products quickly. The second is a web application built on that library with Vue2.x and ElementUI, which can read local files, work as an online mind map tool, or be self-hosted and modified. The README's own summary of the repository code is blunt: it says this part has entered a low-maintenance state. Separately, the README describes a desktop client and plugins (Obsidian, uTools) whose code is not open source and which it says are under active development. That split is the first decision a reader has to make. If you want to embed mind mapping in your own product, you are looking at the library. If you want a finished application, the open-source web app is the self-hostable option, and the desktop client is a separate, closed product with its own download channels.

How the library and the web app fit together

The repository layout reflects the two-part structure. At the top level there is a simple-mind-map/ directory and a web/ directory, alongside dist/, index.html, nginx.conf and a Dockerfile. The naming suggests the library lives in simple-mind-map/ and the Vue2 application in web/, with dist/ holding built output. The README states the web app is built on the mind map library plus Vue2.x and ElementUI, so the dependency direction runs from the application to the library, not the reverse. The library itself is described as framework-independent, which is what makes it usable outside that specific application. Rendering is SVG-based, which is consistent with the svg topic on the repository and with the export list, where SVG appears as an export format. The README does not document the internal data model, the node schema, or the rendering pipeline in the repository documentation; for that it points to the development documentation site at wanglin2.github.io/mind-map-docs/. Treat the README as an index, not as an architecture document.

Installing the library and rendering a first map

The README does not print an install command for the library in the repository text. It does publish the package on npm under the name simple-mind-map, shown by the npm version badge and the npmjs link, so the conventional install path is the package registry. The README gives no code sample for mounting the library, and the development documentation site is where the API is described. What the repository does supply verbatim is the Dockerfile below, which is the packaging path for the web application rather than the library. It starts from the nginx image, creates /app, copies index.html into /app/, copies the dist directory into /app/dist/, and copies nginx.conf over /etc/nginx/nginx.conf.

FROM nginx
RUN mkdir /app
COPY ./index.html /app/
COPY ./dist /app/dist/
COPY nginx.conf /etc/nginx/nginx.conf

Two consequences follow. First, the image does not build the application; it assumes dist/ already exists in the build context. You have to produce the build yourself before running docker build, and the README does not document that build step. Second, the nginx configuration is replaced wholesale, so whatever routing or caching the app needs has to be present in the repository's nginx.conf. If you deploy this image behind an existing reverse proxy, check that file rather than assuming a default nginx setup. This is a packaging recipe for a prebuilt artifact, not a reproducible build pipeline.

Import and export formats: what is library scope and what is client scope

The README's feature list for importing XMind, FreeMind, Markdown, Txt and Xlsx, and exporting to PNG, XMind, SVG, PDF, Markdown, Txt, Xlsx, FreeMind, Mermaid and Html, appears under the desktop client section, not under the library section. That placement matters. A reader who needs XMind interoperability and plans to build on the open-source library should confirm which of those conversions are implemented in the library itself and which are client-only, because the README does not make that division explicit. The web app is described as supporting local file operations, so some file handling clearly exists on the open-source side, but the format matrix is presented as a client capability. If format coverage is the reason you are evaluating this project, treat the README's list as a question to resolve against the development documentation before you commit to the library.

The maintenance boundary is the real limitation

The README states plainly that the repository code is in a low-maintenance state, while the client and plugin code is not open source and is being actively developed. The last push to the repository was on 2026-08-02, and the most recent release listed is 0.20.0 on 2026-08-03. So the open-source code is not abandoned, but the project's own documentation sets expectations lower for it than for the closed products. Practically, that means fixes and new features are more likely to land in the client than in the library, and an issue you file against the library may sit. The other limitation is structural: the desktop client, the Obsidian plugin and the uTools plugin are all closed source. If your requirement is a fully open-source desktop mind mapping tool, this project does not offer one. The open-source surface is the library and the web app. Anyone whose procurement or compliance rules require source access to the end-user application should stop at the web app and not plan around the client.

How it differs from jsMind and from XMind

The repository's own topics list jsmind alongside mind-map and xmind, which is a fair pointer to the comparison space. jsMind is the obvious library-level alternative: both are JavaScript mind map renderers that you embed in a page, and the difference here is that SimpleMindMap pairs the library with a complete Vue2/ElementUI application in the same repository, so you can read a working integration rather than only an API. XMind is the different kind of alternative: a commercial desktop application with its own file format, which this project treats as an interchange target rather than a runtime dependency. The README lists XMind both as an import format and as an export format, which tells you the intended workflow is cooperation with XMind, not replacement. If you need a maintained open-source desktop editor, none of these three gives you exactly that: jsMind is a library, XMind is proprietary, and SimpleMindMap's desktop client is closed source.

Licence and the cost of staying current

The repository is MIT licensed, which permits commercial use and modification of the open-source code, and the LICENSE file is present at the top level. The closed-source client and plugins are outside that grant; the README says their code is not open source, so the MIT licence does not extend to them. This is a statement about what the repository says, not legal advice, and anyone embedding the library in a shipped product should read the LICENSE file directly. On upgrade cost: the release cadence visible in the repository runs from 0.18.4 in March 2026 to 0.19.0 in May 2026 to 0.20.0 in August 2026, so minor versions arrive roughly every few months. The README does not document a deprecation policy, a changelog location or a migration guide for breaking changes between minor versions, and it does not document rollback. Because the library is published to npm as simple-mind-map, pinning a version in your lockfile is the practical way to control when you take an upgrade, but you will be reading release notes yourself rather than following a documented upgrade path.

Editorial conclusion

Adopt the library or the web app when you need an embeddable, framework-free mind map rendered in JavaScript and you accept that the README describes the repository code as being in low-maintenance mode. Do not adopt it expecting a maintained open-source desktop client: the client and plugins are closed source, and the README directs you to the product site for those. Before committing, verify the import and export formats you actually need against the client feature list, since several of them (XMind, FreeMind, Markdown, Txt, Xlsx) are described there rather than in the library documentation. Also confirm your own deployment path works, because the repository's Dockerfile copies index.html, dist and nginx.conf and nothing else.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

1. License: MIT
2. Project website
3. README
4. Releases
5. wanglin2/mind-map on GitHub