linkding review: bookmarks on your own server

linkding is a self-hosted bookmark manager for people who want a tidy list of saved pages on a computer they look after. You save a link, add tags, and open it later from a simple page. The privacy benefit is that the list lives in your installation.

Last checked October 28, 2026.

At a glance

What it is: A self-hosted bookmark manager designed to be minimal, fast, and easy to set up. ¹

Works on: A computer you run with Docker, including a Raspberry Pi. Firefox and Chrome extensions, a bookmarklet, and a site you can install as an app. ² ⁵

Price: Free of charge under the MIT licence. You provide the computer it runs on. ³ ⁵

Licence: MIT. Copyright 2019 Sascha Ißbrücker. ³

Best for: People who can run a small server and want tags, notes, and a private bookmark list.

Official site: linkding.link

What linkding does (and how it protects your privacy)

linkding is a bookmark manager you host yourself. It is meant to be minimal, fast, and easy to set up with Docker, a way to run an app from a prepared package. The current release is version 1.47.0, published on 13 September 2026. That release adds protection for server-side requests. ² ⁴

Bookmarks sit in a database on the machine you choose. The usual choice is SQLite, a database kept in one file, in a folder you attach to the app. PostgreSQL is also supported. Saving a link can fetch the title, description, icon, and preview image, so that site sees your server. Those icon, preview, and Internet Archive switches start off on a new profile. ¹ ⁵ ⁷ ⁸

A full copy of a page is optional. The larger latest-plus image can save a local HTML file. An Internet Archive snapshot is also possible, and that profile setting starts disabled. Sharing and public sharing start off. ¹ ⁶ ⁸

Key features of linkding

Tags. You organise bookmarks with tags, and you can turn features on or off. ¹ ²
Notes and read later. Bookmarks can hold Markdown notes, plain text with simple formatting, and a read-later flag. ²
Bulk edits. Apply an action to selected bookmarks, or to the whole collection. ¹
Import and export. Use a Netscape HTML file, the file browsers create when you export bookmarks. ¹
Optional copies. The plus image saves a local HTML snapshot. Internet Archive copies stay off until you enable them. ⁶ ⁸
Sharing. Users can share bookmarks with each other or with guests. Sharing and public sharing start off. ¹ ⁸
Browser tools. Firefox and Chrome extensions add and search bookmarks. A bookmarklet, a bookmark that acts on the current page, is included, and the site can be installed like an app. ¹ ²
Scripts and sign-in. A REST API lets other programs talk to your installation. Sign-in can use a proxy or OpenID Connect, a “sign in with another account” button. ¹ ²

linkding pros and cons

Pros

The bookmark database stays in a folder on a computer you administer. ⁵
The MIT licence grants use of the software free of charge, and the source is public. ³
Version 1.47.0, from 13 September 2026, adds checks that refuse internal addresses. ⁴ ⁷
Favicons, preview images, Internet Archive snapshots, sharing, and public sharing start turned off. ⁸
You can save links from Firefox or Chrome, or from a bookmarklet, while you browse. ²
The Docker image runs on ARM computers, including a Raspberry Pi. ⁵

Cons

Setup means running Docker and creating the first user yourself. The image does not include an account. ⁵
A saved HTML copy needs the larger plus image. It includes a browser engine and needs at least 1 GB of memory. ⁶
The plus image is not available for ARM v7, an older chip type used by some small boards. ⁶
A server-made copy can hit a bot check, and a login page will not look the way it does in your browser. ⁶
If you turn favicons on, the documented default icon service is a Google service, unless you set another provider. ⁷
Saving a link can make your server request that website for its title and description. ¹

Is linkding safe and private?

The code is published under the MIT licence, with a 2019 copyright notice for Sascha Ißbrücker. The app is built with Django, a web framework. Version 1.47.0 adds protection for server-side requests. By default, linkding refuses addresses that point at the machine it runs on, other containers, your local network, or cloud metadata services. That covers titles, descriptions, preview images, and PDF snapshots. For an HTML snapshot, the bookmark address and redirects are checked first. The browser that builds the snapshot can still load embedded files from internal hosts. ² ³ ⁴ ⁷

Bookmarks are stored in SQLite unless you switch the database to PostgreSQL. The install guide puts that data in a folder on your computer, mounted inside the container at /etc/linkding/data. ⁵ ⁷

A few features send an address off your server, and a new profile has them off. The Internet Archive setting defaults to disabled. Favicons default to off. If you enable them, the options page says the default provider is a Google service, and it lists a DuckDuckGo address you can set instead. Preview images, sharing, and public sharing also default to off. ⁷ ⁸

Background tasks stay on unless you set LD_DISABLE_BACKGROUND_TASKS. Internet Archive snapshots are one of those tasks. The plus image is separate: it saves HTML on your disk, opens the page on the server, and loads the uBlock Origin Lite ad blocker into that browser. ⁶ ⁷

How to get started with linkding

Install Docker on a computer that can stay on. The image can run on a Raspberry Pi. Follow the installation guide. ⁵
Run sissbruecker/linkding:latest from Docker Hub, or the same tag from GitHub Container Registry. Publish port 9090, and mount a folder to /etc/linkding/data so the database survives updates. ⁵
Create the first user with the guide’s createsuperuser command. The image has no built-in account, and the command asks for a password. ⁵
Open http://localhost:9090 and sign in. Use the plus image only if you want local HTML snapshots. It needs more memory. ⁵ ⁶
Add the Firefox or Chrome extension linked from the project readme, or the bookmarklet, and save one page. ²
Leave the Internet Archive setting disabled, and leave favicons off, unless you want those addresses sent to the Wayback Machine or the default Google icon service. ⁷ ⁸
Import a Netscape HTML export from your browser if you already have bookmarks. ¹

Who should use linkding (and who might prefer something else)

linkding fits someone who can look after a small server and wants links, tags, and notes. A full HTML copy is part of the plus image, so the ordinary image stays smaller. ² ⁶

For a stored article, a screenshot, and a PDF, see Linkwarden. For a queue of articles to read later, see Wallabag. Shiori is another small bookmark library you host yourself. Choose linkding for the browser extensions, and for switches that leave outside copies and icon downloads off until you turn them on. ² ⁸

Frequently asked questions

Is linkding free?

Yes. The MIT licence grants the software free of charge. You need a computer that can run Docker, and you look after updates and the data folder yourself. ³ ⁵

Is linkding safe?

The source is public, and version 1.47.0 refuses internal network addresses by default. Bookmarks stay in the database on your machine. Internet Archive snapshots, favicons, sharing, and public sharing start off. ⁴ ⁵ ⁷ ⁸

Does linkding work on iPhone?

You open your installation in a phone browser. The site can be installed as a progressive web app, a site that opens like an app. Official extensions are for Firefox and Chrome, plus a bookmarklet. The readme also points to community projects, which include mobile apps. ¹ ²

Does linkding send bookmarks to the Internet Archive?

The profile setting starts disabled. The project lists Internet Archive snapshots as a feature, and the options page includes them among background tasks, which stay on unless you disable those tasks. The plus image separately saves HTML files on your own disk. ¹ ⁶ ⁷ ⁸