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Productive
productive.io › home › notion vs obsidian – all features compared (2026)
Notion vs Obsidian – All Features Compared (2026)
June 24, 2026 - Notion AI is paid for separately per user. Both tools can be used as mobile apps. To summarize, Obsidian’s basic version is the most affordable pick if you don’t need online access or extensive collaboration features, but for anything else, Notion is likely the better option.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/productivity › notion vs obsidian ?
r/productivity on Reddit: Notion vs Obsidian ?
December 26, 2022 -

I am currently on Evernote and would like to slowly get out of it. Budget is not a point for me atm. Would like a user friendly tool on MacOs computer and Android phone. I am testing Amazing Marvin and thinking to keep it as smart todolist. Which one would you recommend and why ?

Top answer
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They're different. Notion is better for lists and sharing. Obsidian is better for personal notes and learning.
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Notion is a tool that lets you have a structure in your data. You can experiment with the structures to find what fits you, and this experimentation is very easy to do. Also, it has a better typing experience, and it has better-looking text out of the box. And it also has clients for every major platform, + it syncs everything and is free. Obsidian, on the other hand, is inferior in every way (the connections graph is useless) out of the box, but it Works offline, and you can set up the sync by yourself ( or pay them and get a more expensive subscription than Notion) Doesn't sell your data to third parties. Doesn't allow some AI companies to use your data to train AI (Notion accidentally revealed it and then deleted it from the website) Does allow the community to create super powerful plugins. Like you can gather all of the unchecked todos from a bunch of notes and see what's still to be done (Dataview), but you have to have some programming skills. Also, Obsidian just got a new plugin (Canvas) that creates incredible interactive mind maps out of your notes, and I have never seen anything like this anywhere. Overall, I think if you are okay with paying with your data (and the fact that an AI will analyze it) or just want to have a better overall user experience, you should go for Notion. If you want something more private or to have some bleeding edge features, you can think of using Obsidian ( but keep in mind that it doesn't provide encryption on your hard drive). I've been using Notion for about 3 years now and I constantly think about how cool it would be to use Obsidian instead. But then I open Obsidian and realize that everything just doesn't feel "right". Also, I don't know if I can transfer all of my highly structured data there.
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Discussions

Experiences with Obsidian Compared to Notion
I moved (mostly) from Notion to Obsidian recently. I am very happy with the move: Obsidian's focus on simplicity helps you focus on the essential and makes it much faster then Notion. They are somewhat different, though. Notion adds the most value when you use it as a collection of interrelated databases, while Obsidian is for taking notes. Overall, Notion's is more data-driven, while Obsidian is text-based. Notion is also better for collaboration, though I haven't really tested either in this regard. Finally, I'd recommend not overdoing it with plug-ins when you start with Obsidian. I'd recommend the Minimal theme, Style Settings (to customize a bit the looks according to your preferences) and the Tag Wrangler (really helps with managing tags, which is kind of a big deal in Obsidian), Advanced Tables (creating tables in markdown is really annoying), and Dataview. You can add some other minor ones of your preference (like Custom Filé Explorer Sorting, or some plug-ins for Canvas or Excalidraw), but keep it simple. I wouldn't recommend Make.md -- it kind of turns Obsidian into Notion, but it messes up with formatting and YAML a lot. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/ObsidianMD
31
30
July 25, 2024
Notion or Obsidian for writing?
I used Notion for worldbuilding for ages and Scrivener for writing. A year ago, i replaced both with Obsidian and now, a year later, i have never been happier, with how my writing is going and how my vault looks. However, it took me 2-3 months to really settle into Obsidian. I am also aesthetically minded and just had to learn how to set up and use Obsidian to give me what I wanted. It was frustrating and fun at the same time. So for people who want to tweak, i can't say Obsidian feels immediately intuitive. However, i will say this: When i migrated things from Notion (manually), i realized I had barely done any writing in it, although I had tons and tons of notes. (I'm referring to the content of my worldbuilding and story notes here). Notion had forced me into categorizing and defining things so that everything was sorted, which had helped at the time, and i had enjoyed it, but that is not the purpose of the project. A lot of my notes had elaborate properties setup to show in different views, but the body of the note was almost empty. This is in part i think because what's inside the body of a note feels completely hidden and unsearchable in Notion. Obsidian immediately stimulated me to actually fill out notes and build meaning and connections - as an app, it just stimulates you to write - that's just what you do in Obsidian. From this perspective, i would feel anxious about keeping things in Notion because you have very limited options when it comes to backing up your work, and we know how important that is for writing projects. What if you lose everything? Obsidian has amazing backup and version control options with git and other plugins, so it feels much safer to host my whole writing project here. It's very easy to search and discover things in obsidian, connect chapters with any kind of note about them, work with all the relevant notes you need for a specific part of your writing simultaneously. This just facilitates great writing sessions for me. With Notion, it's very easy to just bury info where you may never find it or look at it again - search is practically none existent. I came to hate this. Overall, i adore my obsidian. I always recommend it to writers IF they understand it'll take a while for things to settle in. If this is fine with you, give it a go. But for people who like to tinker, there's usually a period at the start in which they work ON obsidian and not IN obsidian. For me, once I got to a point where i was reasonably happy with how everything looked and worked, i started working IN obsidian and i feel like it gave me soo much creative freedom. But i ocassionally still get the tinkering bug. That being said, i also spent ages prettyfying my Notion, so the time sink between the tools is comparable I think. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/Notion
31
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November 5, 2025
[deleted by user]
I just accepted both are different apps so aesthetic and functionality will vary. But one thing common for both of them is mobile app sucks. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/ObsidianMD
91
258
October 21, 2025
Notion vs. Obsidian
No es la más barata, pero Obsidian Publish te permite publicar tus notas a través de su servicio por una cuota. También está Obsidian Sync… Difícil de superar sus propios servicios si quieres algo fácil y confiable. Estás ayudando al desarrollo de la app y los servicios. Si odias las suscripciones, creo que Git es la solución que buscas, pero quizás lo estás descartando demasiado pronto. Elimina la necesidad de hacer un montón de copias de seguridad individuales… tienes historial de archivos para cada archivo en el repositorio que creas. Solo necesitas crear un repositorio en blanco y configurar el token de acceso personal para que ObsidianGit funcione, creo. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/productivity
5
1
April 2, 2024
People also ask

Is Obsidian or Notion better for students?
Both work well for students but serve different needs. Obsidian excels at research notes, essay planning, and building connected knowledge over multiple years. Notion is better for group projects, tracking assignments, and managing course materials. Students on tight budgets will appreciate that Obsidian is entirely free for personal use, while Notion's free plan has limitations.
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productivetemply.com
productivetemply.com › blog › notion-vs-obsidian
Obsidian vs Notion: Honest comparison in 2026 (I tried both)
Does Obsidian vs Notion matter for small businesses?
Absolutely. Small businesses needing team collaboration, client management, and project tracking will prefer Notion. Those prioritizing data privacy, security, and building internal knowledge repositories might choose Obsidian with paid Sync for team access.
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productivetemply.com
productivetemply.com › blog › notion-vs-obsidian
Obsidian vs Notion: Honest comparison in 2026 (I tried both)
Can I migrate from Notion to Obsidian?
Yes, but it requires work. Notion can export to markdown, but you'll lose database structures and some formatting. Several community tools help with the migration, though the process isn't seamless. The reverse migration (Obsidian to Notion) is easier since markdown imports well, though you'll lose graph connections.
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productivetemply.com
productivetemply.com › blog › notion-vs-obsidian
Obsidian vs Notion: Honest comparison in 2026 (I tried both)
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Slite
slite.com › learn › obsidian-vs-notion
Obsidian vs Notion (2026): Which Is Right for You?
Notion wins if you are looking for a highly structured way of organizing information. Obsidian, on the other hand, allows a lot of flexibility. You can adjust your folder structure, rename files, or move things around without worrying about ...
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Zapier
zapier.com › app picks › app comparisons
Obsidian vs. Notion: Which is best?
June 19, 2025 - The way they set about it, however, is vastly different. While Notion operates as a broader productivity tool to manage your projects, knowledge, and files, Obsidian works more as a highly flexible writing app.
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Plaky
plaky.com › home › obsidian vs. notion: which one to choose?
Obsidian vs. Notion — Which One to Choose?
September 30, 2025 - ... The fundamental difference between Obsidian and Notion is that Obsidian is more suitable for creating an elaborate web of notes for individuals, while Notion is much better for collaboration.
Rating: 4.9 ​ - ​ 21 votes
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TechRepublic
techrepublic.com › home › project management
Obsidian vs. Notion: Which Tool Is Better?
May 25, 2026 - Obsidian uses Markdown files and ... and hierarchical database structure. Notion is a cloud-based productivity app that lets you track projects and create and organize notes....
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Productivetemply
productivetemply.com › blog › notion-vs-obsidian
Obsidian vs Notion: Honest comparison in 2026 (I tried both)
2 weeks ago - Notion wins here. Syncing across devices is built in and free. The mobile app works well for most tasks though complex databases can be harder to navigate on a small screen. Obsidian on mobile requires either the paid Sync add-on or manual ...
Find elsewhere
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Effortless Academic
effortlessacademic.com › home › the effortless academic blog › notion vs obsidian: what’s the best note-taking tool for research?
Notion vs Obsidian: What's the Best Note-Taking Tool for Research? - The Effortless Academic
March 11, 2026 - Overall, the key differences between Obsidian and Notion are in how customisable and expensive each one is. If you identify as a self-starter, keen to build things yourself, have control of your data and like free tools that don’t lock you ...
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Nuclino
nuclino.com › solutions › obsidian-vs-notion
Obsidian vs Notion: Comparison and review (2026)
Obsidian is faster than Notion and suffers from fewer performance issues. Obsidian has a large number of plugins, allowing you to extend and customize the app.
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ClickUp
clickup.com › home › software › obsidian vs. notion: which note-taking tool is best?
Obsidian Vs. Notion: Which Note-taking Tool is Best in 2026?
September 18, 2025 - Instead of a workspace like Notion, Obsidian uses the term vault. The vault is a folder where Obsidian stores your notes locally on your device. Depending on your number of projects, you can have one vault or several. After creating your first vault, you can start taking down notes in plain text. Unlike most note-taking apps, Obsidian lets you have multiple files open on what it calls panes.
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XPPen
xp-pen.com › xppen › blog › tutorials&tips › detail
Obsidian vs. Notion: Which Note-Taking App is Right for You? | XPPen
June 6, 2025 - Obsidian is a local-first, Markdown-based note-taking application that prioritizes privacy and flexibility. It’s designed for users who want full control over their data and prefer to build a customized knowledge base.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/obsidianmd › experiences with obsidian compared to notion
r/ObsidianMD on Reddit: Experiences with Obsidian Compared to Notion
July 25, 2024 -

Hello everyone,

I have been using Notion as my primary note-taking app, but lately, I have been facing some issues with it, especially on my phone. Notion often lags, has many bugs, and generally doesn't run as smoothly as I would like. Therefore, I am considering switching to Obsidian.

I wanted to ask if any of you have experience with Obsidian and how you find it compared to Notion. Is it faster and more fluid to use? How is the user experience, especially on mobile devices? Are there any features that stand out positively or negatively in Obsidian?

I would appreciate your recommendations and experiences!

Thanks in advance!

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Tech Insider
tech-insider.org › home › software › notion vs obsidian 2026: the definitive productivity tool comparison
Notion vs Obsidian: 1 Clear Winner in 7 Tests [2026]
3 weeks ago - Obsidian consistently delivers sub-16ms input latency (essentially instant), while Notion’s cloud sync introduces 50 to 150ms latency depending on connection quality. For most users this is imperceptible, but writers and developers who spend hours typing notice the difference. Obsidian’s local-first architecture means your keystrokes never wait for a server round-trip. Memory usage tells a similar story. Obsidian v1.7.3 uses approximately 180 to 250 MB of RAM with a large vault open.
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The Business Dive
thebusinessdive.com › home › blog › notion vs obsidian: side-by-side comparison (2026)
Notion Vs Obsidian: Side-by-Side Comparison (2026)
April 6, 2026 - These are the key points that I explored during the Notion vs Obsidian clash: Notion is a more user-friendly app with a shorter learning curve.
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Wrike
ones.com › home › obsidian vs notion: ultimate showdown of the premier note-taking apps
Obsidian vs Notion: Note-Taking App Comparison
February 26, 2026 - Obsidian offers all main features for personal use for free, whereas Notion uses a tiered pricing model, from free to enterprise options, with additional AI capabilities at an extra cost.
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NotePlan
noteplan.co › blog › obsidian-vs-notion
Obsidian vs Notion: Side-by-Side Comparison
November 20, 2024 - Notion: Notion provides multiple access levels—admin, editor, commenter, and viewer—making it easy to control who can do what. It also includes version history to track changes, which is helpful in collaborative environments.
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G2
learn.g2.com › obsidian-vs-notion
Obsidian vs. Notion: I Tried Both and Here's How They Differ
April 15, 2026 - Notion is better for users who want an all-in-one experience with its native Notion AI built directly into the editor. However, Obsidian is better for power users who want to connect their private data to various LLMs via community plugins using ...
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How-To Geek
howtogeek.com › home › web › obsidian vs. notion: which note-taking app is best?
Obsidian vs. Notion: Which Note-Taking App Is Best?
December 15, 2024 - In fact, you can view Notion as a powerful project management system. However, this can make it more complicated and overwhelming if you're only looking for basic note-taking. In Obsidian, organization revolves around folders and backlinks. You can create a hierarchical folder structure to categorize your notes, but the real power lies in its heterarchical approach.
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Atlas
atlasworkspace.ai › home › blog › knowledge compounding › notion vs obsidian (2026): which knowledge tool wins?
Notion vs Obsidian (2026): Which Knowledge Tool Wins?
August 3, 2026 - The deepest difference between Notion and Obsidian is where your notes live. Notion stores every page in its hosted database. You access pages through the Notion app or web. Export options are HTML, Markdown, or PDF.
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The Process Hacker
theprocesshacker.com › home › blog › obsidian vs notion: which note-taking app is better?
Obsidian vs Notion: Which Note-Taking App is Better? | The Process Hacker
July 21, 2024 - Obsidian stands out for its emphasis on local storage for privacy, extensive customization options, and unique features like graph views for visualizing note connections. Notion differentiates itself with its all-in-one approach, combining various functionalities like databases, task management, and real-time collaboration in a single, flexible platform.