Obsidian vs Standard Notes: Features, Pricing and User Reviews 2026
Compare features, pricing, reviews, and more to make an informed decision
Obsidian
Obsidian is a free note-taking app that connects your ideas using links, creating a personal knowledge network on your device.
Standard Notes
Standard Notes is a secure, private note-taking app with end-to-end encryption, unlimited device sync, and powerful organization features for all your notes.
Obsidian
Obsidian is a free note-taking app that connects your ideas using links, creating a personal knowledge network on your device.
Standard Notes
Standard Notes is a secure, private note-taking app with end-to-end encryption, unlimited device sync, and powerful organization features for all your notes.
Obsidian
Stores notes locally on your device with full privacy
Links notes together to build knowledge networks
Visual graph shows connections between ideas
Canvas for unlimited brainstorming space
Thousands of free community plugins available
Works offline without internet connection
Plain text files you own forever
Mobile apps for phones and tablets
Supports basic text formatting
Free to use with optional paid services
Standard Notes
End-to-end encryption for complete privacy
Unlimited devices and notes with free plan
Offline access to all downloaded notes
Tag-based organization system
Password lock for individual notes
Two-factor authentication support
Daily encrypted email backups
Open source and audited code
Cross-platform support (web, desktop, mobile)
File storage with paid plans
Multiple note types (markdown, code, spreadsheets)
Obsidian
Obsidian is completely free for personal use with all core features included. You get unlimited notes, full plugin access, and complete control over your data at no cost.
For users who want to sync notes across devices, Obsidian Sync offers two plans. The Standard plan costs $4 per month when paid yearly (or $5 monthly) and includes one synced vault with 1GB storage. The Plus plan costs $8 per month yearly (or $10 monthly) with 10GB storage and unlimited vaults.
Obsidian Publish lets you share notes on the web for $8 per month yearly (or $10 monthly) per site, with custom themes and no technical knowledge needed.
The optional Commercial License costs $50 per user yearly for business use, though it became optional in 2025. For one-time supporters, the Catalyst license at $25 gives early access to beta versions and community perks.
Standard Notes
Standard Notes offers three plans to fit different needs. The Standard plan is completely free forever and includes end-to-end encryption, unlimited device sync, basic text notes, offline access, tags, password protection for notes, full data export, two-factor authentication, and daily email backups.
The Productivity plan costs $90 per year and adds powerful features like Super note type for markdown and rich text, spreadsheet creation, Daily Notebooks for journaling, authenticator for other services, folder organization, web clipper tool, one-year note history, and dedicated support.
The Professional plan is $120 per year and includes everything from Productivity plus 100GB encrypted cloud storage for files, subscription sharing with up to five accounts, unlimited file size, offline file access, local file backups, Moments photo capture, unlimited note history, and hardware security key support.
