Obsidian vs Trilium 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.
Trilium Notes
Trilium Notes is a free, open-source note-taking app that helps you build and organize large personal knowledge bases with a tree structure.
Obsidian
Obsidian is a free note-taking app that connects your ideas using links, creating a personal knowledge network on your device.
Trilium Notes
Trilium Notes is a free, open-source note-taking app that helps you build and organize large personal knowledge bases with a tree structure.
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
Trilium Notes
Tree-based note organization with unlimited depth
Rich text and code editing with syntax highlighting
Note cloning to place notes in multiple locations
Full-text search with fuzzy matching
Password encryption for sensitive notes
Web clipper browser extension
Self-hosted sync server support
Version history and note revisions
Relation maps and visual note linking
Canvas for drawing and diagrams
Import from Evernote and Markdown
Completely free and open source
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.
Trilium Notes
Trilium Notes is completely free to use with no hidden costs or premium plans. It is released under an open-source license, which means you can download, install, and use it without paying anything. There are no subscription fees, no user limits, and no restrictions on features.
Since it is open-source, you have full control over your data. You can install it on your own computer or server without relying on any third-party service. The project is maintained by a community of developers who continue to improve it.
If you want to support the development team, you can make voluntary donations through platforms like GitHub Sponsors or Patreon. However, all features remain free whether you donate or not. This makes Trilium an excellent choice for individuals, students, and teams on any budget.
