Notion vs Obsidian
Notion and Obsidian are both note-taking & docs tools. Notion is aimed at small businesses and freelancers, while Obsidian is aimed at freelancers and developers. Obsidian costs less, from $5/mo versus $12/mo for Notion. Both have a free plan.
| Pricing | Freemium · $12 | Freemium · $5 |
| Starting price | $12/mo | $5/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Built for | Small businesses, Freelancers, Enterprise | Freelancers, Developers, Creators |
| Platforms | web, ios, android, macos, windows | macos, windows, linux, ios, android |
| Country | US · 2016 | CA · 2020 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Notion if
Startups and small teams (2–50 people) that want docs, wiki and simple project tracking in one place, and individuals who like building their own systems.
- Replaces several tools (docs, wiki, light PM, CRM) for small teams
- Extremely flexible data model; databases with relations and rollups
- Huge template ecosystem and integrations via API and Zapier/Make
Look elsewhere if: Engineering teams that need a strict issue tracker with cycles and estimates, finance teams that live in spreadsheets, or organizations that need offline-first access.
Choose Obsidian if
Individuals, researchers and writers who want ownership, longevity and deep customization.
- You own your files; works offline forever
- Free for personal and commercial use
- Unmatched extensibility through plugins
Look elsewhere if: Teams needing shared, collaborative documents or users who want a zero-setup tool.
Notion vs Obsidian pricing
Notion
- Free$07-day page history, 10 guests, limited Notion AI trial
- Plus$12/member/mo$10/mo billed yearly; 30-day history, unlimited guests
- Business$24/member/mo$20/mo billed yearly; 90-day history, Notion Agent, AI notes
- EnterpriseCustomUnlimited history, zero data retention with LLM providers
Obsidian
- Free$0Full app, personal and commercial use
- Sync$5/user/mo$4 billed annually; E2E encrypted sync
- Publish$10/site/mo$8 billed annually; publish notes to web
- Catalyst$25One-time supporter license, early access
- Commercial$50/user/yearOptional license for organizations
Notion · Key features
- Block-based editor with slash commands, synced blocks and 50+ content types
- Relational databases with table, board, calendar, gallery, timeline and list views
- Templates, buttons and database automations for repeatable workflows
- Notion AI: Q&A across workspace plus Slack, Drive and GitHub connectors
- Public publishing with custom domains (Notion Sites) and SEO settings
- Granular sharing: teamspaces, guests, page-level permissions and SSO on Business
Cons
- No native structure means workspaces sprawl without governance
- Slower on large databases; offline mode is limited
- Per-seat pricing adds up for large teams, AI bundled only in Business and up
Obsidian · Key features
- Local Markdown files with bidirectional links and backlinks panel
- Graph view and Canvas for visual thinking
- Bases: database-style views over notes (2025)
- 2,000+ community plugins and themes
- End-to-end encrypted Sync and one-click Publish
- Daily notes, templates, search with operators, mobile apps
Cons
- No real-time collaboration
- Plugin quality varies; setup can rabbit-hole
- Sync and Publish are paid add-ons
Notion vs Obsidian: FAQ
Which is cheaper, Notion or Obsidian?
Obsidian starts at $5/mo and Notion at $12/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do Notion and Obsidian have a free plan?
Yes, both Notion and Obsidian have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.
Which is better for small businesses, Notion or Obsidian?
Notion lists small businesses as a core audience, while Obsidian is aimed more at freelancers and developers.