Nathan Drescher / Android Authority
Obsidian is a popular note-taking app that frequently attracts the praises of privacy enthusiasts. But its learning curve and the focus on Markdown mean that many note-taking aficionados who have tried the app have switched over to other options.
My colleague Mitja wrote about some of the best Obsidian alternatives out there, including Notion, Capacities, Anytype, Google Keep, and some other options. We polled readers on which ones they thought was the best choice — but instead of a resounding winner, the results were relatively close.
Which is the best Obsidian alternative in your opinion?
Based on the votes of just over 2,600 readers, Notion led the poll as the favorite alternative for Obsidian. The note-taking app, known for its free cloud syncing and powerful databases, received 23.72% of the votes. However, results were closer than expected. Not far off was Capacities in second place, which received 22.34% of the votes.
Like Obsidian, both of these alternatives take a while to learn. Notion is packed with features and while I personally use the app, I’ve found that I have to get to grips with its features in small doses. Meanwhile Capacities also offers a blend of productivity features, including a calendar and an AI assistant.
There’s also Anytype, a no-code, offline-first solution that landed in third place with 19.97% of the votes. Despite placing third, it is actually one of the more direct competitors to Obsidian due to its focus on privacy. It’s offline-first approach will appeal to those who want to keep their notes on their device without syncing to the web.
So what about those who like simpler solutions? That’s where Google Keep comes in. The app received 18.9% of the votes, despite its more limited scope and features. Over 9% of respondents voted for the umbrella of “other” apps, while 5.28% voted for Evernote.
It looks like the choice for the top Obsidian alternative is hotly contended, which makes sense since people have different note-taking styles and priorities. And sometimes you have to actually combine a few services to really hit that sweet spot for productivity.
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