Notion vs Obsidian: Which One Should You Use in 2026?

The short answer in Notion vs Obsidian is to match the tool to the job. Notion is the better choice for team workspaces, shared wikis and databases. Obsidian is the better choice for private notes stored as local Markdown files, with links between them and no account needed. If you want the same ideas in open-source form, AppFlowy and Logseq are the closest alternatives.

Both are proprietary, and they take opposite approaches: Notion lives in the vendor's cloud, while Obsidian works on a folder of files on your device. The sections below compare storage, collaboration, offline use, databases, customization and pricing model, using each product's own site and help pages.

Notion vs Obsidian at a glance

Where is your data stored?

This is the biggest difference. Notion is a hosted workspace: Enlisted lists it as closed source with no self-hosted version, so your pages live in Notion's cloud and you reach them through its web, desktop and mobile apps.

Obsidian's site says notes are stored locally as plain text Markdown files on your device, that it stores notes privately, and that no one else can read them, not even the company. Because the files are ordinary Markdown, you can open the same folder in other tools. If that kind of ownership matters to you, Obsidian wins. If you want your notes available in a browser on any computer with no setup, Notion is easier.

Which is better for teams and collaboration?

Notion. Its help center describes sharing a page with workspace members or guests, with permission levels from full access and can edit down to can comment and can view, plus teamspaces for each team. Guests need their own Notion accounts to open pages, and the free plan limits how much a multi-member workspace can hold, so check the pricing page before you plan a team rollout.

Obsidian can be shared, but it is built for individuals. Its Sync service supports shared vaults, but Obsidian says it does not support collaborative live editing on the same file, users will not see each other's cursors, and changes merge during syncing. Everyone needs an active Sync subscription, and fine-grained permissions are not supported yet. For a group that edits documents together, Notion is the more natural fit, or one of the open-source workspaces covered below.

Which works better offline?

Obsidian, because there is nothing to download first. Notes are files on your device, so the app works offline by design, and Sync updates your devices when you are connected.

Notion supports offline pages in its desktop and mobile apps, on all plans, but not in a web browser. Notion's help lists limits: some blocks, including embeds, AI blocks, forms and buttons, do not work offline, only the first rows of a database's first view are downloaded, and subpages need individual downloads. Paid plans can also download recently visited and favorite pages automatically. Edits made offline sync when you reconnect, with some risk of conflicts if several people edit the same page offline.

How do databases compare?

Notion is the stronger database tool. Its help center describes databases as collections of pages that you can view as a table, list, calendar, board or gallery, then filter, sort and group, and link databases to each other. That is the main reason people build trackers, project plans and CRM-style tables in it.

Obsidian now has a Bases core plugin that creates database-like views of your notes, with table, list, cards, kanban and map layouts, and its help says all the data stays in your local Markdown files and their properties. That keeps the files portable, but it is oriented to notes with properties rather than a team's relational database. If tables are your main use, Notion, or a database-first tool, is the better starting point.

Which has more plugins and customization?

Obsidian. Its site describes thousands of plugins and themes, plus a Canvas for visual layouts, a Web Clipper, and optional Publish for turning notes into a website. That makes it very customizable for one person's workflow.

Notion customizes through templates, connections to other apps and built-in features such as Notion AI, agents, AI meeting notes and Notion Calendar. Its sites feature is on paid plans, and Obsidian Publish is a separate paid service billed per site.

How does the pricing model compare?

Qualitatively, they charge in different places. Obsidian's core app is free without limits, including for work, and the optional paid services are Sync, billed per user, and Publish, billed per site. A Catalyst membership and an annual commercial licence are also offered as optional ways to support the project.

Notion has a free plan aimed at individuals, with paid plans billed per member, so the cost grows as the team grows. The free plan limits blocks in multi-member workspaces, guest numbers, file upload size and page history, and guests are free on every plan. Enlisted shows plan-by-plan prices in the live section below this guide.

Notion: best for team workspaces, wikis and databases

Notion is a hosted workspace where documents, wikis, projects and personal notes live side by side, now with AI features built in. Pick it when several people need to edit together, when you want database views and project boards, and when running in the browser is a plus rather than a limit. See Notion's listing, or Notion alternatives for other routes.

• Best for: teams, startups and families that want docs, wikis and projects in one hosted place.
• Watch out for: the code is closed and the service is hosted only, so the workspace lives in Notion's cloud, and offline use has the limits described above.

Obsidian: best for private, local Markdown notes

Obsidian keeps notes as Markdown files on your own device, links them together and draws a graph of how they connect. Pick it when you want files you control, offline access and a knowledge base that grows over years. See Obsidian's listing, or the Obsidian alternatives guide for other routes.

• Best for: researchers, writers, students and developers building a personal knowledge base.
• Watch out for: it is proprietary and has no live co-editing, so it is a poor stand-in for a team workspace.

Are there open-source alternatives to Notion and Obsidian?

Yes, and they sit between the two.

• AppFlowy is an open-source workspace with documents, wikis and tasks, presented as an alternative to Notion, with apps for macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android. Its code is AGPL-3.0, and a self-hosted setup is possible.
• Logseq is an open-source, local-first outliner that links notes as blocks and works with Markdown and Org-mode files. It is the closest open-source counterpart to Obsidian, but its database-backed version is in beta.
• AFFiNE is a local-first workspace with docs, whiteboard and tables, and it has real-time collaboration built in.
• Joplin is a free, open-source, offline-first notebook app with encrypted sync through services such as Nextcloud and Dropbox.

For longer lists, see open-source Notion alternatives and Obsidian alternatives on Enlisted.

Can you use both, or switch between them?

You do not have to pick only one: Obsidian can hold personal notes while Notion handles shared project work. Moving between them is possible, with care.

• Notion to Obsidian: Obsidian's Importer plugin lists Notion among its supported sources.
• Obsidian to Notion: Notion can import Markdown and text files, as well as CSV, HTML and Word documents.
• Expect differences: databases, embedded blocks and plugin features will not convert perfectly, so move a small set of pages first.

Which should you choose, Notion or Obsidian?

In short: choose Notion for teamwork and databases, choose Obsidian for private, local notes, and look at AppFlowy or Logseq if open source is a requirement. The best note-taking apps guide compares more options across the category, the note-taking category lists them all, and how Enlisted ranks tools explains how we choose what to include.