How do you choose between Notion and Obsidian?
Both are digital note-taking software, but they each have their own unique strengths and weaknesses.
In this post, we'll break down the major differences between them and help you make an informed decision about which one suits your needs best.
Overview:
Main features of Notion:
Notion is very easy to use, even if you don't know anything ahout coding. It has everything you need in one place: notes, databases, tasks and wikis. You can also share links with your colleagues or friends so they can see what you have been working on.
The best part about Notion is that it is free for starters. This means that anyone can use this app without having to pay for anything. It is also very intuitive, which means that anyone can pick up the basics in no time at all.
The only thing that I would like to see improved in Notion is bi-directional linking between documents. Some other apps allow their users to link between different documents easily but this feature is still not available in Notion yet (although it may come soon).
Main features of Obsidian:
Obsidian is a note-taking software that focuses on documentation itself. It has a full diagram view and all documents are based on the powerful Markdown editing feature. The advantage of this feature is that you can visualize notes and link data bi-directionally.
Once you have completed the process of linking notes, you will get insight into linked data. The files are stored locally, so there is no need to pay for synchronization services with the software itself. If you need official synchronization service, you can log in to the official account. It is priced at $4 per month for individual accounts.
User Interface and Structure
Notion:
Notion is a powerful tool for organizing your work. It allows you to create pages and sub-pages, which can then be linked together.
The interface is clean and simple, and it's easy to create a workspace for yourself and start adding pages. The application has the ability to add sub-pages within a page, so you can keep everything organized according to your needs.
Notion also has a favorites section where users can favorite pages or sub-pages and then quickly access them from the left sidebar (where you put your most important notes). I think this is better than Obsidian's approach because it makes more sense—you only need to go back to one spot instead of having something cluttered up on both sides of your screen.
Notion supports both light and dark themes, which makes it easier for people who prefer one over another to switch between them without losing their place in any documents they're working on.
Obsidian:
Obsidian is a really cool note taking app. It has a nice, clean interface and lets you organize your notes into folders and subfolders.
The first step is to create a vault. This is kind of like a folder in the left-hand column. You can then add notes to it from the right-hand column, which has all your existing notes already in it. You can also create new folders and subfolders with different names and colors from here as well.
In the left column, based on the folder structure, you can put notes of the same category in one folder.
Obsidian has light and dark theme support and a translucent effect as an option. The white font is a bit harsh in the default dark theme, but it looks cool.
Unique point
Notion and Obsidian are two of the most popular tools for organizing your thoughts and tracking your progress on a project. Both are a great way to keep track of your ideas, but each has its own strengths.
Notion:
Notion's real-time collaboration, ability to link to anywhere in a workspace, clean and simple interface, and strong integration with other tools make it ideal for teams that need to work together on content creation. The tool is also great for solo creators who want to keep everything in one place without sacrificing ease of use or simplicity.
Obsidian:
Obsidian's Markdown language, Kanban Boards, Graph view, Wiki-like linking of files make it an excellent option for those who want a more traditional writing experience. It comes with built-in support for Markdown language, Kanban boards (which allow you to visualize tasks), graphs (which help you understand the connections between the notes and knowledges), and Wiki-like linking of files.
Price
Notion pricing:
Notion is a free service that offers a free plan that most people should be able to accept. And it will automatically sync on all devices. But limited to Share with 5 guests, limiting uploads to 5M files.
If you are deep into using notion and keep all your notes on notion, you can upgrade your app to the Personal Pro plan for only $5 per month, or $4 per month if you charge annually.
If you need to share Notion with your team members, then you will need to upgrade your team account here, which will cost you about $10 per month per person for the team. This will cost you about $10 per person per month for your team. If you charge annually, the fee is $8 per month.
Obsidian pricing:
Obsidian is free for personal use, but they charge for data syncing services. If you want your data to sync across devices, then you will have to add it to your free account. This process will cost you about $8 per month, payable once a year.
You can use the plugins available in the Community Marketplace to implement the free sync service by tying to a free network drive for syncing, such as tying to onedrive, but no one is responsible for the security of your notes and you do so at your own risk as this is a free third-party plugin and not an official official one.
Cloud Service & Security
Notion:
Notion is available on web and mobile (Android, iOS), so you can use it anywhere. You can also share Notion through a link.
You don't need to pay anything extra to sync your data across all platforms; it's included in the free plan. And now you can create unlimited blocks for personal user with free plan.
The security is provided by Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform, which are ISO 27001 and SOC 2 certified, so it looks like safe.
Obsidian:
If you're a free user, save your notes locally. Of course it's safest to save only locally and not involve any cloud services.
But all notes seek to sync on all devices, which is the most basic requirement at this time.
However, when you use a third-party network drive like Google Drive or Onedrive to store your notes, security is hard to guarantee and you don't know when your notes will be lost. You must first install some plugins available in the community marketplace.
It is recommended to use the official sync service, which is paid, but you can be sure that your data will not be lost. Security can be guaranteed.
Obsidian also offers end-to-end encryption, which is said to be the most secure data protection offered today.
However, if you are more concerned about security or want to protect your data from potential security (such as a breach), then Obsidian is the best choice.
Template
Notion template:
Notion is rich in templates, and Notion makes it easy and fast to add templates to your application. You can use icons and emojis to make your template more beautiful.Notion has beaten Obsidian in this matter.
In Notion, you can find a template for any occasion: from the onboarding of your team members to a daily work template or a project plan template, from meeting notes to the marketing plan!
You can easily add them to your notebook with one click.
Obsidian template:
Obsidian has templates that you can use or get from the community. You can also create your own templates. However, they're not quite as easy to work it in Notion.
When you're working with a template, you'll be performing quite a few steps before adding a theme. If you want to make a specific design, you can add custom CSS.
Overall, not so great when it comes to creating templates; it takes too much time and effort.
Takeaway:
So which one should you pick? We'd say that it depends on your needs. If you're working on more structured or linear work, such as documentation or coursework, then Obsidian is your best bet. It's simple and efficient enough to get the job done.
But if you want a more all-in-one workspace for your notes and other resources, Notion might be a better choice. It has a feature that allows you to share your workspace with your team, so they can all write, plan and organize it in their own way.
Whichever one you choose, we hope these tips have helped you get started!