The Best Open Source Obsidian AlternativesTop Note-taking & Task Management Tools like Obsidian
The best open source alternative to Obsidian is Logseq. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to Obsidian and loads of them is open source so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting open source alternatives to Obsidian are Zettlr, Joplin, Notesnook and Standard Notes.
filter to find the best alternatives
Obsidian alternatives are mainly Note-taking Tools, but if you're looking for Todo List Managers or Task Management Tools you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Windows + Open Source and Android + Open Source. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Obsidian.- Note-taking Tool
- Freemium • Proprietary
- 134 Logseq alternatives
Local-first, privacy-focused notebook supporting Markdown and Emacs Org mode. Offers offline use, encrypted backups, plugin extensibility, LaTeX support, real-time collaboration, and hierarchical organization for personal knowledge management.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
United States
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Online
- Android
- iPhone
- iPad
- Self-Hosted
- F-Droid
- Flathub
Comments about Logseq as an Alternative to Obsidian
Comment summary: Logseq offers a different note-taking experience than Obsidian, with a focus on journaling connections and graph visualizations. Users appreciate Logseq being free, open-source, and suitable for offline use, but some criticize its limited file management and bugs. While Obsidian is praised for stability across platforms and effective sync features, Logseq is noted for being a strong personal knowledge management solution and a valuable FOSS alternative.Top Positive CommentTop Negative CommentPower UserI found Obsidian to be a far more stable application than Logseq, which is important as I am switching platforms frequently and need something which functions properly and reliably on Mac, iPad, iPhone, Windows, and Linux. I decided to pay for Obsidian's sync feature and it has been smooth as butter - probably using a cloud drive would have worked well, but I find that convenience at a reasonable cost for an application I use daily is perfectly acceptable.
Most Recent CommentFarrukhLogSeq is not giving you as Freedom as you may find in Obsidian and Joplin. It is mostly bounded to connecting your notes to a Journal, while in others, you have to freedom to create your notes, journals, etc. independent of each other, in any structure you may like.
- 161 Zettlr alternatives
Unified writing platform offering note-taking, easy citations with Zotero integration, LaTeX/Word templates, snippets, themes, dark modes, code highlighting, multi-language support, and knowledge management with Zettelkasten for seamless writing from notes to books.
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
Germany
EU
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Flathub
Comments about Zettlr as an Alternative to Obsidian
Comment summary: Zettlr is recognized as a strong open-source alternative to Obsidian, appreciated for its simplicity and open-source nature. It offers many beneficial features like backlinking, although some users miss Obsidian's community plugins and graph visualization. While it's not considered a complete replacement for Obsidian, Zettlr's straightforward design is praised. However, some critics find it basic and not competitive enough against Obsidian's advanced capabilities.Top Positive CommentSam LanderThere are better open-source alternatives, like Zim Wiki or Joplin.
Top Negative CommentHibiscusVery basic application. In no way a competition for Obsidian.
Most Recent CommentTed CurranZettler is the same type of app as Obsidian, with PKM features, graph view, and robust MD editing. Not quite as refined but nearly as powerful, it's the best free alternative.
- 80 Joplin alternatives
Open source app for managing notes and to-dos with Markdown support. Syncs seamlessly across devices using services like Dropbox and OneDrive. Offers end-to-end encrypted synchronicity, offline access, rich import/export options, and a Web Clipper for browsers.
License model
- Freemium • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
France
EU
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Android
- iPhone
- Android Tablet
- iPad
- Self-Hosted
- AppImageHub
- Snapcraft
- Google Chrome
- Flathub
- PortableApps.com
- F-Droid
- Cloudron
- Homebrew
- Chocolatey
- Termux
- Mozilla Firefox
Comments about Joplin as an Alternative to Obsidian
Comment summary: Joplin and Obsidian differ significantly in features and setup. Joplin, preferred for its offline capability, open source nature, and cost-free access, is compared more to Evernote than Obsidian. Whereas Joplin focuses on mobile-desktop syncing and hierarchical note-taking, Obsidian offers a graph-based organization and aims to be a powerful desktop knowledge base. Some comments criticize Obsidian for paywalls on basic features.Top Positive CommentIt's open source, allows crypto your md notes on some cloud storage
Top Negative CommentandgregorikJoplin has a fracture of the features of Obsidian which is no wonder since Obsidian aims to become a powerful desktop knowledge base, unlike Joplin. For one thing, Joplin focuses on mobile<->desktop syncing and not on effective internal linking. They're similar at first glance only.
Most Recent Commentembedded synchronization, clipper, encryption. No useless for personal notes graphs
- 262 Notesnook alternatives
Notesnook is a simple and cross-platform private notes app that keeps your notes organized and synced on your phone, tablet and computer. Take notes, capture ideas, create to-do lists, keep a journal, write your assignments and manage projects, we have got you covered.
License model
- Freemium • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
Pakistan
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Online
- Android
- iPhone
- Android Tablet
- iPad
- Google Chrome
- Flathub
- F-Droid
- Software as a Service (SaaS)
- Flatpak
Comments about Notesnook as an Alternative to Obsidian
Most Recent CommentjchalifourNotesnook respects its users by providing the software as open source, Obsidian does not.
SoupIt's very good for taking notes, however there's no "graph" layout like obsidian does. Maybe in the future it will get that feature.
mohamedmhagagNice, Polished UI and experience Love it
- 91 Standard Notes alternatives
Standard Notes is a simple and private notes app. It allows you to write and sync your notes across all your devices, iOS, Android, Linux, Windows, MacOS, and web browser.
License model
- Freemium • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
Switzerland
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Online
- Android
- iPhone
- Chrome OS
- Android Tablet
- iPad
- Self-Hosted
- F-Droid
Comments about Standard Notes as an Alternative to Obsidian
Most Recent CommentAaronNote-linking is a subscription only feature
hex111i feel better paying for open source user friendlier projects, wysiwyg is just necessary for people to reasonably shift from the data robbery monopolies.
Sam LanderStandard Notes is not really an alternative to Obsidian. Standard Notes is open-source, more secure/private, and more simple.
Standard Notes can be used across multiple devices and syncs.
Obsidian telephones home constantly, even if you turn off updates and community plugins. But Obsidian is a very beautiful markdown app, that does more than just note-taking or to-do lists like Standard Notes.
- 72 AppFlowy alternatives
AppFlowy is an open source alternative to Notion. You are in charge of your data and customizations.
License model
- Freemium • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
United States
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Android
- iPhone
- Self-Hosted
- Snapcraft
- Rust
- Flathub
- 299 Zim alternatives
Zim brings the concept of a wiki to your desktop. Store information, link pages and edit with WYSISYG markup or directly typing some lightweight markup syntax and see it previewed as-you-type. Creating a new page is easy by either clicking on the "Create new note"...
License model
- Free • Open Source
Application types
Country of Origin
Netherlands
EU
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- BSD
- Flathub
- Flatpak
Comments about Zim as an Alternative to Obsidian
Most Recent CommentSam LanderZim has all of the same basic features as Obsidian, but it uses far less system resources. Both allow you to download and write plugins, such as advanced pasting (to fix carriage returns when copying pdf text). Both are themable.
Additionally, it's open-source, unlike Obsidian.
andgregorikZim was a pioneer that's now considered an oldtimer, while Obsidian takes much of its features and brings it into 2020+. Obsidian is more "wiki" than Zim, but it uses a different terminology. I've completely migrated from Zim (and CherryTree) to Obsidian.
gorgonzollaI've used ZIM for years. It is all offline on Linux, Mac and Windows, and is therefore much faster than online platforms. Used with Dropbox etc it can sync between your devices, but if you need IOS or Android access look elsewhere.
Logseq is incredibly innovative and it respects my privacy and freedom by providing Free and open source software as opposed to proprietary tools.