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Standard Notes vs Obsidian: catalog facts
Standard Notes	Obsidian
Freemium Free tier with unlimited encrypted sync and plain text notes. Paid plans add editors, file…	Free Free for everyone, including commercial use, in the vendor’s own words. Obsidian Sync and…
Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web, Self-hosted, Browser extension	Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Browser extension
End-to-end encrypted, with free sync on unlimited devices Server code is public and self-hosting is documented	Notes are plain Markdown files in a folder you control, readable without the app Linking, backlinks, tags, graph view and fast search across the vault
The free tier is plain text only; editors are a paid feature An account is required even for local use	The application is not open source, only the plugin ecosystem and the releases repository Syncing between devices means paying for Obsidian Sync or wiring up your own sync tool
Downloadable app, Self-hosted, Browser extension	Downloadable app, Browser extension
Open source	Closed source
License: AGPL-3.0	License not stated
Account needed	No account needed
Works offline	Works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 20, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.