A detailed comparison of Obsidian and AppFlowy to help you choose the right tool for your needs.
| Plan | Obsidian | AppFlowy |
|---|---|---|
| Free Tier | ✓ Free for personal use | ✓ Free (open source) |
| Lowest Paid | $50/yr (Sync) | Free |
| Enterprise | $50/user/yr (Commercial) | Cloud plans coming |
| Feature | Obsidian | AppFlowy |
|---|---|---|
| Markdown editing | ✓ | — |
| Graph view | ✓ | — |
| Backlinks | ✓ | — |
| Community plugins | ✓ | — |
| Themes | ✓ | — |
| Canvas | ✓ | — |
| Templates | ✓ | ✓ |
| Tags | ✓ | — |
| Search | ✓ | — |
| Local storage | ✓ | — |
| Block editor | — | ✓ |
| Databases | — | ✓ |
| Kanban boards | — | ✓ |
| Calendar view | — | ✓ |
| Self-hosting | — | ✓ |
| Plugins | — | ✓ |
| AI features | — | ✓ |
| Cross-platform | — | ✓ |
| Markdown | — | ✓ |
| Open Source | ✗ | ✓ |
| Rating | ⭐ 4.6 | ⭐ 4 |
Choose Obsidian if: You need knowledge workers wanting local-first note-taking. Obsidian excels with its local-first and highly customizable.
Choose AppFlowy if: You need users wanting an open-source notion alternative. AppFlowy stands out with its open source and notion-like features.
Best free option: Both Obsidian and AppFlowy offer free tiers. Obsidian offers "Free for personal use" while AppFlowy offers "Free (open source)".
It depends on your needs. Obsidian is better for knowledge workers wanting local-first note-taking, while AppFlowy is better for users wanting an open-source notion alternative. Both are excellent tools rated 4.6 and 4 respectively.
Obsidian starts at $50/yr (Sync) while AppFlowy starts at Free. Both offer free tiers.
Most tools offer import/export features to help you migrate. We recommend trying AppFlowy's free tier before fully committing to a switch.
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