Obsidian Review: Features, Pros, Cons and My Honest Opinion

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Obsidian is a note-taking and knowledge management tool that has gained a strong following among writers, researchers, and productivity enthusiasts.

Founded by Shida Li and Erica Xu in March 2020, Obsidian is headquartered in Canada and offers local-first storage, markdown support, and extensive customization.

But is it worth the hype?

This is the question that I’ll answer in this Obsidian review. I’ve subscribed to Obsidian’s free trial to explore and test its main features, such as the Writing App, Canvas, and Vault. This will help you determine if the platform suits your knowledge management needs!

Features

• Writing App for distraction-free writing with markdown-based formatting
• Syncs notes across devices with end-to-end encryption
• Lets users publish notes directly to a personal website
• Provides a visual workspace called Canvas for mapping thoughts
• Audio Recorder to record and embed voice notes for better documentation

Pros

• Easy to format text with markdown, making note-taking seamless
• Clean user interface and lightning-fast performance
• Can work offline without depending on cloud storage
• Mobile app brings flexibility on the go
• Fully supports the Zettelkasten method, making it ideal for knowledge management

Cons

• Frustrating search functionality, especially with large information vaults
• While multiple users can access vaults, Obsidian lacks true collaboration features
• Needs improved bibliography management for research-heavy users

9 Great Obsidian Features

After talking to 9 Obsidian users who have been using it for months and testing it myself, I found some Obsidian features worth talking about.

These features stand out in note-taking, writing, and knowledge management. Here’s what makes Obsidian special.

1. Writing App

I spoke with Sanjay Nagar (Founder and Trustee at Kohka Foundation) about his experience with Obsidian. He said:

“A few months ago, I was struggling with productivity and needed an app to organize my notes. Obsidian’s writing feature helped me structure my thoughts better. Writing is the core feature of this app, and it’s both intuitive and powerful.”

Obsidian’s markdown-based editor makes writing effortless. It supports rich formatting, inline code, and backlinks, enhancing knowledge management. Since it works offline, users can write thoughts anytime without depending on cloud services.

2. Sync

Obsidian simplifies syncing notes across devices while keeping everything private. Users can access their notes from a phone, tablet, or laptop without worrying about data loss. Since it offers end-to-end encryption, no one else can see the notes, ensuring complete privacy.

Rounak Anand, a content creator and founder of Unseen MP (150K+ followers across social media), shared his thoughts:

“My team includes writers, designers, and video editors. When I create a note, everyone should be able to see it, and Obsidian helps me do that.”

This feature makes it easy for anyone working on multiple projects to stay updated. Everything remains connected, making project management more organized and efficient.

3. Publish

Alec Richman (Lead Technical Writer at Salesforce) shared,

“Obsidian helps me manage version control, maintain internal documentation, and securely sync and publish my notes.”

The Publish feature allows users to share their notes as a website with just a few clicks. It’s especially useful for writers, researchers, and teams who want to organize and access their knowledge seamlessly.

Here’s what makes it useful:

• Easy Website Creation: Publish notes instantly without coding.
• Customizable Access: Keep some pages private while sharing others.
• Automatic Updates: Sync changes in real-time.
• Interlinked Notes: Maintain context with internal links and backlinks.

For anyone handling documentation or knowledge sharing, this feature makes content structured, accessible, and up to date without extra effort.

4. Links

Bohdan Vihurskyi (Software Development Engineer at Amazon) says,

“I am a software developer, and I need to document code snippets and link them to relevant projects daily. If I can’t do this, then I might as well stop calling myself an SDE.”

Obsidian’s linking feature is very useful for organizing and retrieving information effortlessly. Whether you’re handling research, project documentation, or personal notes, it’s a system of connections that keeps everything within reach.

How Obsidian’s linking helps you stay organized

Feature	What It Does	Why It Matters
Bi-directional Links	You can link notes both ways for seamless navigation	Easily find related content
Backlinks	Shows all references to a note in one place	Keeps your knowledge well-connected
Embedded Links	Can preview linked content without opening it	Saves time and improves workflow

5. Canvas

Haley Woloshen (Product Marketing Manager at LivaNova) excels in her career because she stays well-organized and manages tasks effectively. And she has a point:

“You can grow yourself and get more output just by making sure every step is clear before even thinking about execution.”

Obsidian’s Canvas feature helps with this. It’s a visual workspace where you can arrange notes, ideas, and media freely. Instead of writing everything in a list, you can see your thoughts side by side and connect them as needed.

How I use Obsidian Canvas as a writer

• I organize content ideas before starting an article
• Visualize research and references in one place
• Create a flexible outline that can be rearranged easily
• Plan multi-step writing projects without losing track
• Link related notes and drafts for easy navigation

Obsidian Canvas helps you stay precise and organized.

6. Graph

Obsidian’s Graph View is a unique way to visualize how your notes are connected. Instead of searching through folders or scrolling endlessly, you can see relationships between topics instantly. This feature gives you a clear, interactive overview of your knowledge base.

Subhalakshmi B., a PhD student in Advertising, shared her experience:

“While researching consumer behavior in digital marketing, I used this tool, and it really helped me connect different theories and studies.”

You can use Graph View to:

• Create a note for each research paper
• Link related theories
• Visualize complex connections between different studies
• Track knowledge gaps and find missing links in research
• Organize personal knowledge for long-term projects

When dealing with a vast amount of information, it’s easy to lose track of connections. This feature helps you map out your knowledge visually, showing how everything links together, spotting patterns, and keeping your research well-organized.

7. Plugins

Sheshera Mysore, a Postdoctoral Researcher at Microsoft, shared how Obsidian’s plugins help streamline academic work.

“I use the Plugins feature mainly for four key tasks:

1. Organizing literature review & citations
2. Connecting ideas & theories
3. Structuring research notes & hypotheses
4. Writing research papers & thesis”

Obsidian’s plugin ecosystem is one of its strongest points. With a wide range of over 2,250 community-developed add-on services, users can customize their experience.

8. Vault

This is one of my favorite features. As a writer, I need all my notes, drafts, and ideas in one organized space. That’s exactly what Obsidian’s Vault helps with.

How I use Vault as a writer

I keep everything structured so I can find what I need quickly:

• Blog Ideas
• Drafts
• SEO Notes

Sometimes, I even draft full articles inside the Vault, making it easy to connect research, outlines, and edits in one place.

As a writer, I have to juggle multiple projects. I gather ideas, drafts, and notes in different places, and finding them later can be difficult. Vault helps keep everything in one place, making it easy to stay organized and access your work anytime.

9. Audio Recorder

I talked with Rachel Gam, a Video Producer and one of my community members, and she shared how Obsidian’s Audio Notes simplify her workflow.

“It helps me with three key tasks:

1. Pre-production brainstorming → Recording ideas for transitions, effects, or scene arrangements.
2. Script planning → Dictating rough script drafts instead of typing.
3. Project notes → Capturing feedback from clients or team discussions.”

Sometimes, ideas come when you least expect them. Audio Notes help you capture thoughts instantly and link them to your projects.

Who Uses Obsidian

Obsidian 1.8.8 is now available, and it has come a long way. With every update, the app becomes more polished, making it easier to manage information without feeling overwhelmed.

Obsidian 1.8.8 (early access) is now available to Catalyst members for desktop and mobile.

A few highlights:

– Improved performance for navigating large numbers of files in the file explorer
– List auto-numbering now preserves custom starting numbers
– When "Smart indent lists"…

— Obsidian (@obsdmd) February 25, 2025

Here are some of the professionals that use Obsidian.

Writers & Journalists

Ideas come at unexpected times, research gets messy, and drafts pile up. And in that case, Obsidian helps keep everything organized so you can focus on writing instead of searching for lost notes.

As a Writer, you can:

• Save ideas quickly and organize them into folders
• Link research materials to drafts for easy access
• Outline stories visually to structure plots and themes
• Keep track of multiple drafts without losing earlier versions
• Search through notes instantly instead of scrolling through documents

As a Journalist, you can:

• Take interview notes and connect them to ongoing stories
• Organize sources with backlinks for quick reference
• Use Graph View to identify patterns in investigative work
• Record quick observations with audio notes
• Track deadlines and assignments without using multiple apps

Researchers & Academics

I was a student once, so I know how overwhelming research can get. Endless papers, scattered notes, and tracking references can be a struggle. Obsidian makes it easier by organizing knowledge, keeping sources in order, and connecting ideas so nothing gets lost.

As a Researcher, you can:

• Organize literature reviews by topic or field
• Connect theories and findings to see relationships between ideas
• Use Graph View to visualize research gaps and patterns
• Keep citations and references structured for quick retrieval
• Speed up literature reviews with tools like AI research assistants

As an Academic, you can:

• Prepare lecture notes and link them to related topics
• Store ongoing research in an easy-to-find way
• Create study guides and reading lists for students
• Collaborate on projects with shared vaults
• Keep track of references for research papers

Students & Educators

Taking notes is one thing, but making sense of them is another. Obsidian helps students organize their subjects, track assignments, and connect ideas. Educators can structure lesson plans and resources in one place.

As a Student, you can:

• Store all class notes in an organized system
• Link key topics together to understand connections
• Use templates for structured note-taking
• Make mind maps to break down complex subjects
• Prepare for exams with an easy-to-search knowledge base

As an Educator, you can:

• Organize course materials in one place
• Build structured lesson plans and update them as needed
• Create and store quizzes for quick reference
• Keep track of academic research alongside teaching materials
• Develop study guides for students to review

Professionals & Knowledge Workers

If I ask, “How do you keep track of everything without feeling overwhelmed?“, what would you say?

For many professionals, managing meetings, deadlines, and notes can get chaotic. Obsidian makes it easier, especially for professionals & knowledge workers.

As a Professional, you can:

• Take meeting notes and connect them to projects
• Use Kanban boards to track tasks and deadlines
• Document workflows and processes for easy reference
• Store client details in an organized vault
• Create a personal knowledge hub to keep important information handy

As a Knowledge Worker, you can:

• Store research and insights for future projects
• Track learnings from books, articles, and studies
• Maintain a digital journal for personal or professional growth
• Link related ideas to build deeper understanding
• Keep a structured library of useful references and materials

6 Reasons To Use Obsidian

With so many note-taking apps out there, what makes Obsidian different?

It gives you more than just a place to jot down notes. You get a system to organize your thoughts, connect ideas, and structure information in a way that truly fits your workflow.

1. Privacy-First, Local Writing App

Your notes should belong to you, not some cloud service that decides how to handle your data. Obsidian stores everything locally on your device, so you have complete control.

There’s no forced online storage, no risk of your notes disappearing if a service shuts down, and no one else can access them unless you allow it. If privacy matters to you, this is a big deal.

2. Sync Notes Across Devices

Switching between devices? The Sync add-on keeps your notes consistent across your laptop, phone, and tablet. Your data stays private with full encryption, so no one else can access it. This way, you always have your notes ready without worrying about security.

3. Publish Notes and Documentation

Need to share your knowledge with others? The Publish add-on makes it easy to turn your notes into a clean, professional-looking website.

Whether you’re a researcher documenting findings, a writer creating a knowledge base, or a developer publishing guides, you can share your work without dealing with complicated web design tools. With just a few clicks, your notes can be live online.

4. Canvas for Idea Visualization

Some ideas are easier to understand through visual layouts. Canvas lets you create mind maps, organize concepts, and plan projects in a way that makes sense to you.

Instead of working with just text, you can move notes around like sticky notes on a whiteboard. It’s a great way to brainstorm, connect ideas, or break down complex topics into something more manageable.

5. Web Clipper to Capture Pages

When you come across useful articles, the Web Clipper helps you save them directly in Obsidian. You can highlight important sections, add notes, and keep everything organized. No more searching through countless browser tabs to find something you saved weeks ago.

6. Customization with Plugins & API

Everyone works differently, and Obsidian reflects that. With its plugin system and API, you can customize it to match your workflow.

Need better task tracking? There’s a plugin for that. Want automatic backups or a specific way to organize notes? You can add those too.

4 Obsidian Use Cases

Janko Tomšič, VP of Engineering at d.Labs and an experienced Obsidian user, has integrated Obsidian into his daily workflow in multiple ways.

He uses it as a scratchpad to capture thoughts, track one-on-one conversations, and store Excalidraw diagrams in an organized manner. Beyond these, Obsidian serves countless other purposes depending on individual needs.

Let’s take a deeper look at its many use cases.

Writers & Journalists

The most difficult part for writers and journalists is staying on track. Between research, drafts, and deadlines, it’s easy to lose focus. Obsidian helps by keeping everything in one place.

With Graph View, you can see how ideas connect. AI-powered plugins assist with summarizing notes and refining content, so nothing slips through the cracks.

For example: A screenwriter misrepresenting multiple storylines can use the Canvas feature to visually arrange scenes, track character development, and structure the narrative without losing the bigger picture.

Researchers & Academics

Research involves piles of papers, endless references, and scattered notes. Obsidian keeps everything connected with Obsidian Sync and Obsidian Publish. You can organize sources, track ideas, and never lose important insights.

For example: A scientist studying climate change can pull in real-time data using Plugins & API Customization, making it easier to analyze trends and update findings.

Students & Educators

For students, keeping up with coursework and assignments is a challenge. Obsidian makes it easier with Task Management and Version History and Backups to track progress and revisions. Educators can share materials using Custom Domain Support.

For example: A Ph.D. student working on a thesis can use Interlinked Notes & Backlinks to connect research papers and stay on top of different sections.

Professionals & Knowledge Workers

Between meetings, projects, and deadlines, professionals need a way to keep everything in order. Obsidian Sync ensures your notes are always accessible, while Real-time Collaboration makes teamwork seamless.

For example: A software engineer can document code snippets, track API references, and keep troubleshooting notes organized with Markdown-Based Note-Taking.

Obsidian Pricing

Obsidian has a pricing model that suits different needs. If you need a free option to maintain your personal knowledge base or a paid plan with advanced features for work, there’s something for everyone.

In the table below, I’ve compared each of Obsidian’s pricing plans based on their offerings.

Feature	Free	Catalyst	Commercial	Sync	Publish
Local Note Storage	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Plugins & Community Themes	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Version History & Backups	❌	❌	❌	✅	❌
Obsidian Sync (End-to-End Encryption)	❌	❌	❌	✅	❌
Obsidian Publish (Custom Domains & Password Protection)	❌	❌	❌	❌	✅
Beta Versions (Early Access)	❌	✅	❌	❌	❌
Priority Email Support	❌	❌	✅	✅	✅
Price	$0	$25 (One-time payment)	$50/user/year	$4/user/month	$8/site/month

Obsidian Mobile

Obsidian Mobile offers a seamless Markdown-based note-taking experience on mobile devices (iOS and Android) for free. It includes core plugins, a customizable toolbar, and fast performance, making it easy to capture and organize ideas on the go.

With Obsidian Sync, users can keep their notes updated across devices. End-to-end encryption ensures privacy, while offline storage allows access without the internet. It’s a flexible solution for professionals, students, and researchers who need secure, interlinked notes & backlinks anywhere.

Obsidian Support

Obsidian has an active community and support system to assist users. The Obsidian Forum and Discord server offer discussions, troubleshooting, and feature requests. The Official Obsidian Help Documentation provides detailed guides on setup, plugins, and customization.

Developers and power users contribute to the plugin support community, expanding functionality with AI-powered plugins and automation tools. From beginners to advanced users, plenty of resources are available to improve the knowledge management experience.

Obsidian Alternatives

Obsidian is a powerful Markdown-based note-taking tool, but it’s not the only option. Depending on your needs, collaboration, privacy, knowledge mapping, or cloud access. You might find other tools more suitable. As an example, Notion is a great project management solution and offers real-time collaboration.

Let’s compare Obsidian with some popular alternatives (Notion, Roam Research, Logseq, Evernote) to help you make an informed choice.

Who Should Use Obsidian?

Obsidian is an ideal note-taking tool for the following audiences:

• Writers and researchers benefit from its Markdown support, bidirectional link support, and graph view; making it easy to organize notes and track ideas over time.
• Privacy-focused individuals who prefer offline storage and full data control will find Obsidian’s local-first approach more secure than cloud-dependent alternatives.
• Users looking for a free knowledge visualization tool can use Obsidian’s core plugins and graph-based note organization at no cost.

Who Shouldn’t Use Obsidian?

While Obsidian is a powerful Markdown-based note-taking tool, it may not be the best fit for everyone. If you fall into the following categories, you should consider Obsidian’s alternatives.

• Teams needing real-time collaboration may find Obsidian limiting since it lacks live editing. Tools like Notion or Google Docs offer better features for shared workspaces.
• Users who prefer cloud-based note-taking might find alternatives like note-taking apps more convenient, as they offer automatic syncing without additional setup.
• Individuals looking for AI-powered note summarization may need a different solution. AI note-taking tools provide built-in automation for organizing and summarizing notes, which is missing with Obsidian.

Obsidian Verdict

If you’re someone who values privacy, flexibility, and complete control over your notes, I’d highly recommend Obsidian because it is a powerful, Markdown-based workspace with comprehensive features that let you structure ideas the way you want.

What I love about Obsidian is its privacy-first approach. Your notes stay on your device, meaning no forced cloud storage. Plus, the customization options are endless and it offers flexible pricing plans.

But if you need real-time collaboration or built-in AI note-taking features, it isn’t the best fit. Due to these reasons, I wouldn’t recommend Obsidian for complex project management needs.

Overall, Obsidian earns the Geekflare Value Award for its affordable pricing, exceptional performance, feature-rich functionality, and seamless user experience. It also offers robust integrations, ease of use, and high reliability, making it an ideal choice for both beginners and professionals.

So, if you’re a writer, researcher, or someone who thrives on structured, interconnected notes, Obsidian is worth trying!