Allume vs Heptabase

Allume

• iPad and Mac users who mix handwriting, text and files on one canvas
• Reading and research: PDFs can be annotated and excerpted onto boards
• Solo thinkers who want their data stored locally and usable offline
• Projects that outgrow a single board and need boards inside boards

Heptabase

• Students and researchers learning complex topics from PDFs and videos
• Visual thinkers who like to arrange notes on a canvas
• Readers who sync highlights from Readwise or sources from Zotero

Allume

• Allume is offered only for Mac, iPad and iPhone; the vendor lists no web, Windows or Android version.
• The Free plan has a small board size and allows 2 workspaces, 100 cards per workspace and 1 other collaborator per workspace.
• The vendor deliberately leaves out drawing brushes, complex text formatting, and endless canvas zooming or rotation.
• Through Setapp the app is limited to 5 collaborators and needs a Mac, against unlimited collaborators on the Unlimited plan.

Heptabase

• There is no free plan to sign up for; a subscription is required after the 7-day trial.
• Pro includes 100 AI credits a month and only Gemini models; GPT, Claude and AI Tutor need Premium.
• Heptabase says it does not currently offer educational, nonprofit or NGO discounts.
• People invited as free collaborators can edit shared whiteboards and cards but get no journal, tasks or AI features.

Allume

Nested boards

Each board works like a whiteboard that can contain further whiteboards, so an idea or project can grow in place and be organized later rather than up front.

Ink, text and cards on one canvas

Handwriting, typed notes, images, videos, PDFs, web links and other files sit together on a board, and connections can be drawn between cards.

Linked cards and PDF excerpts

A linked card references the same board from several places. PDFs can be read and annotated, and excerpts pull part of a PDF or image onto a board while keeping its source.

Shared workspaces

Collaborators added to a workspace get live cursors, comments, following and templates. The Free plan allows 1 other collaborator per workspace.

Local-first sync

Data is kept locally and synced between Mac, iPad and iPhone. The vendor lists an always-online requirement among the things the app does not have.

Command line app and MCP

Version 4.0 adds a command line app to search, export and add content, plus an MCP connection for AI tools such as Claude and ChatGPT. Both are switched off by default.

Heptabase

Whiteboards and cards

Each note is a card, and cards are laid out on whiteboards to work through a topic visually.

Block editor with bi-directional links

Cards are written in a block-based editor with slash commands and can link to each other in both directions.

PDF highlights and source Q&A

Highlight PDFs in several colors and ask AI to explain PDFs, YouTube videos, notes and journal entries. Unlimited PDF uploads and OCR parsing need Premium.

AI agent and AI Tutor

An AI agent helps take notes and organize knowledge, drawing on monthly AI credits. AI Tutor, which runs structured learning sessions, is part of Premium.

Daily journal

A journal entry for each day sits alongside a calendar and to-dos.

Offline access and collaboration

Notes and files stay available without an internet connection, and friends or teammates can be invited to collaborate in real time for free.

Allume

• Free$0

  Small board size, 2 workspaces, 100 cards per workspace, 1 other collaborator per workspace and community support.

• Unlimited$9.99

  per month, or $99.99 per year

  Huge board size, unlimited workspaces, cards and collaborators, and priority email support.

• Setapp$14.99

  per month, through a Setapp subscription

  Huge board size, unlimited workspaces and cards, and 5 collaborators. A Mac is required for Setapp; iPad and iPhone are optional.

Heptabase

• Pro$8.99

  per month, billed yearly ($11.99 billed monthly)

  Unlimited notes, whiteboards, tags and collaborator invites, 100 AI credits a month and an AI agent limited to Gemini models.

• Premium$17.99

  per month, billed yearly ($23.99 billed monthly)

  Everything in Pro, plus unlimited PDF uploads and OCR parsing, GPT and Claude models, AI Tutor and 1,800 AI credits a month.

• Premium+$53.99

  per month, billed yearly ($71.99 billed monthly)

  Everything in Premium, with 8,100 AI credits a month and a 33% discount on AI credits.

Allume

• Annual discount

  About 17% less on the yearly plan

  Unlimited is $99.99 a year or $9.99 a month. Twelve monthly payments come to $119.88, so paying yearly works out about 17% cheaper.

• Education

  Education discount on request

  The pricing section says students and teachers can email Allume for an education discount. The size of the discount is not published.

Heptabase

• Annual discount

  Save 25% with yearly billing

  Heptabase's pricing page marks yearly billing as 25% cheaper: Pro is $107.88 a year instead of $11.99 a month, and Premium is $215.88 instead of $23.99 a month.