FUTO Notes vs Joplin

Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.

FUTO Notes

Local-first Markdown notes with self-hosted encrypted sync

Free

Joplin

Open source Markdown notes with sync through a service you choose

Free plan · from €2.40/mo

Where they differ

FUTO Notes is free. Joplin starts at 2.40€ per month, billed yearly at 28.69€ (Joplin Cloud Basic).
Only Joplin lists a web app.
Only Joplin lists a browser extension.
Joplin also covers web clipper.

In commonFree planmacOSWindowsLinuxiOSAndroidOpen sourceSelf-hostableWorks offlineEnd-to-end encryptedNotesMarkdown

	FUTO Notes	Joplin
Pricing	Free	Free plan
Starts at	Free	2.40€ per month, billed yearly at 28.69€ (Joplin Cloud Basic)
Free plan	Every feature is free. The FAQ says version 1.8.0 has no paid tier, no license key and no in-app purchase, and no account is needed.	The Joplin apps are free and open source, and can sync through your own Dropbox, OneDrive, Nextcloud, WebDAV or S3 storage. Joplin Cloud is an optional paid service.
Free trial	None listed	14-day free trial of the paid plans; cancel during the trial and you are not charged.
Web
macOS
Windows
Linux
iOS
Android
Browser extension
Made by	FUTO	Laurent Cozic
Price read from	notes.futo.tech	joplinapp.org
Checked	Oct 9, 2026	Oct 5, 2026

FUTO Notes

Joplin

FUTO Notes

Syncing between devices needs a server you run yourself; FUTO does not offer a hosted sync service today.
Sync carries Markdown notes and images only. PDFs and other files stay on the device they are on.
The source is public, but the licenses are not OSI-approved: modifying and redistributing the code is limited to non-commercial use.
The download page labels the builds a beta release, and the app is available in English and Simplified Chinese only.

Joplin

End-to-end encryption is not on by default, and a forgotten encryption password cannot be recovered.
Joplin Cloud and Joplin Server Business prices are listed in euros.
On Joplin Cloud Basic you can join a shared notebook but not share your own; that and Email to Note need Pro.
The browser-based web app and Joplin Cloud AI (beta) are available only with a Joplin Cloud subscription.

FUTO Notes

Plain Markdown files: Each note is one .md file named after its title, and each folder in the app is a real folder on disk. There is no database, so any text editor can open the notes.
Markdown styled as you type: Headings, bold text, checklists, tables, wikilinks and fenced code are formatted while you write, with the syntax fading out of view.
Apps for five platforms: Native iOS and Android apps use the same editor as the desktop app, which is built on Tauri for Linux, macOS and Windows. Search runs on the device.
End-to-end encrypted sync: Notes and images are encrypted on the device with AES-256-GCM before upload, along with file names and folder paths. The server stores only ciphertext.
Self-hosted sync server: Sync goes through a server you run yourself, installed with one command using Docker. The docs cover reverse proxies, backups and storage growth.
Works with an Obsidian vault: On desktop the app opens an Obsidian vault folder where it is. Notes, folders, wikilinks, tags, checklists and tables carry over; embeds, aliases and plugins do not.

Joplin

Markdown notes and to-dos: Notes and to-dos are written in Markdown or a rich text editor, organized into notebooks with tags, and found through full-text search on every platform.
Multimedia, math and diagrams: Notes can hold images, videos, PDFs and audio files, and math expressions and diagrams are created inside the app.
Sync through a service you choose: Notes synchronize through Joplin Cloud, Dropbox, OneDrive, Nextcloud, WebDAV, S3 or the local file system, and switching from one service to another is supported.
End-to-end encryption: Synchronized notes can be end-to-end encrypted so that the sync service cannot read them. It is off by default and has to be enabled on one device first.
Web clipper: Browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox save web pages and screenshots as notes.
Plugins, themes and publishing: Plugins, custom themes and an extension API change how the app works. With Joplin Cloud, a note can be published to a URL and notebooks shared for collaboration.

FUTO Notes

FUTO Notes$0
The full app on iOS, Android, Linux, macOS and Windows, plus the sync server to host yourself.

Joplin

Joplin appFree
The open source desktop, mobile and terminal apps, with sync through third-party storage and optional end-to-end encryption.
Joplin Cloud Basic2.99€
per month, or 28.69€ per year (2.40€ / month)
2 GB of storage and 10 MB per note or attachment, with note publishing, the web app and Joplin Cloud AI (beta). Can join shared notebooks only.
Joplin Cloud Pro5.99€
per month, or 57.48€ per year (4.79€ / month)
30 GB of storage and 200 MB per note or attachment, plus sharing notebooks, Email to Note and a custom publishing banner.
Joplin Cloud Pro 100 GB9.99€
per month, or 95.88€ per year (7.99€ / month)
Everything in Pro with 100 GB of storage space.
Joplin Cloud Teams7.99€
per user / month, or 80.28€ per user / year; minimum 2 users
50 GB of storage, with multi-user management, consolidated billing, share permissions and priority support.
Joplin Server Business3.33€
per user / month for 2-10 users, billed annually (40.00€)
Self-hosted server with source code available and no storage or attachment limits. 2.92€ per user for 11-50 users, 2.50€ beyond that.

FUTO Notes

No public discounts listed.

Joplin

Annual discount
Roughly 16% to 20% lower price when paying yearly
Basic works out to 2.40€ a month on yearly billing against 2.99€ monthly, Pro to 4.79€ against 5.99€, and Teams to 6.69€ per user against 7.99€.
Education
50% Education Discount for students and teachers
Students and teachers who write in from a school or university email address get 50% off Joplin Cloud for a year, renewable for as long as they remain in education.