Obsidian vs TiddlyWiki

Obsidian

• People who want their notes as plain Markdown files they control
• Building a linked personal knowledge base that works offline
• Users who like to customize an app with plugins and themes

TiddlyWiki

• People who want their notes in a file they fully control
• Tinkerers who customize a notebook with plugins, macros and filters
• Publishing a small wiki or documentation site as static HTML

Obsidian

• There is no web app; Obsidian runs as desktop and mobile apps only.
• Obsidian Sync is a paid add-on, from $4 per user / month billed annually.
• Sync Standard covers 1 vault with 1 GB of storage and a 5 MB file size limit; larger limits need Sync Plus.
• Publishing notes to the web is billed separately from Sync, at $8 per site / month on annual billing.

TiddlyWiki

• The browser's File / Save menu does not save changes; a saving method such as Tiddlyhost or TiddlyDesktop has to be chosen first.
• Notes are written in TiddlyWiki's own WikiText markup; Markdown is available only through an official plugin.
• The iOS and Android apps the documentation points to, Quine and Tiddloid, are published independently of the project.
• The Node.js server does not pick up tiddler files edited on disk while it runs; it has to be restarted.

Obsidian

Local Markdown files

Notes are saved on your device as plain-text Markdown files, so they stay readable in other editors and available offline.

Links and graph view

Notes link to one another, and a graph view draws the relationships between them so related ideas are easier to find.

Canvas

An infinite board for laying out notes, diagrams and research side by side while brainstorming.

Plugins and themes

Thousands of community plugins and themes, built on an open API, change how the app looks and behaves.

Sync (paid add-on)

End-to-end encrypted sync across devices with version history and shared vaults that update in real time for a team.

Publish and Web Clipper

Publish turns notes into a hosted site, priced per site. The Web Clipper extension saves web pages from Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge.

TiddlyWiki

Single-file notebook

The whole wiki, content and code, lives in one HTML file that opens in a web browser with no install and no external dependencies.

Tiddlers, links and tags

Notes are small units called tiddlers, connected by links and tags. Each tiddler's info panel lists its backlinks and the tiddlers tagged with it.

WikiText and filters

WikiText covers formatting, links, transclusions and macros, and filters build lists of tiddlers by tag or field, such as a glossary.

Plugins

Optional plugins install from the official library or from community sites. The official set includes Markdown, KaTeX, CodeMirror and Highlight plugins.

Built-in encryption

A single-file wiki can be given a password and saved with AES 256-bit encryption, so the file asks for the password before showing any content.

Node.js server edition

Running on Node.js stores each tiddler as a separate file and lets any modern browser, including those on phones and tablets, edit the wiki.

Obsidian

• Obsidian app$0

  The full app with local Markdown notes, links, graph, canvas, plugins and themes. No account needed.

• Sync Standard$4

  per user / month, billed annually ($5 billed monthly)

  Encrypted sync for 1 vault with 1 GB of storage, a 5 MB maximum file size and 1 month of version history.

• Sync Plus$8

  per user / month, billed annually ($10 billed monthly)

  Sync for 10 vaults with 10 GB of storage (upgradable to 100 GB), 200 MB maximum file size and 12 months of version history.

• Publish$8

  per site / month, billed annually ($10 billed monthly)

  Publishes selected notes as a website with a custom domain, password protection, graph view and full-text search.

• Catalyst$25

  one-time payment

  Optional supporter license with early access to beta versions, community badges and exclusive channels.

• Commercial$50

  per user / year

  Optional license for organizations that want to support development. It is not required to use Obsidian at work.

TiddlyWiki

• TiddlyWiki$0

  The full notebook as a single HTML file, in the TiddlyDesktop app or on a Node.js server. No account is needed.

Obsidian

• Annual discount

  20% lower price with annual billing

  Sync is $4 per user / month billed annually versus $5 billed monthly, and Publish is $8 per site versus $10: a 20% saving on each.

• Education

  40% off Sync and Publish for students and faculty

  Students and faculty members of schools and universities can apply for 40% off Obsidian Sync and Publish from their account dashboard, using a school email.

• Nonprofit

  40% off Sync and Publish for nonprofits

  People who run or work at a nonprofit organization can apply for 40% off Obsidian Sync and Publish, using their organization email.

TiddlyWiki

No public discounts listed.