Obsidian vs Zettlr
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Obsidian
Markdown note-taking app that keeps your files on your device
Where they differ
- Obsidian starts at $4 per user / month, billed annually (Sync Standard add-on). Zettlr is free.
- Only Obsidian lists iOS and Android apps.
- Only Obsidian lists a browser extension.
- Obsidian is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- Zettlr is open source, according to its own site.
- Obsidian also covers notes and whiteboard.
- Zettlr also covers citations and long-form writing.
At a glance
| Obsidian | Zettlr | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free |
| Starts at | $4 per user / month, billed annually (Sync Standard add-on) | Free |
| Free plan | The app is free without limits on desktop and mobile, with no sign-up, and a commercial license is not required for work use. Sync and Publish are optional paid add-ons. | The whole app is free and open source, with no paid tier. Development is funded by voluntary donations through Patreon, PayPal, GitHub Sponsors or Ko-fi. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Dynalist Inc. | Hendrik Erz |
| Price read from | obsidian.md | zettlr.com |
| Checked | Oct 4, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
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
Zettlr
- Researchers and students writing papers or theses in Markdown
- Zotero users who want citations inside a plain-text editor
- People who keep a Zettelkasten of linked notes
- Writers who want their files kept on their own computer
Worth knowing
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.
Zettlr
- Desktop only: downloads are listed for macOS 12 or newer, Windows 10 or newer and Linux, with no mobile or web app.
- It has no cloud service of its own: files stay on the computer, with no built-in cloud synchronization.
- Citations draw on a library kept in an external reference manager such as Zotero, JabRef or Juris-M.
- Grammar and style checking beyond the spellchecker relies on connecting LanguageTool.
Key features
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.
Zettlr
- Citations from a reference manager
- Loads a library from Zotero, JabRef or Juris-M, previews citations in the text and formats them in any of more than 9,000 citation styles.
- Export profiles with Pandoc
- A profile pairs an export format with a template, so a paper can be exported for a journal or conference in one click. Beamer, reveal.js and PowerPoint slides are supported too.
- Zettelkasten tools
- Supports note IDs, wiki-style links between notes, related files and a graph view for building a personal knowledge base.
- Adjustable Markdown rendering
- The editor can show anything from raw Markdown to rich text. LaTeX math and Mermaid charts render inline, and the look can be changed with custom CSS.
- Spelling, grammar and style checks
- Includes a spellchecker and a Markdown linter, and can connect to LanguageTool for grammar and style checking.
- Projects, snippets and statistics
- Project support groups the files of a longer work, snippets insert reusable text with variables and tab stops, and writing statistics track progress.
Plans
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.
Zettlr
Free$0
The full editor for Windows, macOS and Linux, free and open source, with optional donations to support development.
Ways to pay less
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.
Zettlr
No public discounts listed.
