Obsidian is a local-first, markdown-based note-taking app for individual knowledge management, while Confluence is a cloud-based team collaboration wiki designed for organizational documentation and shared workspaces. Obsidian prioritizes privacy and offline access; Confluence prioritizes team collaboration and centralized knowledge.
Obsidian vs Confluence — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Local-first markdown editor with bidirectional linking, plugins, and complete data ownership.
Enterprise team collaboration and documentation platform by Atlassian.
Deployment Model. Primary Use Case. Monthly Cost (Single User). Real-time Team Collaboration Features. Data Privacy & Ownership. Learning Curve. Integration Ecosystem
Choose Obsidian if you're an individual, researcher, student, or privacy-conscious professional who values local ownership, offline access, and customization for personal knowledge management. Choose Confluence if you're part of a team that needs centralized documentation, real-time collaboration, permission management, and integration with enterprise tools like Jira and Slack.
Obsidian: Local device | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Free (sync $8-10/mo optional) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Minimal (plugin-dependent) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Complete (100%) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Basic (via plugins only) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 8/10 (gentle) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: No (plugin-based only) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 1000+ (community plugins) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: ~2.5M (estimated) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Via plugins only | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Limited (HTTP API beta) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Bootstrapped (private) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: $0 (not designed for teams) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Full (100% offline functionality) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: No native support | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 9 (advanced graph visualization) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 5-15 (markdown basics) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 7 (Obsidian Mobile, good) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Markdown + Attachments (fully portable) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 3+ million active users | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Local Markdown files | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Plain Markdown | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Native Markdown (always portable) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: No (free but proprietary) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: No (single-player by default) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Obsidian Sync ($4/mo) or iCloud/Dropbox | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Via Outliner plugin | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Yes (via links) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Yes — link graph | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Via Dataview plugin | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Yes (community + core) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Via Spaced Repetition plugin | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 1,500+ community plugins | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Via plugins (Copilot, Smart Connections) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Obsidian Sync $4/mo | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: N/A (no team plan) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Free (with optional $50 Sync) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 5 (Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 50+ official + 100+ community | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 10-15 minutes | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Standard markdown (high portability) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 70% feature parity (plugins limited on mobile) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Unlimited (device storage dependent) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Free (Sync $8/month optional) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: $0-96/year (depending on add-ons) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 1,000+ plugins | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Standard Markdown (.md files) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 5M+ downloads on mobile alone | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Built-in graph with plugin enhancements | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: $0/month (free tier) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: $0/year (or $120 with Obsidian Sync) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Limited to manual sharing; no native multi-user editing | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Local device or user-chosen cloud storage | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: iOS and Android available (limited features on free tier) | Confluence: iOS and Android native
Obsidian: Unlimited (fully free tier) | Confluence: 30 days cloud (unlimited self-hosted)
Obsidian: $0–$10/month (optional sync subscription) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: $0 (free core) or $120/year (with Sync) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 100% fully functional offline | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: ~1.5 million (2024 estimate) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 6 (Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Complete local ownership; markdown files on your device | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: $0 (free) or $49 one-time | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: $49 one-time lifetime | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: 1-2 (shared vault via third-party) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: Partial (Dataview plugin, limited querying) | Confluence: N/A
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Yes, limited free plan
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: $10.44 (Standard tier)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: $22.50+ (Premium tier)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: $54,000+ (Data Center, 1,000 users)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 5/10 (structured)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 9/10 (advanced)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 10/10 (native)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Limited (no native support)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 150+ native integrations
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Limited (outdated free tier)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: No (requires Jira)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, GDPR
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 3 levels (space, page, content)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 10+ (Standard plan 2026)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Plugin-based (limited)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Standard inline preview
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Basic content suggestions
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 20+ (Jira, Bitbucket, Confluence Cloud)
Learning Curve (1-5 scale, lower is better)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 4 (steep, complex UI)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Documentation & Knowledge Management
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Not native (requires Jira integration)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Comprehensive with flexible page layouts and macros
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Advanced full-text search across all documentation
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Improved inline macro rendering in 2026 update
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Any size (1+)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Seamless bidirectional linking with Jira and Atlassian tools
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Limited (via plugins)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Standard (SOC2, GDPR)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: $5.75/user/month
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: $17,250 (at $5.75/user)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 1,000+ (Atlassian Marketplace)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Add-on (paid extra)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 4-8 weeks for enterprise
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 250 MB per file (Cloud)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 4 levels (page, space, column, project)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Bidirectional with app
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 150+ REST endpoints
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: No, requires integrations
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Native bi-directional sync
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 1000+ add-ons
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Cloud, Server, and Data Center
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Up to 10 users
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Limited automation rules
Starting Price per User/Month (Annual Billing)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 10 users for 1 space
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Yes (Data Center, Server)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Native, two-way sync
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Basic (limited relations, no rollups)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: Unlimited for Cloud, varies for Server
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 2.1s (typical page with macros)
Obsidian: N/A | Confluence: 1000+ apps (Atlassian Marketplace)
How to choose between Obsidian and Confluence
Obsidian vs Confluence — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Obsidian vs Confluence. Contains 144 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Obsidian vs Confluence — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Obsidian vs Confluence.
Can Obsidian and Confluence work together?
Yes. Teams often use Obsidian for personal research and drafting, then publish refined content to Confluence for team distribution. Community plugins (like Obsidian Web Clipper) can pull from Confluence, and API tools can sync content between them, though this requires manual setup.
Obsidian is designed for individual use, though small teams can work around this by sharing folders via Git or cloud storage (Dropbox, OneDrive). However, this introduces merge conflicts and lacks real-time collaboration. For teams, Confluence is purpose-built and easier.
How do Obsidian and Confluence handle data privacy differently?
Obsidian stores data locally on your device by default—you own your files and can choose encryption. Confluence data lives on Atlassian's servers; you trust Atlassian's security but have no direct control. GDPR-compliant deployments exist for both, but Obsidian offers more control.
Which is better for knowledge management—personal research?
Obsidian excels for personal knowledge management due to its bidirectional linking, graph view, and open-ended customization. Confluence is oriented toward team documentation and structured wikis. For solo researchers, Obsidian's flexibility and privacy make it superior.
What's the total cost difference for a 50-person organization?
For 50 users over 1 year: Obsidian costs ~$655 (licenses + Sync), while Confluence costs $3,000-6,000 at $5-10 per user/month. Obsidian is 78-90% cheaper, but Confluence includes real-time collaboration, governance, and integrations that justify cost for enterprises.
How to Choose Between Obsidian and Confluence
Deployment Model: Obsidian has Local-first, client-side storage with optional sync, while Confluence has Cloud-hosted SaaS with centralized servers.
Primary Use Case: Obsidian has Personal knowledge management and note-taking, while Confluence has Enterprise team documentation and collaboration.
Monthly Cost (Single User): Obsidian has $0 (free) or $10.99/month (Obsidian Sync), while Confluence has $5-10 per user/month (team plans start at $5).
Consider: Real-time Team Collaboration Features
Real-time Team Collaboration Features: Obsidian has Limited (no native real-time co-editing), while Confluence has Advanced (real-time editing, comments, @mentions, permissions).
Data Privacy & Ownership: Obsidian has Full local control, encrypted end-to-end sync option, open vault format, while Confluence has Data stored on Atlassian servers, subject to enterprise policies.
Learning Curve: Obsidian has Moderate (markdown, wikilinks, YAML frontmatter required), while Confluence has Low (intuitive WYSIWYG editor, similar to Google Docs).
Integration Ecosystem: Obsidian has 1000+ community plugins and themes available, while Confluence has 500+ native integrations with Atlassian and enterprise tools.