Roam Research specializes in bidirectional linking with graph databases optimized for networked thinking, while Obsidian prioritizes local-first storage with offline access and a broader plugin ecosystem. Roam is cloud-based with a $15/month subscription; Obsidian is one-time $50 for Obsidian Sync optional.
Roam Research vs Obsidian — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Networked note-taking tool designed for bidirectional linking, knowledge graphs, and non-linear thinking with emphasis on daily notes.
Local-first markdown note-taking app with powerful plugin ecosystem and complete offline functionality.
Data Storage Model. Monthly Subscription Cost. Offline Access. Community Plugins Available. Graph Visualization Quality. Learning Curve (hours to proficiency). Mobile App Quality
Choose Roam Research if you prioritize networked thinking with a powerful native bidirectional graph and don't mind paying for cloud-based reliability and collaboration features. Choose Obsidian if you want complete control over your data, need full offline access, prefer a one-time purchase model, and value extensive plugin customization.
Roam Research: $15/month | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 44 native tools plus MCP servers | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Multi-provider LLM support with AI agents | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Unlimited collaborators | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Bidirectional linking and networked graphs | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Researchers, knowledge workers, academics | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: API access with scheduled jobs coming soon | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Unlimited | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Yes, full API | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: No native support | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Basic views | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Advanced backlink queries | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Web (primary), limited iOS/Android | Obsidian: 5 (Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android)
Roam Research: Unlimited with real-time editing | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: $165/year | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: None (paid only) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 40-50 hours | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Not available | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Native with graph visualization | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 60% of desktop features | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Cloud-based (Roam servers) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Closed-source proprietary | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Datalog with RoamScript | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Unlimited (cloud-based) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: JSON, Markdown, EDN | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 40-60 hours for advanced use | Obsidian: 8-12 hours
Roam Research: $15/month | Obsidian: Free (Sync $8/month optional)
Roam Research: $180/year | Obsidian: $0-96/year (depending on add-ons)
Roam Research: ~150 plugins | Obsidian: 1000+ community plugins
Roam Research: Native multi-user editing | Obsidian: Requires paid Obsidian Sync ($4/month) or workarounds
Roam Research: Proprietary JSON (Edn format) | Obsidian: Standard Markdown (.md files)
Roam Research: 1.5M+ registered (2024) | Obsidian: 5M+ downloads on mobile alone
Roam Research: Built-in interactive graph with density indicators | Obsidian: Built-in graph with plugin enhancements
Roam Research: $15 | Obsidian: $0 (completely free)
Roam Research: $180/year | Obsidian: $0/year (or $120 with Obsidian Sync)
Roam Research: Roam cloud servers (third-party controlled) | Obsidian: Local device or user-chosen cloud storage
Roam Research: 30 days free trial | Obsidian: Unlimited (fully free tier)
Roam Research: $180/year (only paid option) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 2 (Web, limited mobile beta) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Not available (no free tier) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Basic code block support | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: None (limited daily notes only) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: AI assistant for summaries | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: $15/month | Obsidian: $0 (optional $10/month Sync)
Roam Research: $180/year | Obsidian: $0 (free core) or $120/year (with Sync)
Roam Research: ~50 official extensions | Obsidian: 900+ plugins
Roam Research: ~5% read-only mode only | Obsidian: 100% (fully offline)
Roam Research: ~0.2 million (2024 estimate) | Obsidian: ~1.5 million (2024 estimate)
Roam Research: 3 (Web, iOS, Android) | Obsidian: 6 (Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web)
Roam Research: Cloud-hosted; Roam Inc. retains server access | Obsidian: Complete local ownership; markdown files on your device
Roam Research: No free tier | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Not supported; 1 user per workspace | Obsidian: Limited to manual sharing; no native multi-user editing
Roam Research: Automatic backlinks with graph visualization | Obsidian: 9 (advanced graph visualization)
Roam Research: Web-only; no native apps | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 50-100 community templates | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 15-20 hours (graph mastery required) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: API + JSON + Markdown + open data model | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: $165/year | Obsidian: Free (with optional $50 Sync)
Roam Research: Web (all browsers), Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Obsidian: Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web
Roam Research: Limited (web-dependent) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 45 minutes | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 4+ formats (Markdown, JSON, EDN, PDF) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: ~150,000+ | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 500+ via Roam Marketplace | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 2-4 hours to proficiency | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: iOS and Android apps available | Obsidian: iOS and Android available (limited features on free tier)
Roam Research: Markdown export available but limited | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: $15.00/month | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 6-12 weeks | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Yes, automatic | Obsidian: N/A
Maximum Document Size (Stable Performance)
Roam Research: 50,000 words | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Web + limited mobile features | Obsidian: 7 (Obsidian Mobile, good)
Roam Research: Yes, interactive graph view | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Yes (DataScript/Clojure) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 0 (web-only; third-party clients available) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Native & automatic backlinks | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Limited (web-based only) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 8-12 weeks | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 2-4 seconds | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: No native assistant (requires integration) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Limited offline functionality | Obsidian: Full offline functionality
Roam Research: Advanced DataLog queries with filtering/sorting | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Limited (sync only) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: $15/month (paid) or free (limited) | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 2-3 hours | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: 20-30 integrations | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Core feature with graph visualization | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Collections/blocks only; no structured databases | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Handles 5,000+ notes smoothly | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: Interactive graph showing all connections | Obsidian: N/A
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Local device
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Free (sync $8-10/mo optional)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: $0 (free)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Minimal (plugin-dependent)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Complete (100%)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Basic (via plugins only)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 8/10 (gentle)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: No (plugin-based only)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 1000+ (community plugins)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: ~2.5M (estimated)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Via plugins only
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Limited (HTTP API beta)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Bootstrapped (private)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: $0 (not designed for teams)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 5-15 (markdown basics)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Markdown + Attachments (fully portable)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 3+ million active users
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Local Markdown files
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Plain Markdown
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Native Markdown (always portable)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: No (free but proprietary)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: No (single-player by default)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Obsidian Sync ($4/mo) or iCloud/Dropbox
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Via Outliner plugin
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Yes (via links)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Yes — link graph
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Via Dataview plugin
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Yes (community + core)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Via plugins
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Via Spaced Repetition plugin
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 1,500+ community plugins
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Via plugins (Copilot, Smart Connections)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Obsidian Sync $4/mo
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: N/A (no team plan)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 10-15 minutes
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Open Markdown (plain text, portable)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 70% feature parity (plugins limited on mobile)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Unlimited (device storage dependent)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: $0 (with optional Obsidian Sync at $4/month)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Unlimited (depends on device storage)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 30-60 minutes (vault creation, plugin configuration)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Local files + optional encrypted Obsidian Sync (end-to-end)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 1.5+ million users (as of 2025)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: $0 (free) or $49 one-time
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: $49 one-time lifetime
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 1-2 (shared vault via third-party)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Partial (Dataview plugin, limited querying)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: No, requires plugin (Good.Links or similar)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Manual or third-party tools only
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: $50/year (Obsidian Sync)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 1 (local-first design)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: 50-200ms (instant, local)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: Unlimited (local storage)
Roam Research: N/A | Obsidian: No (community plugins only)
How to choose between Roam Research and Obsidian
Roam Research vs Obsidian — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Roam Research vs Obsidian. Contains 168 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Roam Research vs Obsidian — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Roam Research vs Obsidian.
Can I use Roam Research or Obsidian offline?
Roam Research requires an internet connection for full functionality since it's cloud-based; offline access is extremely limited. Obsidian works completely offline—all notes are stored locally on your device, and you can access and edit them without any internet connection. This is a major advantage for Obsidian if you need reliable offline access.
Obsidian is significantly cheaper. Roam Research costs $180/year with no option to avoid the subscription. Obsidian is free forever for the core app; you only pay if you want Sync ($10/month = $120/year) for cloud backup or Publish ($10/month) for web publishing. You can use Obsidian indefinitely without spending anything.
Roam Research is built for collaboration with native real-time multi-user editing and shared workspaces. Obsidian lacks built-in collaboration; you'd need to use third-party tools like Git, Google Drive, or manual file syncing. If team collaboration is essential, Roam Research is the clear choice.
Can I export my data if I stop using either app?
Both allow data export, but Obsidian has a major advantage. Obsidian stores notes as plain Markdown files on your device, so you own your data outright and can use them anywhere. Roam exports to Markdown but your primary data is in their cloud; exporting is a one-time process. Obsidian's format is more future-proof.
Obsidian offers native iOS and Android apps with full feature parity to the desktop version, allowing you to write and edit notes anywhere. Roam has only a web-based mobile interface that's limited and less functional. If mobile note-taking is important, Obsidian is significantly better.
How to Choose Between Roam Research and Obsidian
Data Storage Model: Roam Research has Cloud-based (servers), while Obsidian has Local-first (your device).
Monthly Subscription Cost: Roam Research has $15/month, while Obsidian has $0 (Sync optional at $10/month).
Offline Access: Roam Research has Limited (web-dependent), while Obsidian has Full offline functionality.
Community Plugins Available: Roam Research has ~150 extensions, while Obsidian has 900+ plugins.
Graph Visualization Quality: Roam Research has Native, real-time bidirectional graph, while Obsidian has Plugin-based, good but less native.
Consider: Learning Curve (hours to proficiency)
Learning Curve (hours to proficiency): Roam Research has 15-20 hours, while Obsidian has 8-12 hours.
Mobile App Quality: Roam Research has Web-only (limited mobile), while Obsidian has Native iOS & Android apps.