Cloud-based collaborative networked note-taking platform with built-in graph database and real-time sharing.
Teams and individuals who need collaborative note-taking, work primarily in browser, and value seamless sharing over cost savings.
Local-first markdown note-taking app for Windows, Mac, and Linux with extensive plugin support and no mandatory fees.
Individual knowledge workers who value privacy, control, offline access, and want to own their data outright without recurring costs.
Roam Research is a cloud-based collaborative note-taking tool optimized for networked thinking with built-in backlinks, while Obsidian is a local-first desktop application that stores files on your computer with greater privacy and offline functionality. Roam costs $15/month, Obsidian is free with optional $10/month sync.
Choose Roam Research if you prioritize real-time team collaboration, work primarily online, and want a fully managed solution optimized for connected thinking. Choose Obsidian if you value privacy, data ownership, offline access, and want a powerful tool that won't force you to pay recurring fees—especially if you're willing to set up your own sync via iCloud, Dropbox, or Git.
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Choose Roam Research if
Teams and individuals who need collaborative note-taking, work primarily in browser, and value seamless sharing over cost savings.
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| Metric | Roam Research | Obsidian | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting Price(USD/month) | $15/month | — | — |
| User Rating(stars out of 5) | 8/10 | — | — |
| Native Tools/Integrations(count) | 44 native tools plus MCP servers | — | — |
| Annual Subscription Cost(USD) | $165 | Free (with optional $50 Sync) |
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Choose Obsidian if
Individual knowledge workers who value privacy, control, offline access, and want to own their data outright without recurring costs.
| — |
| Annual Cost (Base Plan)(USD) | $165 | — | — |
| Discord Community Size(members) | ~35,000 | — | — |
| Native Collaboration Features(simultaneous users) | Unlimited with real-time editing | — | — |
| Monthly Subscription Cost(USD) | $15/month or $180/year | — | — |
| Annual Cost (Committed Plan)(USD) | $165/year | — | — |
| Free Storage Tier(GB) | None (paid only) | — | — |
| Typical Learning Curve(hours) | 40-50 hours | — | — |
| AI Search Queries Per Month (Free Tier)(queries) | Not available | — | — |
| Mobile App Feature Parity(%) | 60% of desktop features | — | — |
| Storage Capacity (Free Plan)(GB) | Unlimited | — | — |
| Export Formats(formats supported) | JSON, Markdown, EDN | — | — |
| Learning Curve (hours to proficiency)(hours) | 40-60 hours for advanced use | — | — |
| Base Subscription Cost(USD/month) | $15/month | Free (Sync $8/month optional) | — |
| Annual Cost (Individual)(USD) | $180/year | $0-96/year (depending on add-ons) | — |
| Community Plugins Available(count) | ~150 plugins | 1,000+ plugins | -85% |
| Users (Estimated)(millions) | 1.5M+ registered (2024) | 5M+ downloads on mobile alone | -70% |
| Base Monthly Cost(USD) | $15/month | $0/month (free tier) | — |
| Annual Cost (Single User)(USD) | $180/year | $0/year (or $120 with Obsidian Sync) | — |
| Available Plugins/Extensions(count) | ~50 official extensions | 1000+ community plugins | -95% |
| Free Trial Period(days) | 30 days free trial | Unlimited (fully free tier) | — |
| Active Users | ~1M+ | ~1M+ | — |
| Monthly Cost (Individual)(USD) | $0 (free) | $0 (free) | — |
| Offline Capability(Percentage) | Complete (100%) | Complete (100%) | — |
| Learning Curve (Ease Score)(1-10 scale) | 8/10 (gentle) | 8/10 (gentle) | — |
| Plugin Ecosystem Size(plugins available) | 1000+ (community plugins) | 1000+ (community plugins) | — |
| Community Plugins(count) | 1000+ | 1000+ | — |
| Monthly Active Users(millions) | ~2.5M (estimated) | ~2.5M (estimated) | — |
| Sync Service Cost(USD/year) | $96 | $96 | — |
| Offline Functionality(percentage) | 100% | 100% | — |
| Funding Raised(millions USD) | Bootstrapped (private) | Bootstrapped (private) | — |
| One-Time / Lifetime Cost(USD) | $89 | $89 | — |
| Monthly Team Subscription (5 users)(USD) | $0 (not designed for teams) | $0 (not designed for teams) | — |
| Bidirectional Linking Quality(scale 1-10) | 9 (advanced graph visualization) | 9 (advanced graph visualization) | — |
| Setup Time (minutes to usable state)(minutes) | 5-15 (markdown basics) | 5-15 (markdown basics) | — |
| Active User Base (approximate)(millions) | 3+ million active users | 3+ million active users | — |
| Time to First Note (Setup)(minutes) | 10-15 minutes | 10-15 minutes | — |
| Mobile App Feature Completeness(percentage of desktop) | 70% feature parity (plugins limited on mobile) | 70% feature parity (plugins limited on mobile) | — |
All figures sourced from publicly available data. Last updated Jun 2026.
Roam Research
Cloud-based (Roam servers)
Obsidian
Local-first (your computer)🏆
Roam Research
$15/month
Obsidian
$0 (free) or $10/month for Obsidian Sync🏆
Roam Research
Requires internet connection
Obsidian
Full offline functionality🏆
Roam Research
Built-in multi-user collaboration🏆
Obsidian
No native collaboration (third-party plugins only)
Roam Research
Core feature with graph database backend
Obsidian
Supported via markdown, highly customizable
Roam Research
Proprietary JSON format, export to Markdown
Obsidian
Plain markdown files, complete ownership🏆
Roam Research
Limited first-party integrations
Obsidian
1000+ community plugins available🏆
Obsidian is completely free with no limitations on features or storage. Roam Research offers a 30-day free trial but then requires a $15/month subscription. Obsidian's optional Obsidian Sync ($10/month) and Obsidian Publish ($10/month) are add-ons, not required.
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| Attribute | Roam Research | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price(USD/month) | $15/month | — |
| Annual Subscription Cost(USD) | $165 | Free (with optional $50 Sync) |
| Free Plan | No | — |
| Annual Cost (Base Plan)(USD) | $165 | — |
| Monthly Subscription Cost(USD) | $15/month or $180/year | — |
Show 12 more attributesAnnual Cost (Committed Plan)(USD) $165/year — Base Subscription Cost(USD/month) $15/month Free (Sync $8/month optional) Annual Cost (Individual)(USD) $180/year $0-96/year (depending on add-ons) Base Monthly Cost(USD) $15/month $0/month (free tier) Annual Cost (Single User)(USD) $180/year $0/year (or $120 with Obsidian Sync) Monthly Cost (Individual)(USD) $0 (free) — Sync Service Cost(USD/year) $96 — One-Time / Lifetime Cost(USD) $89 — Monthly Team Subscription (5 users)(USD) $0 (not designed for teams) — Price (personal) Free — Price (sync) Obsidian Sync $4/mo — Price (team) N/A (no team plan) — | ||
| User Rating(stars out of 5) | 8/10 | — |
| Native Tools/Integrations(count) | 44 native tools plus MCP servers | — |
| Built-in AI Features | Multi-provider LLM support with AI agents | — |
| API Access | API access with scheduled jobs coming soon | — |
| Search Query Flexibility | Advanced backlink queries | — |
| Native Mobile Apps | iOS and Android (native, feature-complete) | — |
Show 6 more attributesBidirectional Linking(null) Yes - automatic backlinks and graph visualization — Advanced Query Language Datalog with RoamScript — Offline Functionality Requires internet connection Full offline access Available Plugins/Extensions(count) ~50 official extensions 1000+ community plugins Team Collaboration Features(count) Minimal (plugin-dependent) — Built-in Task Management(feature completeness) Via plugins only — | ||
| Collaboration Capacity(collaborators) | Unlimited collaborators | — |
| Core Strength | Bidirectional linking and networked graphs | — |
| Offline Access(capability) | Limited cached access only | Full offline support included |
| Graph View Visualization(feature) | Built-in interactive graph with density indicators | Built-in graph with plugin enhancements |
| Target User Type | Researchers, knowledge workers, academics | — |
| Concurrent Collaborators(users) | Unlimited | — |
| Real-time Collaboration(users) | Native multi-user editing | No native support |
| Real-time Collaboration Users(concurrent users) | Unlimited (built-in) | 0 (no native support) |
| Native API Access | Yes, full API | — |
| Spaced Repetition Features | No native support | — |
| Database/Table Customization | Basic views | — |
| Discord Community Size(members) | ~35,000 | — |
| Active User Base (approximate)(millions) | 3+ million active users | — |
| Supported Platforms | Web (primary), limited iOS/Android | 5 (Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android) |
| Native Collaboration Features(simultaneous users) | Unlimited with real-time editing | — |
| Free Storage Tier(GB) | None (paid only) | — |
| Storage Capacity (Free Plan)(GB) | Unlimited | — |
| Typical Learning Curve(hours) | 40-50 hours | — |
| Learning Curve (hours to proficiency)(hours) | 40-60 hours for advanced use | — |
| Learning Curve (Ease Score)(1-10 scale) | 8/10 (gentle) | — |
| AI Search Queries Per Month (Free Tier)(queries) | Not available | — |
| Knowledge Graph Visualization | Native visual graphs | — |
| Mobile App Feature Parity(%) | 60% of desktop features | — |
| Data Storage Model | Cloud-based (Roam servers) | — |
| Source Code License | Closed-source proprietary | — |
| Maximum Database Size(TB) | Unlimited (cloud-based) | — |
| Export Formats(formats supported) | JSON, Markdown, EDN | — |
| Storage Format(format type) | Proprietary JSON (Edn format) | Standard Markdown (.md files) |
| Community Plugins Available(count) | ~150 plugins | 1,000+ plugins |
| Users (Estimated)(millions) | 1.5M+ registered (2024) | 5M+ downloads on mobile alone |
| Active Users | ~1M+ | — |
| Monthly Active Users(millions) | ~2.5M (estimated) | — |
| Data Storage Location | Roam cloud servers (third-party controlled) | Local device or user-chosen cloud storage |
| Mobile App Support | iOS, Android, Web (all full-featured) | iOS and Android available (limited features on free tier) |
| Free Trial Period(days) | 30 days free trial | Unlimited (fully free tier) |
| Storage Location | Local device | — |
| Data Ownership | 100% local (user controls all files) | — |
| Monthly Cost(USD) | Free (sync $8-10/mo optional) | — |
| Offline Capability(Percentage) | Complete (100%) | — |
| Database & Relation Support | Basic (via plugins only) | — |
| Native AI Features | No (plugin-based only) | — |
| Plugin Ecosystem Size(plugins available) | 1000+ (community plugins) | — |
| Community Plugins(count) | 1000+ | — |
| AI integration | Via plugins (Copilot, Smart Connections) | — |
| Offline Functionality(percentage) | 100% | — |
| Setup Time(minutes) | 30-45 | — |
| API Access(available) | Limited (HTTP API beta) | — |
| Funding Raised(millions USD) | Bootstrapped (private) | — |
| Bidirectional Linking Quality(scale 1-10) | 9 (advanced graph visualization) | — |
| Setup Time (minutes to usable state)(minutes) | 5-15 (markdown basics) | — |
| Mobile App Quality(rating 1-10) | 7 (Obsidian Mobile, good) | — |
| Data Export / Portability(format support) | Markdown + Attachments (fully portable) | — |
| Architecture | Local Markdown files | — |
| Note format | Plain Markdown | — |
| Data portability | Native Markdown (always portable) | — |
| Open Source | No (free but proprietary) | — |
| Collaboration | No (single-player by default) | — |
| Sync | Obsidian Sync ($4/mo) or iCloud/Dropbox | — |
| Mobile app quality | Yes | — |
| Outliner / block linking | Via Outliner plugin | — |
| Bidirectional links | Yes (via [[links]]) | — |
| Graph / network view | Yes — link graph | — |
| Database / table view | Via Dataview plugin | — |
| Templates | Yes (community + core) | — |
Show 2 more attributesKanban / tasks Via plugins — Spaced repetition Via Spaced Repetition plugin — | ||
| Plugin / app ecosystem | 1,500+ community plugins | — |
| Time to First Note (Setup)(minutes) | 10-15 minutes | — |
| Data Format(portability score) | Standard markdown (high portability) | — |
| Mobile App Feature Completeness(percentage of desktop) | 70% feature parity (plugins limited on mobile) | — |
| Maximum Note Size(MB) | Unlimited (device storage dependent) | — |
Side-by-side comparison of numeric attributes