Microsoft OneNote vs Obsidian
On the evidence we track, Obsidian leads this comparison with a composite score of 71/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.
Capabilities
Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for knowledge base software. “-” means undocumented, not absent.
What each one is
The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.
Microsoft OneNote
Digital note-taking app that lets you capture ideas, organize projects, and collaborate with others across all your devices.
Obsidian
LeaderObsidian is a note-taking and knowledge management tool that stores data locally on your device by default, with optional end-to-end encrypted cloud synchronization. You can organize notes through bidirectional linking, customize the interface with plugins and themes, and publish content to the web.
Pricing
List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.
Microsoft OneNote
$32.00/user/month, billed annually as part of Microsoft 365 Business Premium
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium with Copilot$32.00/user/month, billed annually
- Copilot in OneNote for drafting and organizing
- Sketch, annotate, and highlight with digital ink
- Share and collaborate
- Accessible across desktop, web, and mobile
Obsidian
LeaderFree app with optional Sync ($4-5/user/mo), Publish ($8-10/site/mo), Catalyst ($25 one-time), or Commercial ($50/user/year) licenses. 40% discount for students, faculty, and nonprofits.
- FreeFree
- Local note storage
- Plugins and themes
- Bidirectional linking
- Graph visualization
- Offline access
- Sync$4/user/mo (annual) or $5/user/mo (monthly)
- Sync across devices
- End-to-end encryption
- Version history
- Collaborative vaults
- Priority support
- Publish$8/site/mo (annual) or $10/site/mo (monthly)
- Publish to web
- Customizable theme
- Full-text search
- Graph view
- No coding required
- +1 more
- Catalyst$25 one-time
- Early access to beta versions
- Community badges
- Exclusive channels
- Commercial$50/user/year
- Support development
- Featured organization badge
Platform & deployment
Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.
Integrations
What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.
Microsoft OneNote
Not documented yet.
Obsidian
Leader- Apple Notes
- Notion
- Evernote
- Roam Research
- Google Keep
- OneNote
- Airtable
- Chrome
- Safari
- Firefox
- Edge
- Brave
- Arc
- Orion
- Vivaldi
- Stripe
- Alipay
- PayPal
- Discord
- YouTube
Microsoft OneNote or Obsidian: which one depends on you
A composite score cannot know your constraints. Describe them and both get re-weighted against what you actually need, with the evidence behind every position.
Free to run, no account needed to start. How the evaluation works
Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.