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Productivity · head to head

Microsoft OneNote vs Obsidian

Microsoft OneNote logo

Microsoft OneNote

Productivity

Microsoft's free-form notebook, free with a Microsoft account and synced through OneDrive

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Obsidian logo

Obsidian

Research

A powerful knowledge base on top of a local folder of plain text Markdown files

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Microsoft OneNote notes live in a proprietary notebook format on OneDrive or SharePoint and the only exports are a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document, produced section by section, so a large notebook is effectively unmovable to any other tool.; Obsidian sync is a paid add-on at $4 per month billed annually rather than part of the app
  • They diverge on capability: Microsoft OneNote covers Free-form page canvas, Obsidian covers Bidirectional linking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Microsoft OneNote and Obsidian actually diverge.

Attributes where Microsoft OneNote and Obsidian differ
AttributeMicrosoft OneNoteObsidian
Pricing modelfreemiumUnknown
PlatformsWeb, IOS, Android, MacOS, WindowsWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android
CategoryProductivityResearch
Founded19752020

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Microsoft OneNote

  • Free-form page canvas
  • Notebook hierarchy
  • Indexed handwriting
  • Audio recording
  • Web clipper and Outlook capture
  • Shared notebooks
  • Cross-platform clients
  • Tags and cross-notebook search

Only in Obsidian

  • Bidirectional linking
  • Graph view visualization
  • Markdown support
  • Local file storage
  • Plugin ecosystem
  • Custom CSS themes
  • Templates
  • Search and tags

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Microsoft OneNote

  • Handwritten notes on a pen tablet that you still need to find months later by searching for a word you wrote.not Obsidian
  • Lecture or meeting notes where a recording needs to line up with what you were typing at the time.not Obsidian
  • A team already inside Microsoft 365 that needs a shared notebook without buying anything or seeking approval.not Obsidian
  • Collecting mixed material such as screenshots, clippings and sketches on one page, where a document editor would force a linear structure.not Obsidian

Obsidian

  • Local-first markdown note taking with no account requirednot Microsoft OneNote
  • Linking notes into a personal knowledge graphnot Microsoft OneNote
  • Syncing a vault across devices with end-to-end encryption on the paid add-onnot Microsoft OneNote
  • Publishing a public site from a vaultnot Microsoft OneNote
  • Extending the editor with community pluginsnot Microsoft OneNote

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Microsoft OneNote

  • Notes live in a proprietary notebook format on OneDrive or SharePoint and the only exports are a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document, produced section by section, so a large notebook is effectively unmovable to any other tool.
  • Personal notebooks consume OneDrive quota, which is 5 GB on a free Microsoft account, so a notebook full of scans, images and recordings quietly exhausts the whole account including the space Outlook needs for mail.
  • Sync happens at section level and conflicts are resolved by placing both versions on the page, so simultaneous edits to a large or media-heavy section produce duplicated content that somebody has to merge by hand.
  • Search behaves differently across clients, so what the Windows desktop app finds inside handwriting, images and attachments is not necessarily what the browser or mobile version finds, and the same query gives different answers on different devices.
  • There is no relational structure, no database and no properties, so anything that needs a table of records with fields has to be maintained by hand or moved elsewhere, and OneNote's own tables cannot be queried or filtered.

Obsidian

  • Sync is a paid add-on at $4 per month billed annually rather than part of the app
  • Publishing to the web is a further $8 per month per site
  • Commercial use asks for a $50 per user per year licence, though the vendor states it is not required
  • Collaboration is limited compared with a hosted notes tool, since the vault is local files first

Pricing, plan by plan

Microsoft OneNote

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Microsoft OneNote review.

Obsidian

Free
  • Obsidian Sync$4/month
    • Sync notes across devices
  • Obsidian Publish$8/month
    • Turn notes into a website

Which should you pick?

Choose Microsoft OneNote if

  • You need free-form page canvas.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows.
  • You also want notebook hierarchy.
Microsoft OneNote review

Choose Obsidian if

  • You need bidirectional linking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android.
  • You also want graph view visualization.
Obsidian review

Questions people ask

Is Microsoft OneNote or Obsidian better?
Neither clearly leads. Microsoft OneNote starts at Free and Obsidian at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Microsoft OneNote or Obsidian?
Microsoft OneNote starts at Free and Obsidian at Free.
Does Microsoft OneNote or Obsidian run on more platforms?
Microsoft OneNote runs on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows. Obsidian runs on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android.
Can I use Microsoft OneNote for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Microsoft OneNote best used for?
Microsoft OneNote is most often used for handwritten notes on a pen tablet that you still need to find months later by searching for a word you wrote., lecture or meeting notes where a recording needs to line up with what you were typing at the time., a team already inside microsoft 365 that needs a shared notebook without buying anything or seeking approval., collecting mixed material such as screenshots, clippings and sketches on one page, where a document editor would force a linear structure.. Of those, handwritten notes on a pen tablet that you still need to find months later by searching for a word you wrote. and lecture or meeting notes where a recording needs to line up with what you were typing at the time. are not what Obsidian is typically brought in for.
What can Microsoft OneNote do that Obsidian cannot?
Microsoft OneNote covers Free-form page canvas, Notebook hierarchy, Indexed handwriting, Audio recording. Obsidian covers Bidirectional linking, Graph view visualization, Markdown support, Local file storage.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Microsoft OneNote: Is OneNote really free?

Yes. The application is free with a Microsoft account, with no time limit and no feature gate. What you may end up paying for is the OneDrive storage the notebooks consume.

Obsidian: Is Obsidian free?

Yes. The core Obsidian application is 100% free for personal and commercial use with no limitations. You can use unlimited vaults and every core feature without payment.

Source
Microsoft OneNote: Can I keep notebooks off Microsoft's cloud?

The Windows desktop app can keep local notebooks, but they will not sync to other devices and any shared access requires OneDrive or SharePoint.

Obsidian: What file format does Obsidian use?

Obsidian stores every note as a plain Markdown file. Because it uses standard Markdown instead of a proprietary format, your notes remain portable and can be edited with many other Markdown editors.

Source
Microsoft OneNote: How do I get my notes out?

Section by section as a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document. A OneNote package preserves a whole notebook but only for another copy of OneNote. Third-party converters exist and the page layout usually does not survive them.

Obsidian: Can I collaborate with others in Obsidian?

The core application does not include built-in team collaboration features. However, Obsidian offers optional add-ons and can be used with version control systems or cloud storage for collaboration.

Source
Microsoft OneNote: Which version should I install?

Microsoft consolidated onto a single OneNote application on Windows after retiring the Store version, so install the one distributed with Microsoft 365 rather than looking for an alternative.

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Related pages

More on Microsoft OneNote

More on Obsidian

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