3. Anytype

Best Object-Based Obsidian Alternative

Anytype is a relatively new application on the market, but it's been growing in popularity. Like Obsidian, it focuses on a local-first experience. It allows you to take all your files and documents offline, giving you that security element that many other PKM applications are starting to move towards.

Both Obsidian and Anytype are fairly similar in nature with their focus on security, aiming to bring things local. But Anytype seems to go slightly further than Obsidian in how they set things up. In terms of syncing, Anytype has a peer-to-peer secure and decentralized syncing function, as well as open code, meaning it's open-source and comes with features like Markdown. You also have encryption and encryption keys on the device, which we don’t believe are available in Obsidian.

Object-Based Structure Differences to Obsidian

Largely, Anytype takes a different approach to structuring. It creates everything from an object, a concept called object-based note-taking, which has been growing in popularity, especially with apps like Craft and Capacities.

This new focus allows you to build a note with a template and structure before you actually craft it. It's perfect if you want to create something like a person you've interacted with, a meeting, or a type of note like a book or author that you want to expand on in the future. While this does take more time to set up, it has long-term benefits for how you structure your note-taking.

That's how Anytype differs from Obsidian, but the functions are still fairly similar in terms of linking things up. Anytype doesn’t focus as aggressively on PKM elements. For example, inside Obsidian, you have the research-based canvas feature. Anytype doesn’t have that, but it does include databases.

These don’t rival Notion’s databases, but they come relatively close as a way for organizing ideas and bringing objects into one place. You can organize those in sets and collections, and many people are moving toward those types of experiences.

Anytype hasn’t been on the market as long as Obsidian, but it offers a generous free plan with 1GB of network space and three shared spaces. If you want to upgrade, it costs $99 per year, which is double Obsidian’s pricing and might be out of reach for some people. However, Anytype’s focus seems to be on helping you create secure nodes.

In terms of nodes, Anytype is a bit more open than Obsidian. For instance, Obsidian doesn't really allow for collaboration, but Anytype lets you create things like team wikis or team canvases for collaborative work with as many people as you want.

Should you consider Anytype?

Both Anytype and Obsidian can be used for journaling, but for habit tracking in Obsidian, you'd need to install an extension, whereas Anytype has templates to help get you started.

As a whole, Anytype feels more approachable than Obsidian—less noise and more consumer-friendly. When we tested Anytype, while it took time to learn like Obsidian, it was friendly and easy to use, with a solid security focus. Like Obsidian, it also offers a fast and easy-to-use application to help you get started.

7 Best Obsidian Alternatives in 2025

7 Best Obsidian Alternatives in 2025