# Joplin vs ObSync

The clearest difference is update cadence: ObSync at every 6 days against Joplin's monthly. Joplin's advantage is iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Joplin ships an update monthly, ObSync every 6 days. Both last shipped on September 20, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Joplin | ObSync |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.1 (473 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/joplin/id1315599797/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **473** | — |
| Positive reviews | 66.6% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Every 6 days** |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 73 MB | 3 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.6** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Laurent Cozic](https://appshunter.io/developer/1315599796) | [Karlo Milicic](https://appshunter.io/developer/1894954775) |

## What reviewers say

### Joplin

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/joplin/id1315599797)

A privacy-focused note-taking and to-do application that allows you to capture multimedia notes, organize them with notebooks and tags, and sync across devices. It offers end-to-end encryption and an offline-first approach for secure and accessible information management.

**Highlights:** Capture multimedia notes (speech, photos, videos, PDFs), Organize notes with notebooks and tags, Create to-dos and set reminders, End-to-end encryption for privacy, Cross-device synchronization (Joplin Cloud, Dropbox, OneDrive), Offline-first access, OCR search for text within images and PDFs

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great app
- 🔒 End-to-end encryption
- 👍 Excellent cross-platform support
- 👍 Intuitive Markdown support
- 👍 Flexible sync options (Dropbox, OneDrive, WebDAV)

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync issues, especially on iOS
- 🐛 Buggy UI, especially on iOS
- 🐛 Crashes and freezes
- 🐛 Slow performance at times
- 🐛 Confusing interface, not very intuitive

**Reported bugs**

- Sync issues with WebDAV and Dropbox
- Crashes when creating new notes
- Keyboard issues, text getting obscured
- Rendering problems in dark mode
- Compatibility issues with older iOS versions

**Requested features**

- Add web clipper functionality on iOS
- Implement nested notebooks on iOS
- Allow password/biometric protection for notes
- Improve text editing experience on mobile
- Add more font and formatting options


### ObSync

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/obsync/id6762672240)

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Joplin free?

Joplin is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is ObSync free?

ObSync is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Joplin or ObSync have ads?

Neither Joplin nor ObSync shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Joplin or ObSync?

Joplin ships an update monthly, and ObSync every 6 days. Most recently, Joplin was updated on September 20, 2026 and ObSync on September 20, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*