# Obsidian vs Transcribe Best

The clearest difference is price: Obsidian at Free against Transcribe Best's $11.99. Obsidian also leads on ratings volume (2.8K vs 6) and chart position (#127 vs unranked). Transcribe Best's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs every 3 weeks) and review sentiment (75% vs 62%). On rating, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Obsidian is free to download; Transcribe Best costs $11.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for Obsidian against 4.5 for Transcribe Best. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Obsidian has 2.8K ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 62% of Obsidian's written reviews are positive against 75% of Transcribe Best's.

Obsidian ships an update every 3 weeks, Transcribe Best every 5 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Obsidian | Transcribe Best |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $11.99 |
| Rating | [4.5 (2.8K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/obsidian-connected-notes/id1557175442/reviews) | **[4.5 (6 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/transcribe-best/id6482983055/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **2.8K** | 6 |
| Positive reviews | 61.9% of reviews | **75.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Paid |
| Best chart rank | **#127** | — |
| Size | 40 MB | 44 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | **13.4** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Dynalist Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1195392807) | [JP Software](https://appshunter.io/developer/1550656141) |

## What reviewers say

### Obsidian

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/obsidian-connected-notes/id1557175442)

**Currently charting:** #127 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

Organize your thoughts and ideas with a powerful knowledge base that utilizes local Markdown files. This app acts as your personal second brain, accessible on your mobile device for seamless note-taking and idea connection.

**Highlights:** Local Markdown file storage, Customizable toolbar, Graph view for connections, Community plugins, Themes, iCloud sync

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Powerful features
- 👍 Customizable and flexible
- 🔒 Secure and private
- 💡 Innovative note-taking approach
- 🚀 Smooth mobile experience

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync issues and unreliable iCloud integration
- 🔋 Slow startup and performance issues on mobile
- 👎 Steep learning curve for new users
- 👎 Limited sorting and organization options
- 👎 Lack of WYSIWYG editing on mobile

**Reported bugs**

- Sync issues leading to data loss
- Freezing and crashing on mobile devices
- Editing bugs and text input issues

**Requested features**

- Improved sorting and organization options
- WYSIWYG editing on mobile
- Better integration with other cloud storage services
- More intuitive onboarding process for new users
- Native mobile widgets and share sheet integration


### Transcribe Best

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/transcribe-best/id6482983055)

This app offers unlimited, high-quality audio transcription for a single fixed price, with no subscription required. It supports a vast array of languages and can process long or low-quality audio files, even offline. All processing occurs on the device, ensuring user privacy.

**Highlights:** Unlimited transcription, No subscription needed, Offline functionality, 99 supported languages, Supports 3+ hour files, Export in VTT and SRT, Privacy-focused on-device processing

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Obsidian free?

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

### Is Transcribe Best free?

Transcribe Best costs $11.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Obsidian or Transcribe Best?

Transcribe Best is rated higher. Obsidian averages 4.5 out of 5 from 2.8K ratings, while Transcribe Best averages 4.5 from 6 ratings.

### Do Obsidian or Transcribe Best have ads?

Neither Obsidian nor Transcribe Best shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Obsidian or Transcribe Best?

Obsidian ships an update every 3 weeks, and Transcribe Best every 5 days. Most recently, Obsidian was updated on October 24, 2026 and Transcribe Best on October 24, 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.*