Comparison

Obsidian vs PastReads

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Obsidian

Organize your thoughts and ideas with a powerful knowledge base that stores your notes as plain text Markdown files. Access your personal second brain on any device, with extensive customization options and community-driven plugins.

Highlights
  • Local Markdown file storage
  • Customizable toolbar
  • Graph view
  • Community plugins
  • Themes
  • Sidebar pinning
  • iCloud vaults
Features
Read full description

Obsidian is a powerful knowledge base that works on top of a local folder of plain text Markdown files. It is a second brain, for you, forever. Now available on the go for iOS! Features include: - Customizable toolbar - Pull down quick actions - Graph view - Community plugins - Themes - Sidebar pinning for tablet - iCloud vaults

About

PastReads

Read full description

PastReads is your all-in-one library for everything you read, see, and hear. Your free library helps you save, organize, and rediscover the best ideas. Whether you are reading books, browsing the web, listening to podcasts, or visiting museums, PastReads helps you capture what matters and find it again when you need it. ORGANIZE YOUR LIBRARY ■ Capture highlights and notes in one place ■ Add quick notes and thoughts ■ Organize your content with collections, tags, and favorites ■ Filter & search your entire library with full-text search IMPORT YOUR CONTENT ■ Import highlights from Kindle, Kobo, Apple Books, Readwise, KOReader, and more ■ Save content with details like author, location, and date ■ Keep your reading history connected in one timeline YOUR (E)BOOKS IN ONE PLACE ■ Keep track of everything you read ■ Search millions of books and add them to your library ■ Turn passages from physical books into digital highlights using the camera book highlighter SAVE IDEAS BEYOND BOOKS ■ Capture highlights from articles, museum visits, and more ■ Use your camera to capture and select text from the real world REMEMBER YOUR HIGHLIGHTS ■ Get a daily recap of highlights so you don't forget what you read ■ Complete streaks to stay motivated ACCESS FROM ANYWHERE ■ Use PastReads on your phone or via web ■ Synchronize ebook highlights using the desktop app BUILT FOR IOS Add PastReads widgets to your Home Screen, view highlights of the day, save content while browsing, and get customizable push notifications to revisit key ideas. JOIN NOW Join thousands of readers and start remembering your highlights. PastReads is free to use. You can upgrade to PastReads Pro for: ■ more and better recaps with custom schedules and spaced repetition ■ unlimited tags and collections ■ advanced filtering ■ monthly book summaries ■ exports to Notion, PDF, and Markdown ■ and much more -- Terms of use: https://www.pastreads.com/terms Apple EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Obsidian4 screens
PastReads4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Obsidian at none against PastReads's 2. Obsidian also leads on chart position (#121 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). PastReads's advantage is update cadence (every 10 days vs every 3 weeks). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. PastReads sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Obsidian asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Obsidian ships an update every 3 weeks, PastReads every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Obsidian versus PastReads: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterObsidianPastReads
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (2.8K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews62.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2.8K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
Best chart rank#121 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size39 MB18 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperDynalist Inc.PastReads

Bugs and requests

Obsidian

Reported bugs

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

Requested features

5 requests
  • 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

PastReads

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Obsidian

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

PastReads

Subscriptions2
  • PastReads Pro (Monthly)$4.991 Month
  • PastReads Pro (Annual)$49.991 Year

Questions

Is Obsidian free?
Obsidian is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is PastReads free?
PastReads is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Obsidian or PastReads have ads?
Neither Obsidian nor PastReads shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Obsidian or PastReads?
Obsidian ships an update every 3 weeks, and PastReads every 10 days. Most recently, Obsidian was updated on November 9, 2026 and PastReads on November 5, 2026.

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