# Notability vs Obsidian

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Obsidian at none against Notability's 13. Obsidian also leads on review sentiment (62% vs 37%) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.5). Notability's advantage is ratings volume (457K vs 2.7K) and rating (4.8 vs 4.5). On price, ads, chart position and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Notability sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Obsidian asks for nothing beyond the download.

Notability holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notability has 457K ratings behind it against 2.7K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 37% of Notability's written reviews are positive against 62% of Obsidian's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Notability ships an update weekly, Obsidian every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notability | Obsidian |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (457K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-planner/id360593530/reviews)** | [4.5 (2.7K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/obsidian-connected-notes/id1557175442/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **457K** | 2.7K |
| Positive reviews | 36.5% of reviews | **62.1% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Freemium | **Free** |
| Best chart rank | **#80** | #128 |
| Size | 411 MB | 38 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.5 | **15.6** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Ginger Labs](https://appshunter.io/developer/318126112) | [Dynalist Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1195392807) |

## What reviewers say

### Notability

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-planner/id360593530)

**Currently charting:** #80 Top Grossing · Productivity, #129 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

Capture, organize, and enhance your thoughts with a versatile digital notebook. Seamlessly blend handwriting, typing, and multimedia to annotate documents, record lectures, and generate summaries. Ideal for students and professionals seeking to boost productivity and learning.

**Highlights:** Handwritten and typed notes, PDF and document annotation, Audio recording and transcription, AI-powered summaries and quizzes, Customizable organization, Cross-device sync

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Notability Lite | $5.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $7.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $12.99 | per 3 months |
| Notability Lite | $14.99 | per year |
| Notability Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $19.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $29.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $99.99 | per year |
| Notability Classic | $49.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great app for note-taking
- 👍 Smooth handwriting experience
- 📝 Excellent organization and file management
- 🎙️ Useful audio recording feature
- 🔍 Handwriting recognition and search

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync issues with iCloud
- 🔍 Limited search and organization options
- 🖍️ Frustrating highlighter behavior
- 🔒 Concerns about subscription model
- 🔧 Buggy after recent updates

**Reported bugs**

- Notes disappearing or getting corrupted
- Frequent crashes and performance issues
- Palm rejection problems after updates
- Inconsistent behavior when importing files

**Requested features**

- Improved folder/hierarchy organization
- More shape recognition and drawing tools
- Side-by-side viewing of multiple notes
- Ability to edit/rename audio recordings
- Better integration with other apps and services


### Obsidian

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

**Currently charting:** #128 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


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notability free?

Notability is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Obsidian free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Notability or Obsidian?

Notability is rated higher. Notability averages 4.8 out of 5 from 457K ratings, while Obsidian averages 4.5 from 2.7K ratings.

### Do Notability or Obsidian have ads?

Neither Notability nor Obsidian shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Notability or Obsidian?

Notability ships an update weekly, and Obsidian every 3 weeks. Most recently, Notability was updated on September 24, 2026 and Obsidian on September 24, 2026.

### Which is more popular, Notability or Obsidian?

Notability currently peaks at #80 in the App Store charts, and Obsidian at #128. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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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.*