AFFiNE vs Obsidian
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted notes & knowledge base options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
AFFiNE
Workspace for docs, whiteboards and databases
VS
Obsidian
Local-first knowledge base on a folder of Markdown files
| Feature | AFFiNE | Obsidian |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 100 · Excellent | 96 · Excellent |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | MIT | Proprietary |
| Language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker | binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 72,866 | ★ 21,779 |
| First released | 2022 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Notion, Miro | Evernote, Notion, OneNote |
What are AFFiNE and Obsidian?
AFFiNE
AFFiNE is an open-source knowledge base that combines documents, whiteboards, and databases in a single workspace. It targets users wanting an all-in-one alternative to Notion and Miro. It is deployed via Docker.
- Docs, whiteboard and database in one
- Local-first data model
- Real-time collaboration
- Edgeless canvas mode
Obsidian
Obsidian is a powerful personal knowledge base that works on a local folder of plain Markdown files. While the app is proprietary, your notes remain fully local and portable, and self-hosted sync is possible via plugins.
- Plain Markdown file storage
- Bidirectional links and graph view
- Large community plugin ecosystem
- Local-first and private
AFFiNE vs Obsidian: key differences
AFFiNE is written in TypeScript, while Obsidian is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — MIT for AFFiNE versus Proprietary for Obsidian. Obsidian is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for AFFiNE. Obsidian is the more established project (first released 2020), while AFFiNE arrived in 2022. AFFiNE has the considerably larger community, at 72,866 GitHub stars versus 21,779. AFFiNE lists first-class Docker deployment; Obsidian does not.
Why pick each one
Choose AFFiNE if…
- Versatile workspace
- Local-first design
- Modern UI
Watch out for
- Self-hosting still maturing
- Resource intensive
Choose Obsidian if…
- Notes stay portable and local
- Highly extensible
Watch out for
- Core app is closed source
- Official sync is a paid service
Frequently asked questions
Is AFFiNE or Obsidian better?
Neither is universally better. AFFiNE has the larger community, while Obsidian is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are AFFiNE and Obsidian free and open-source?
Yes. AFFiNE is licensed under MIT and Obsidian under Proprietary. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run AFFiNE and Obsidian with Docker?
AFFiNE: yes. Obsidian: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, AFFiNE or Obsidian?
Obsidian has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for AFFiNE. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.