BatNoter 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.
Obsidian
Local-first knowledge base on a folder of Markdown files
| Feature | BatNoter | Obsidian |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 18 · At risk | 96 · Excellent |
| Category | Notes & Knowledge Base | Notes & Knowledge Base |
| License | MIT | Proprietary |
| Language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,421 | ★ 21,797 |
| First released | 2022 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Standard Notes, Evernote | Evernote, Notion, OneNote |
What are BatNoter and Obsidian?
BatNoter
BatNoter is an open-source, Markdown-based note-taking web application that stores all notes in a user's own Git repository. It provides an editor with preview and keeps notes versioned and portable.
- Notes stored in your Git repo
- Markdown editor with preview
- Versioned, portable notes
- Self-hosted backend
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
BatNoter vs Obsidian: key differences
BatNoter is written in TypeScript, while Obsidian is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — MIT for BatNoter versus Proprietary for Obsidian. BatNoter is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Obsidian. Obsidian is the more established project (first released 2020), while BatNoter arrived in 2022. Obsidian has the considerably larger community, at 21,797 GitHub stars versus 2,421. BatNoter lists first-class Docker deployment; Obsidian does not.
Why pick each one
Choose BatNoter if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.4k GitHub stars)
- Written in TypeScript
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 BatNoter or Obsidian better?
Obsidian is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider BatNoter if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are BatNoter and Obsidian free and open-source?
Yes. BatNoter is licensed under MIT and Obsidian under Proprietary. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run BatNoter and Obsidian with Docker?
BatNoter: yes. Obsidian: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, BatNoter or Obsidian?
BatNoter has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Obsidian. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.