Affordable E2EE Notes Sync Without Obsidian's $96/Year Price Tag
desktop app real project •• multiple requests
Obsidian is the gold standard for local-first note-taking but its Sync service costs $8/month ($96/year) to sync simple markdown files. Users call this hard to justify when Notion syncs for free. Free alternatives exist (Joplin with WebDAV, Anytype with P2P) but each has significant UX tradeoffs. The demand is for Obsidian-quality writing experience with encrypted cross-platform sync that's either free or a small one-time purchase.
builder note Don't build another note-taking app. Build a reliable cross-platform E2EE sync service for Obsidian vaults specifically. The editor is already great. The sync is the pain point. Use CRDTs for conflict resolution, encrypt client-side, and charge $2/month or $20/year. Undercut Obsidian Sync by 75%. Support Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android. The iOS piece is the hardest (Apple's file system restrictions) and the most valuable.
landscape (5 existing solutions)
The note-taking space has a clear tradeoff: Obsidian's editor and plugin ecosystem are unmatched but sync costs $96/year. Free alternatives sacrifice either editor quality (Joplin), familiarity (Anytype), or features (Standard Notes free tier). Nobody has matched Obsidian's writing experience with built-in free or cheap E2EE sync. The closest path is likely a sync service built on Syncthing or CRDTs that works reliably across all platforms including iOS.
Obsidian + Obsidian Sync Best writing and linking experience with massive plugin ecosystem. But Sync at $8/month feels expensive for what it does (sync markdown files). Free sync alternatives (Syncthing, iCloud) work on some platforms but break on others, especially Windows+iOS combinations. Joplin Free sync via Dropbox/OneDrive/Nextcloud/WebDAV with built-in E2EE. Closest to the need philosophically. But the editor is noticeably less polished than Obsidian, plugin ecosystem is smaller, and the mobile app feels dated. Markdown rendering has quirks. Anytype P2P sync with zero-knowledge encryption, free and local-first. Innovative block-based editor. But the UX is opinionated and unfamiliar, performance can be slow with large vaults, and the object/type system has a steep learning curve that alienates users who just want to write. Notesnook E2EE with cross-platform sync and good mobile apps. $49.99/year is cheaper than Obsidian Sync. But the editor lacks Obsidian's bidirectional linking, graph view, and plugin extensibility. For power users, it's a downgrade in functionality. Standard Notes E2EE with a focus on longevity and simplicity. Free tier with basic editor. But advanced editors and features require $90/year subscription. The free experience is intentionally minimal, which frustrates users wanting rich formatting. notesprivacyE2EElocal-firstanti-subscription