Comparison Guide
Thoughtmarks vs Obsidian
Obsidian is a vault. Thoughtmarks is a net. Both capture knowledge— but one requires construction, the other just catches.
The Quick Verdict
Obsidian is a powerful tool for people who love building systems. Graph views, backlinks, plugins, templates—it's a PKM (Personal Knowledge Management) playground.
Thoughtmarks is for people who want to capture ideas without becoming a productivity YouTuber. No setup, no graph anxiety—just speak and forget about organizing.
Choose Thoughtmarks if:
- ✓ You want capture without configuration
- ✓ You've abandoned Obsidian setups before
- ✓ You need voice-first, hands-free capture
- ✓ You prefer AI organization over manual linking
Choose Obsidian if:
- ✓ You enjoy building knowledge systems
- ✓ You want full control and customization
- ✓ You love plugins and workflows
- ✓ Graph views spark joy for you
The Obsidian Paradox
Obsidian is incredibly powerful. It's also a rabbit hole. For every person who builds a beautiful, functioning second brain, there are many more who:
- • Spent more time configuring than capturing
- • Watched hours of "my Obsidian workflow" videos
- • Started over with a "better system" multiple times
- • Feel guilty looking at their graph with no connections
Thoughtmarks exists for people who'd rather capture ideas than optimize capture systems.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Thoughtmarks | Obsidian |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Use | Capture ideas fast | Build knowledge graph |
| Learning Curve | None—just speak | Steep (weeks to months) |
| Setup Time | 0 minutes | Hours to customize |
| Price | $60/year | Free (sync $96/year) |
| Voice Capture | ✓ Native Siri | Via plugins |
| Apple Watch | ✓ Full app | ✗ |
| Auto-Organization | ✓ AI handles it | Manual linking |
| Semantic Search | ✓ Meaning-based | Keyword + graph |
| Backlinks | AI-discovered | ✓ Manual [[links]] |
| Graph View | Connections view | ✓ Full graph |
| Plugins | Built-in AI | ✓ 1000+ plugins |
| Customization | Opinionated | ✓ Unlimited |
| Local-First | ✓ | ✓ |
| Markdown | Auto-formatted | ✓ Pure markdown |
| Mobile Experience | ✓ Native iOS | Good, not great |
Ready for capture without the homework?
14-day free trial. $5/week, $15/month, or $60/year. No plugins required.
iOS + Apple Watch. Works on day one.