OneNote Alternatives 2026: 6 Free Options
OneNote alternatives: Joplin, Obsidian, Logseq, AppFlowy and 2 more. Prices and licenses checked October 23, 2026.
•3 min read•Notes & Knowledge
Verdict:Leave OneNote if you are tired of notebooks that only really work inside the Microsoft ecosystem, or you want notes saved as files you can back up yourself. OneNote itself is free, so the reason to move is control and format, not price. Joplin is the closest practical swap for most people: it is open source, syncs across all major platforms through storage you choose, and encrypts end to end. Obsidian is the pick if you think in links and want every note as a plain Markdown file; the app is free and only sync costs $4 a month. Logseq suits people who live in daily journals and bullet outlines. AFFiNE is the one to try when you miss OneNote's place-anything-anywhere canvas, because it pairs documents with a whiteboard. AppFlowy fits a team that wants a self-hosted workspace, and Notion fits one that wants databases and shared wikis. The trade-off is real: none of these copy OneNote's freeform page layout or its handwriting and ink handling, so if you draw or annotate by hand a lot, test with your own notes before exporting everything. Stay put if your notebooks are already organised and you rely on pen input.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joplin | Free (open-source note app; Joplin Cloud is the paid sync option) | Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Terminal | Markdown notes you control | Docs only |
| Obsidian | Free (core app with no limits, including commercial use); paid from $4 per user/month, billed annually (Sync add-on; $5 billed monthly) | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Linked notes stored as local files | Docs only |
| Logseq | Free (open-source outliner and knowledge base with no paid plan listed) | Windows, macOS, Linux, Web, iOS | Outliner-style daily notes | Docs only |
| AppFlowy | Free (Personal plan with 1 workspace owner, 100 MB of storage, 7 MB uploads and 7-day version history); paid from $12 per member/month, billed annually ($16 billed monthly, Pro) | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Self-hosted | Self-hostable all-in-one notes | Docs only |
| AFFiNE | Free (local workspaces; Cloud Basic has 10 GB of storage, up to 3 members and 10 MB files); paid from $6.75 per month (Pro; the page does not name the billing term) | Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted | Docs plus whiteboard in one place | Docs only |
| Notion | Free (unlimited pages and blocks for individuals but limited for workspaces of 2 or more members, 5 MB per file, 10 guests, 7-day page history); paid from $10 per member/month (Plus; check the pricing page for the billing term) | Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android | Structured pages and databases | Docs only |
| Evernote | Free (50 notes, 1 notebook, 5 spaces, 20 tags, 200 attachments, 1 synced device, 1 GB storage) | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android | Notes | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
Good fit if
- You want Markdown notes that sync through storage you choose (Joplin is the pick)
- You link ideas and want plain files on your own disk (Obsidian is the pick)
- You miss OneNote's free canvas and want docs with a whiteboard (AFFiNE is the pick)
- Your team wants a self-hosted shared workspace (AppFlowy is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on OneNote features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
OneNote today: Free (Microsoft's OneNote web page is titled 'Take notes anywhere for free'; storage limits are not stated on the page) (OneNote pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Joplin
Compared with OneNote: Open-source (AGPL) notes with Markdown, available on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. You lose OneNote's freeform canvas and ink-style layout, but gain end-to-end encrypted sync through Dropbox, OneDrive or other services you already use.
Price: Free (open-source note app; Joplin Cloud is the paid sync option) (Joplin pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Terminal. AGPL-3.0-or-later (open source).
Project activity: 56.9k GitHub stars · latest release v3.7.21 (Sep 25, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Markdown notes you control.
Obsidian
Compared with OneNote: Core app is free with no limits, and notes are plain files on your disk. It has no freeform page canvas like OneNote, but linking notes and local storage make it a strong second brain; Sync is a separate $4 a month add-on.
Price: Free (core app with no limits, including commercial use); paid from $4 per user/month, billed annually (Sync add-on; $5 billed monthly) (Obsidian pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Linked notes stored as local files.
Logseq
Compared with OneNote: Free, AGPL outliner on desktop and web. You swap OneNote's notebook-section-page layout for daily journals and block links, which suits quick capture and research but is a different way of organising.
Price: Free (open-source outliner and knowledge base with no paid plan listed) (Logseq pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, Web, iOS. AGPL-3.0 (open source).
Project activity: 45.4k GitHub stars · latest release 2.0.2 (Oct 7, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Outliner-style daily notes.
AppFlowy
Compared with OneNote: Open-source workspace with a free Personal plan: 100 MB storage and 7-day history, and a self-hosted option. It covers notes and light databases, though it is younger than OneNote and has less polish on handwriting.
Price: Free (Personal plan with 1 workspace owner, 100 MB of storage, 7 MB uploads and 7-day version history); paid from $12 per member/month, billed annually ($16 billed monthly, Pro) (AppFlowy pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Self-hosted. AGPL-3.0 (open source).
Project activity: 77.8k GitHub stars · latest release 0.14.11 (Oct 26, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Self-hostable all-in-one notes.
AFFiNE
Compared with OneNote: MIT-licensed, with local workspaces that stay free and a Cloud Basic tier of 10 GB for up to 3 members. It mixes docs with a whiteboard, which is the nearest thing here to OneNote's open canvas.
Price: Free (local workspaces; Cloud Basic has 10 GB of storage, up to 3 members and 10 MB files); paid from $6.75 per month (Pro; the page does not name the billing term) (AFFiNE pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted. MIT (open source).
Project activity: 73.9k GitHub stars · latest release v0.27.4 (Aug 18, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Docs plus whiteboard in one place.
Notion
Compared with OneNote: Free for individuals with unlimited pages, but 5 MB files and 7-day history. It is more structured than OneNote, with databases and templates, and weaker at free-form clipping and ink.
Price: Free (unlimited pages and blocks for individuals but limited for workspaces of 2 or more members, 5 MB per file, 10 guests, 7-day page history); paid from $10 per member/month (Plus; check the pricing page for the billing term) (Notion pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Structured pages and databases.
Other popular options (paid)
Evernote
Compared with OneNote: Evernote Free is capped at 50 notes, 1 notebook, 1 synced device and 1 GB of storage; paid Starter, Advanced and Unlimited plans lift those caps. OneNote's page states no comparable note cap.
Price: Free (50 notes, 1 notebook, 5 spaces, 20 tags, 200 attachments, 1 synced device, 1 GB storage) (Evernote pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Which one to pick
- You want Markdown notes that sync through storage you choose: Joplin
- You link ideas and want plain files on your own disk: Obsidian
- You miss OneNote's free canvas and want docs with a whiteboard: AFFiNE
- Your team wants a self-hosted shared workspace: AppFlowy
Limits of this review
Docs-only for Joplin, Obsidian, Logseq, AppFlowy, AFFiNE, Notion: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from OneNote. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you buy or migrate.
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Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-23: OneNote, Joplin, Obsidian, Logseq, AppFlowy, AFFiNE, Notion, Evernote. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.