Roam Research vs Obsidian 2024

Which one should you use?

With the exciting rise of bi-directional linking in the note taking space, it has completely transformed the way we take notes. And of course, with every new shiny product, the question everyone wants to know, which one should you use? As a disclaimer, I use and enjoy both!

Let’s start with the similarities. Roam and Obsidian both use bi-directional links as a fundamental building block which can provide context between notes. These notes can then be represented visually as nodes to form a knowledge graph, essentially creating a second brain.

But what sets these two apart asides from pricing and features (e.g. online vs offline, markdown, etc)?

Optimization

The biggest difference between the two is what they’re designed to optimize for. Using Notion as a benchmark for optimization, Notion optimizes for curation and organization, while Roam optimizes for creation and ideation. Obsidian is in that sweet spot in the middle.

In this sense, Roam is more opinionated than Obsidian. When you open Roam, it greets you with a blank daily notes page. It operates under the idea that the only thing that’s really constant in your notes, is time. The interface encourages you to write, letting Roam handle the organization for you…