Okay so I’m a grad student working on my thesis and need to pick a note-taking app.
Tried Notion for a bit but it feels kinda slow?? And Obsidian looks kinda hard to learn?
My use case:
– Thesis writing (lots of long docs)
– Some coding notes for data analysis
– Need it to sync across laptop + phone
– Budget: literally broke student lol
Anyone who switched between these?? Which one actually worth the learning curve??
Halp pls
PhD student here. wrote my entire thesis in Obsidian. AMA.
why Obsidian for thesis:
- backlinks = perfect for lit review
- graph view = see how ideas connect
- local files = never lose work
- markdown = export to anything
tip: use the Zettelkassen method. each note = one idea. link everything.
saved me hundreds of hours. feel free to DM if you want my vault structure.
thesis is brutal, been there. here’s my advice:
Notion – easy but you’re locked in. export can be messy. fine for collab tho
Obsidian – once it clicks, it’s INSANE. the graph view alone is worth it for literature review. steep curve but worth the investment
Craft – pretty but limited. apple users only basically
my pick for thesis: Obsidian. the linking is built for research. you can literally see how ideas connect.
also – whatever you pick, BACKUP. lost 2 months of notes to a sync bug once. never again 😩
hi! i’m writing my thesis and was SO confused about this too 😅
basically what i figured out:
- Notion = good for structured stuff, easy to learn, but privacy concerns for thesis??
- Obsidian = local first, connect ideas with links, STEEP learning curve but worth it
- Craft = pretty apple vibes, limited export options
i ended up going with Obsidian because my advisor said local is safer and the linking feature is 🔥 for literature review
but honestly? just pick one and START. don’t spend weeks deciding like i did lol
happy to share my vault structure if you want! 🙏
Quick framework for your decision:
1. **Solo vs Team?** Solo = Obsidian, Team = Notion
2. **Apple ecosystem?** = Craft
3. **Budget?** Obsidian is free, Notion/Craft have paid plans
**For thesis (solo work):**
Obsidian is the clear winner. Local-first means no sync issues, and the plugin ecosystem is massive.
We switched our startup to Obsidian for internal docs. Saved $500/mo vs Notion.
