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Which notes app should you pick: Obsidian, SilverBullet or mdnest?

Three notes apps keep your notes as plain files. Answer three questions to find the one that fits how you work, and see where each one wins.

· Updated · 5 min read
Three notes apps, Obsidian, SilverBullet and mdnest, each in its own color, under the question: which notes app fits you?
In short
  • Obsidian, SilverBullet and mdnest all keep your notes as plain Markdown files, so you can leave any of them without losing your notes.
  • Pick Obsidian if you write alone on your own devices, SilverBullet if you want notes that run queries and scripts, and mdnest if other people or AI agents need the same notes.
  • Two of the three run on a server you control. Obsidian runs as an app on your own devices.
  • This post is on mdnest's own website. It says where each of the other two is the better choice.

You want your notes in plain files that you own. Good. Three popular tools do that, and they work in different ways. This post helps you pick one in about a minute.

If you want the full feature-by-feature table, it is on the comparison page. This post is shorter and answers a different question: given how you work, which one should you try first?

Answer three questions

A flowchart. Question 1: do other people or an AI agent need to work in the same notes? If yes, pick mdnest. Question 2: do you want your notes to run queries and small scripts? If yes, pick SilverBullet. Question 3: do you want to open your notes on any device from your own server? If yes, pick mdnest or SilverBullet. If no to all three, pick Obsidian.
Go down the list and stop at the first yes.

What each one is

ObsidianAn app you install on your computer and phone. Your notes are Markdown files in a folder on your device. It is free to use, including for work. It has more than 8,000 community plugins. Paid extras are optional: Sync to move notes between devices, and Publish to put notes on the web.
SilverBulletA small server you run yourself, with the notes opened in a web browser. Your notes are Markdown files in a folder on the server. It is free and open source (MIT). Its special feature is that a note can run queries and small scripts, written in a language called Lua, right next to the text.
mdnestA server you run yourself, with the notes opened in a web browser. Your notes are Markdown files in folders on the server. It is free and open source (MIT). Its special feature is sharing: logins and roles for a team, editing together at the same time, and ways for scripts and AI agents to read and write the same notes.

The same three, side by side

Obsidian SilverBullet mdnest
Where it runs ✓an app on your own devices ✓your server (Docker or one program) ✓your server (Docker)
Phone ✓iOS and Android apps ✓installable web app ✓web page, added to the home screen
Works without internet ✓files are on your device ✓after the first sync ✗the server must be reachable
Several people ✗single-user app; live editing only through plugins ~accounts and per-space roles; live editing not documented ✓roles, SSO and live editing
AI agents ~CLI needs the app open ✗no official MCP server found ✓MCP, CLI and API
Cost ✓free; Sync from USD 4 per month, optional ✓free ✓free

✓ yes~ partly, or with a catch✗ no

Six situations and the pick for each

You are... Try first Why
Writing alone on a laptop, sometimes offline Obsidian The app is quick, your files stay on your device, and the plugin library is the biggest of the three
Keeping a personal wiki and you like to tinker SilverBullet Notes can run queries and scripts, so a page can build its own lists
Running a team wiki mdnest Logins, roles, SSO, comments and live editing are built in
Wanting Claude or another AI to read and write your notes mdnest It has an MCP server, a command line tool and an API, and edits are checked so an agent cannot silently overwrite yours
Wanting your notes on your phone with no sync fee mdnest or SilverBullet One server holds one copy, and every device opens it. Obsidian can do this with Sync (paid) or a sync tool you set up
Wanting to publish notes as a public website Obsidian It has Publish (USD 8 per site per month on annual billing) for this

You can use more than one

All three keep your notes as plain files, so you can leave any of them. mdnest also works on a plain folder, so you can point it at an existing Obsidian vault and keep using Obsidian on the same files. You can use Obsidian on your laptop to write, and mdnest on a server to share and to let agents read the same folder.

When mdnest is the wrong pick

  • You only write on one laptop and never share. Obsidian is simpler: there is no server to run.
  • You need your notes on a plane or in a place with no signal, and you do not want to rely on a sync step. Obsidian keeps working with no connection.
  • You want a large plugin library. Obsidian's is far bigger than anything else here.
  • You want notes that run queries and scripts. SilverBullet is built for that.
The mdnest editor in the browser: a folder tree of Markdown notes on the left and a note with a table and a checklist on the right
mdnest in a browser: the same .md files, in folders on your server.

How much work is the setup

What you do About how long
Obsidian Install the app and open a folder A few minutes
SilverBullet Run its Docker image or its server program, then open the address A few minutes if you know Docker
mdnest Download one Docker Compose file and run it, following the Quick Start Not timed yet

The times for Obsidian and SilverBullet are our estimates. They depend on how much you already know about the tools.

If you want to open your server from your phone without exposing it to the internet, the Tailscale guide shows one way that takes about ten minutes.

A checklist to pick yours

  • I know if other people need to work in my notes.
  • I know if an AI agent should read and write them.
  • I know if I need them without internet.
  • I know if I am happy to run a small server.
  • I tried the first pick for a week on real notes before moving everything.

Sources

Checked on 2026-10-13 at each project's own website, docs or repository.

Written by Engineering leader; mdnest is one of his open-source projects.