Notion, Evernote, Google Docs... I've tried them all. I chose Obsidian. Here's why.


🗂️ What Obsidian is
A Markdown file editor. Your notes are .md files on your hard drive. Not in a proprietary cloud. If Obsidian disappears tomorrow, your files stay.


💰 Free for personal use. No note limits. No subscription.


⚡ Ultra fast
10,000 files? Zero slowdown. Full vault search in milliseconds.


🔗 Bidirectional links
Type [[file name]] and it's linked. Obsidian creates an interconnected knowledge web. Like your brain.


🤖 AI-compatible
An MCP server (Model Context Protocol) connects Obsidian to Claude Code. The AI can read, write, and organize your vault directly. This is the key piece of the entire system.


How I structured my vault:


Main folder ~/SJA/ with:
• Meetings/ → 400 Zoom meeting summaries
• Notion/ → 7,837 imported files
• Workflowy.md → 1.8 million characters
• LinkedIn Posts - Feb 2026.md → schedule and content


Setup in 5 minutes:
1. Download Obsidian (obsidian.md)
2. Create a vault (= a folder)
3. Create subfolders by topic
4. Install the "MCP Tools" plugin to connect AI


Markdown takes 10 minutes to learn. # for headings, ** for bold, • for lists. That's all you need.


Next post: how I imported 10 years of Workflowy and Notion notes.


Already using Obsidian? Or still on Notion?