Gasp

Gasp vs Obsidian

Obsidian and Gasp are both apps for writing notes. Both keep your notes as ordinary text files in a folder on your computer, which Obsidian calls a vault. Because of that, you can open your Obsidian vault in Gasp today and keep using Obsidian too. Obsidian has thousands of add-ons and a map of how your notes link together. Gasp opens much faster, syncs your notes for free, can lock notes with a password and lets AI assistants work in your notes.

Which one fits you

Obsidian fits if you

Gasp fits if you

ObsidianGasp

Pick what you need from either list.

Measured side by side

Time from opening the app to a note you can type in
Gasp
0.42 s
Obsidian
4.66 s

We recorded the screen of a MacBook Pro with an M2 Pro chip. We quit each app first, then timed it from the moment we opened it until a note appeared.

How much of the processor the app uses while a note is open
Gasp
0.9 %
Obsidian
1.7 %

Measured on a Mac with one note open and nobody typing. Lower is better, because it leaves more of your computer free for other things.

Feature by feature

TopicGaspObsidian
Price
Free.
Free.
Your notes
Ordinary text files (Markdown) in a folder on your computer.
Ordinary text files (Markdown) in a folder on your computer.
Sync
Free. Gasp syncs through your own iCloud Drive or GitHub account.
Obsidian Sync costs $4 a month or more. You can also set up iCloud or another service yourself.
Locked notes
You can lock any note with a password. Nobody can read it without that password.
Obsidian can't lock a note. Obsidian Sync scrambles your notes before they leave your computer, but the notes on your computer stay readable.
AI assistants
AI assistants like Claude, Cursor and Codex can read and edit your notes. You connect one with a click in Gasp's settings.
Possible through add-ons that other people have written.
Math
Equations written in LaTeX show as finished math while you type. Shortcuts for typing math are built in.
Equations written in LaTeX show as finished math. Shortcuts for typing math need an add-on.
Add-ons
Gasp has no add-ons yet. You change how it works in its settings, or you ask an AI assistant to change them for you.
Over 9,000 add-ons and 900 themes, made by other people who use Obsidian.
Graph view, Canvas and Bases
Gasp has none of these. Instead, the sidebar lists every note that links to the one you have open.
Obsidian has all three built in.
Computers and phones
Mac and Linux today. Windows and iPhone apps are coming.
Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone, iPad and Android.
Working with others
A team can share one folder of notes through GitHub. Each person's changes reach the others within a few minutes.
Obsidian Sync, which is paid, can share a vault with other people.

Moving from Obsidian

  1. Download Gasp and open it.
  2. Choose Open a folder and pick your Obsidian vault. Your vault is the folder with a hidden .obsidian folder inside it. If Gasp already has a vault open, use Open another vault instead.
  3. Gasp offers to Import settings from Obsidian. Say yes to bring over your keyboard shortcuts, fonts, accent color and attachment folder.
  4. You can keep Obsidian installed. When you save a note in one app, the other app shows the change.

Questions

Can Gasp open my Obsidian vault?

Yes. Gasp opens the vault folder as it is. Links between notes, embedded notes, callouts, highlights, tags, math, footnotes and checklists all look the way they do in Obsidian. Gasp keeps its own settings in a separate .gasp folder. It never changes Obsidian's .obsidian folder.

Do Obsidian plugins work in Gasp?

No. Instead, Gasp has many popular plugin features built in. These include math shortcuts, a table editor, footnote tools and a timer that tracks how long you spend writing each note. You can change how Gasp works in its settings, or ask an AI assistant to change the settings for you.

Is Gasp faster than Obsidian?

Yes, in our test. We recorded both apps on a MacBook Pro with an M2 Pro chip. Gasp had a note ready to type in 0.42 seconds after we opened it. Obsidian took 4.66 seconds. One reason is that Gasp is a native app written in Rust. Obsidian is built on Electron, which runs the app inside a hidden web browser.

How do I sync my vault without paying for Obsidian Sync?

Turn on sync in Gasp's settings. Gasp can sync your vault through your own iCloud Drive, or through a private folder on GitHub that Gasp sets up for you. Both are free. If you change the same line on two computers, Gasp shows both versions side by side. You pick the one to keep.

Does Gasp have a graph view?

No. Instead, the sidebar shows the notes that link to the note you have open, the notes it links to, its headings and its tags.

Try Gasp

Download Gasp