I stopped using Notion, Obsidian, and Google Keep after finding this underrated alternative

I regularly start my days without a cup of coffee or breakfast. Sure, that means I'll probably have a raging migraine for the rest of the day, but it's become a routine more often than I'd like to admit. You're probably wondering what my questionable breakfast habits have to do with an article about note-taking apps. Well, while I might be terrible at maintaining even the most basic routines, there's one habit I've managed to stick to religiously: taking notes.

I won't start a single morning without opening some sort of note-taking app. The problem, though, is that I've never been able to settle on a single app for doing so. Notion has been my go-to for organizing every aspect of my life for years, Obsidian is excellent for connecting ideas and managing research, and Google Keep is unmatched for jotting down quick thoughts. While each app serves its purpose, constantly jumping between three different platforms has become a headache of its own. So, I finally replaced all three with a single app.

AFFiNE is the all-in-one note-taking app I needed

My notes finally have a single home

AFFiNE (yes, it's intentionally spelled that way) is an open-source, local-first note-taking and knowledge management app that combines note-taking, databases, and an infinite whiteboard into a single workspace. My colleagues here at XDA have constantly praised the tool, and Nolen even went ahead and described it as a bit like Obsidian, Notion, Miro, and NotebookLM combined in a minimalist package.

The tool is available on Windows, macOS, and Linux as a desktop application, and you can also access it directly through your browser without downloading anything. There are mobile apps for iOS and Android, too. If you'd rather have complete control over where your data lives, AFFiNE also supports self-hosting through Docker Compose. Personally, though, that's not something I'd prefer, since I just don't have the hardware or patience to maintain a self-hosted setup when the desktop app works perfectly fine on its own.

It makes note-taking ridiculously easy

I didn't sign up for a course in note-taking

While Google Keep is fairly easy to use and a toddler could practically learn their way around the tool, Notion and Obsidian are a completely different story. Both of these tools come with a much steeper learning curve. I've spent hours upon hours setting up Notion databases and trying to figure out what even relations and rollups are supposed to do. Obsidian hasn't been much easier, either. Between getting used to Markdown, manually linking notes together to build a useful knowledge graph, and going down endless rabbit holes trying to find the right plugins, I've probably spent more time customizing my workspace than actually taking notes.

AFFiNE, though, is a breath of fresh air. Despite having an impressive number of features packed into one app, it's surprisingly easy to get the hang of. If you've used Notion before, the interface should feel immediately familiar. There's a sidebar on the left for navigating between your notes, and a clean, uncluttered editor that lets you get straight to writing. You don't need to spend hours setting up databases, configuring plugins, or learning Markdown syntax to get started.

What I particularly appreciate is that AFFiNE doesn't force you to use all its features at once. You can treat it like a simple note-taking app, creating documents and organizing them into folders, or take things a step further with tags, collections, and its infinite canvas. Everything is there when you need it, without making the basic act of taking notes feel unnecessarily complicated.

Unlike Notion, where I've often found myself spending more time building the perfect workspace than actually using it, AFFiNE makes it easy to start with a simple collection of notes and gradually introduce more advanced features as I need them. That said, I won't go as far as to claim that there's no learning curve at all and that you'll immediately know your way around every feature. Some of its more advanced tools still take a little getting used to, but for everyday note-taking, I've found AFFiNE considerably easier to get the hang of.

AFFiNE makes visual brainstorming part of my workflow

My whiteboard finally lives alongside my notes

The problem with using Notion, Obsidian, and Google Keep wasn't that any of these apps were inherently bad. It was more that my workflow was split across different apps, largely because my reasons for using each of them were different. Similarly, whenever I need to annotate something, sketch out an idea, or jot down handwritten notes, I'll often find myself turning to Goodnotes or Apple Notes, even when I'm working on my MacBook. So, while I might technically be using three apps for note-taking, the number of apps I actually rely on is considerably higher.

This is another area where AFFiNE has made my life easier. Its built-in infinite canvas, appropriately called Edgeless mode, lets me draw, annotate, and visually organize my ideas without needing to switch to a completely different app. There's a freehand drawing tool, along with shapes, arrows, sticky notes, and plenty of other elements you can add to the canvas. I can even bring existing documents into the mix, which makes it particularly useful when I'm researching an article or trying to make sense of a complicated topic.

You can also use the canvas to create mind maps, which is something I'd previously turn to tools like XMind or NotebookLM for. Being able to do all of this within the same workspace where I'm already taking notes means I have one less reason to constantly jump between applications.

AFFiNE is completely free for personal use

I've tried more note-taking apps over the years than I'd like to admit, and while plenty of them have impressed me, very few have managed to stick around for long. AFFiNE, though, has managed to earn itself a permanent spot in my workflow. It's not necessarily that it does everything better than Notion, Obsidian, or Google Keep, but rather that it brings the features I regularly use across all three into one place.

The cherry on top is that AFFiNE's core note-taking features are completely free to use. You get unlimited local workspaces, document editing, and access to its infinite canvas without paying a dime. The free plan even includes 10 GB of cloud storage, which is more than enough for my needs.

Of course, there are paid plans if you need more storage, support for larger files, or additional collaboration features, but I haven't felt the need to upgrade. There's also an optional AI add-on, but that's not something I'm particularly interested in paying for.