Joplin vs Obsidian
A data comparison of two productivity apps for macOS. Figures come from Homebrew metadata and 30-day install analytics; this page does not contain subjective reviews.
Bottom line: Choose Obsidian for a larger user base (19,786 vs 463 installs in 30 days), which usually means more tutorials and faster answers.
| Joplin | Obsidian | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | GUI app | GUI app |
| Category | Productivity | Productivity |
| Open source | Yes (inferred) | Not declared |
| Licence | Not declared | Not declared |
| Apple silicon | Universal | Universal |
| Latest version | 3.7.21 | 1.14.5 |
| Dependencies | 0 | 0 |
| Installs (30 days) | 463 | 19,786 |
| Install command | brew install --cask joplin | brew install --cask obsidian |
Which one should you install?
- Choose Obsidian for a larger user base (19,786 vs 463 installs in 30 days), which usually means more tutorials and faster answers.
Install either with one command:
How to read this comparison
Only published Homebrew facts are compared: package type, category, licence, architecture, version, dependency count and 30-day install volume. A larger install count means more people install the app through Homebrew; it is not a quality score. Data updated 2026-10-26.