Free alternatives to AFFiNE
AFFiNE puts a document and a whiteboard in the same object, which is genuinely useful, but a few limits push people to look around. The free plan caps you at 3 logged-in devices and 10 MB per file, and because it ships fast, sync and rendering bugs still surface (as of July 2026). These free tools keep the docs-and-canvas idea, or trade the canvas for something more settled.
Facts checked as of July 2026Read our AFFiNE review
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Obsidian
Best Free Alternative ToAFFiNEPairs a Markdown editor with a built-in infinite canvas and keeps every note as a plain file you own, far more stable than AFFiNE and free for personal use
Obsidian is the closest match to what AFFiNE does, minus the instability: a document editor with a built-in infinite canvas, so you keep the notes-and-whiteboard combination. Every note is a plain Markdown file in a folder you control, and the community plugin library is over a thousand deep, all free for personal use with no device cap (as of July 2026). The difference people feel most is maturity, because AFFiNE ships fast and Obsidian rarely surprises you. The catches are that the core is closed source and sync across devices is a paid add-on at $4 per user per month billed annually, unless you use iCloud, Dropbox, or Git.
- Free plan, paid from $4/month (as of July 2026)
- Canada
Canada- Best for:
- AFFiNE users who want the docs-and-canvas combination in plain files they own, with fewer sync surprises
- The catch:
- It is closed source with no real-time collaboration, and device sync is a paid add-on.
Compared to AFFiNE
- Advantage: Notes are plain Markdown files you own, where AFFiNE keeps them in its own store
- Advantage: Built-in infinite canvas, so you keep AFFiNE's docs-and-whiteboard idea
- Advantage: Free for personal use with no device cap, where AFFiNE limits you to 3 logged-in devices
- Advantage: More stable and mature, with a plugin library over a thousand deep
- Tradeoff: Closed source, where AFFiNE's client is MIT licensed
- Tradeoff: Sync across devices is $4 per user per month, where AFFiNE syncs free on its plan
- Tradeoff: No real-time collaboration, which AFFiNE offers
The closest open source workspace with real database views, self-hostable under clean AGPL-3.0 with no separate server license
AppFlowy is the pick when the part of AFFiNE you used was the workspace, not the whiteboard. You get a block editor with slash commands plus grid, board, and calendar database views, real-time collaboration, and local-first storage that works offline. The hosted free plan covers one workspace of up to 2 members with 5 GB, and self-hosting the AGPL-3.0 stack removes those caps if you can run Docker (as of July 2026). Its licensing is simpler than AFFiNE's, where the client is MIT but the server directory carries its own terms. The trade is that it has no infinite canvas and its database relations and rollups are still shallow.
- Free plan, paid from $10/month (as of July 2026)
- Singapore
- Open source (AGPL-3.0)
Singapore- Best for:
- AFFiNE users who leaned on databases and want a fully open source, self-hostable workspace
- The catch:
- There is no whiteboard, the hosted free plan stops at 2 members, and database depth is limited.
Compared to AFFiNE
- Advantage: Database views (grid, board, calendar) go deeper than AFFiNE's
- Advantage: Fully AGPL-3.0 including the server, without AFFiNE's separate server-directory license
- Advantage: Self-hosting removes the member and storage caps, the same idea as AFFiNE but simpler licensing
- Worth knowing: Local-first and works offline, like AFFiNE
- Tradeoff: No infinite whiteboard, which is AFFiNE's signature
- Tradeoff: Hosted free plan caps you at 2 members, tighter than AFFiNE's 3
- Tradeoff: Younger database engine, so relations and rollups are shallow
The polished, stable cloud workspace with mature databases and collaboration, and a free plan that is generous for individuals
Notion is the answer if AFFiNE's rough edges were the problem and you do not mind a cloud-only app. It gives you docs, databases, and shared pages in one place, with mature relations and collaboration and a free plan that is generous for individuals (as of July 2026). Where AFFiNE is young and fast-moving, Notion is settled and well documented. The tradeoffs are real: it is cloud-only, so it needs a connection where AFFiNE runs local-first and offline, it has no infinite whiteboard, and your pages live in Notion's database rather than files you hold.
- Free plan, paid from $10/month (as of July 2026)
- United States
United States- Best for:
- AFFiNE users who want mature databases and stability and are fine with a cloud-only workspace
- The catch:
- It is cloud-only, closed source, and has no whiteboard, and team use gets paid quickly.
Compared to AFFiNE
- Advantage: Far more stable and polished than AFFiNE
- Advantage: Mature databases and collaboration in a free plan that is generous for individuals
- Tradeoff: Cloud-only, so it needs a connection where AFFiNE works offline and local-first
- Tradeoff: No infinite whiteboard the way AFFiNE has one
- Tradeoff: Closed source and not self-hostable, where AFFiNE's client is MIT licensed
- Tradeoff: Your pages live in Notion's database, not files you hold
End-to-end encryption on every object by default, with unlimited local storage, where AFFiNE is not encrypted
Anytype is the choice when privacy outranks the whiteboard. Everything is encrypted on your device before it syncs peer-to-peer, local storage is unlimited on every tier, and structure comes from typed objects and relations rather than pages (as of July 2026). Free includes 100 MB of remote sync storage and 10 shared spaces, and paid tiers from $4 per month only buy more sync space. The catches are that it is source-available rather than OSI open source, there is no web app, and it has no infinite canvas to replace AFFiNE's.
- Free plan, paid from $4/month (as of July 2026)
- Switzerland
Switzerland- Best for:
- Privacy-first AFFiNE users who want encryption by default and structure across their notes
- The catch:
- Only 100 MB of free sync storage, no web app, no whiteboard, and a source-available license.
Compared to AFFiNE
- Advantage: End-to-end encrypted by default, which AFFiNE is not
- Advantage: Unlimited local storage, where AFFiNE's free cloud is 10 GB
- Advantage: Structure from typed objects and relations, not just pages
- Tradeoff: Only 100 MB of remote sync storage on free, against AFFiNE's 10 GB
- Tradeoff: Source-available, not OSI open source like AFFiNE's MIT client
- Tradeoff: No infinite whiteboard, and no web app
Fully open source outliner with local Markdown files and no paid tier, when you want notes and links more than a canvas
Logseq fits if the part of AFFiNE you actually used was writing and linking, not the whiteboard. It is a fully free AGPL-3.0 outliner that stores notes as local Markdown or Org files you own, opens to a daily journal, and links and queries at the block level (as of July 2026). There is no server-directory license to read and no paid tier to reach. The trade is that it has no whiteboard or databases, the outliner model suits bullets more than free-form pages, and official Sync is still a beta perk for backers.
- Completely free (as of July 2026)
- United States
- Open source (AGPL-3.0)
- Best for:
- AFFiNE users who mostly wrote and linked and want fully open source, local files
- The catch:
- There is no whiteboard or databases, and official sync is beta and limited to backers.
Compared to AFFiNE
- Advantage: Fully open source under AGPL-3.0 with no separate server license
- Advantage: Notes stay as local Markdown or Org files you own
- Advantage: Every feature is free, where AFFiNE gates storage behind Pro
- Tradeoff: No whiteboard or databases like AFFiNE's
- Tradeoff: The outliner model suits bullets, not free-form pages
- Tradeoff: Official sync is beta and limited to backers, where AFFiNE syncs free on its plan
Block references, a database, PDF annotation, and flashcards in one offline app, with sync as a one-time payment
SiYuan is the option when you want more inside the app than AFFiNE offers and you dislike subscriptions. It is a free-for-life AGPL-3.0 block-based knowledge base with block-level references, an attribute-view database, PDF annotation, and flashcards, all running fully offline (as of July 2026). Sync is a one-time payment: $64 through your own S3 or WebDAV, or $148 for official cloud sync, rather than a monthly Pro tier. The catches are that there is no infinite whiteboard, notes are stored as JSON rather than plain Markdown, and the English documentation is translated and rough.
- Free plan, paid from $64 one-time (as of July 2026)
- China
- Open source (AGPL-3.0)
China- Best for:
- AFFiNE users who want block references and PDF annotation offline and prefer paying once or never
- The catch:
- There is no whiteboard, notes are stored as JSON, and the English docs are rough.
Compared to AFFiNE
- Advantage: Fully AGPL-3.0 with no separate server license, unlike AFFiNE's split
- Advantage: Block references, database, PDF annotation, and flashcards built in
- Advantage: Sync is a one-time payment or free offline, no monthly Pro tier like AFFiNE's
- Tradeoff: No infinite whiteboard like AFFiNE's
- Tradeoff: Notes stored as JSON, and English docs are rough
- Tradeoff: No real-time collaboration, which AFFiNE offers
How to choose
If you want that document-and-canvas pairing but with plain files you own and far more stability, Obsidian is the switch, though its core is closed and Sync costs $4 per user per month. If databases were what you leaned on, AppFlowy is the closest open source workspace and Notion the polished cloud one. For self-hosting without AFFiNE's separate server-directory license, AppFlowy, SiYuan, and Logseq all run on your own machine under clean AGPL-3.0 terms. Pick Anytype when encryption by default matters more than the whiteboard.