Obsidian Official Download
About Obsidian
Obsidian is a personal knowledge base and note-taking application built on local Markdown files. It was founded by Shida Li and Erica Xu, released its first beta in 2020 and reached version 1.0 in 2022. Every note is an ordinary .md text file stored on your computer's hard drive, and Obsidian states clearly that your data stays local and is not sent to its servers. As a result, your content is never locked into the platform, and you can open the same files in any other editor.
On Windows, Obsidian works well as a main tool for everyday writing, reading notes, project management and organizing knowledge. Links between notes tie scattered ideas together and let you build a personal wiki, while the graph view shows the network of connections between notes at a glance. Canvas adds an infinite whiteboard for sorting through material, mapping relationships and working out ideas visually. Obsidian provides a universal installer for Windows, and there is also a companion Web Clipper extension for browsers such as Chrome, Edge and Firefox that saves web content straight into your vault.
One of Obsidian's biggest strengths is how far it can be extended. Thousands of community plugins add features such as calendars, kanban boards, data queries and task management, and community themes let you reshape the interface to your own taste. Because the core is so small and the plugin ecosystem so large, the same app can serve as a simple notebook for one person and an elaborate research system for another.
The software is free for both personal and commercial use, and no account is required. If you need to sync notes across several devices, the optional paid Obsidian Sync service provides end-to-end encrypted syncing and keeps version history. If you want to share your notes, the optional paid Obsidian Publish service turns them into an online knowledge base or website. Neither service is needed to use the app itself.
Compared with cloud-based collaboration tools such as Notion, Obsidian leans toward private, long-term personal knowledge management. Your notes remain plain files in a folder on your Windows PC, readable by other software, while links, the graph view, Canvas and plugins sit on top of them to help you think and write.
Key features
- Local plain-text Markdown vaults
- Links between notes for a personal wiki
- Interactive graph view
- Infinite Canvas
- Thousands of community plugins and themes
- Web Clipper browser extension
- Optional end-to-end encrypted Sync with version history
- Optional Publish to the web
Official downloads
The SHA256 comes from the GitHub Release asset digest, so you can verify the file yourself. How to verify
The link points to the app’s official release channel; appwl does not rehost or modify files.
How to install
“Windows protected your PC”
SmartScreen shows this for apps without a paid signature. Click “More info”, then “Run anyway”.
Antivirus blocks it
Open-source apps are often flagged because they aren’t commercially signed. Check the SHA256 first, then allow it in your antivirus.
Won’t start, or a DLL is missing
Usually a missing runtime. Install Microsoft’s Visual C++ Redistributable (x64) and the .NET Desktop Runtime, then try again.
Check the file
Run this in Command Prompt and compare the result with the SHA256 listed for the cloud file:
certutil -hashfile "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\file-name" SHA256Alternatives
Joplin
Logseq
Notion
QOwnNotes
Changelog
Release notes
FAQ
How do I download Obsidian?
Obsidian is downloaded from its official channel: the “Official download” button on this page opens the official release page (github.com).
Is Obsidian free?
Obsidian license: 免费（专有软件，闭源）. appwl only lists official builds and charges nothing for downloads.
Which systems does Obsidian support?
This page offers Obsidian for Windows, version 1.14.5.
Is Obsidian from appwl safe?
appwl only lists official releases with their version and date. You can verify the SHA256 using the install tips on this page.