How to sync markdown notes across devices: every option compared

A folder of markdown files syncs like any other folder. Put it in iCloud Drive, Dropbox, Google Drive or OneDrive, or pair your devices with Syncthing, and the files travel. Developers can commit and push the folder with git. A notes app with its own sync service adds encryption, merging and history: Jotura Sync does this for the Jotura app, and Obsidian Sync for Obsidian.

Your phone narrows the choice. iPhones and Android phones restrict which folders an app can open and how long a sync app may run in the background. The second question is what happens when you edit one note on two devices before they catch up, because most file-sync tools leave you two files to reconcile. The table compares every option on both.

The options side by side

Prices were checked on each vendor’s site on October 10, 2026. “E2EE” means end-to-end encryption: notes are encrypted on your device, and the service holding them cannot read them.

Option	iOS and Android	E2EE	Two edits to one note	Version history	Cost	Setup
Jotura Sync	Android in the Jotura app, no iOS	Yes, always	Automatic merge for text. Local copy wins for images and PDFs	Three years	£4 or $5/mo, £40 or $50/yr	Low
iCloud Drive	iOS yes, Android no	Only with Advanced Data Protection	Duplicate files	Deleted files for 30 days	5 GB free, 50 GB $0.99/mo	Low
Dropbox	Through Remotely Save in Obsidian	No	Conflicted copy file	30 days on Basic	2 GB free, three devices	Low
Google Drive	Through Remotely Save PRO in Obsidian	No	No text merge	30 days or 100 versions	15 GB free	Low
OneDrive	Through Remotely Save in Obsidian, or FolderSync on Android	No	Copy with a device name added	30 days	5 GB free	Low
Syncthing	Android via Syncthing-Fork, iOS via third-party apps	No server stores your files	Conflict file	Optional, per device	Free	Medium to high
Git	iOS via Working Copy (paid to push), Android plugin unstable	No	Merge, or a conflict you fix by hand	Every commit	Free	High
Obsidian Sync	Both	Yes, by default	Automatic merge	1 month Standard, 12 months Plus	$4 or $8/mo yearly, $5 or $10/mo monthly	Low
Remotely Save, Self-hosted LiveSync	Both, inside Obsidian	Optional	Detect, keep newer, or merge, by plugin and tier	Depends on your storage	Free plugin plus storage	Medium to high

Sources: Apple, Dropbox, Google One, Microsoft, Obsidian, Jotura.

Why phones are the hard part

Phones break the desktop model, where every sync tool watches a normal folder that any editor can open.

iOS gives each app a sandboxed container, and Obsidian on iPhone opens vaults only inside its own folder or in iCloud Drive/Obsidian. Obsidian’s sync guide lists Dropbox, Google Drive and OneDrive as unsupported on iOS. For Android it names FolderSync as a bridge for OneDrive and points Google Drive users toward plugins such as Remotely Save.

Background time is the other limit. Mobile systems suspend apps that are off screen to save battery. The Möbius Sync FAQ states: “No iOS app can run continuously in the background.” It estimates one to two hours of sync activity a day. On Android, battery optimization stops a sync app unless you exempt it.

The conflict copy problem

File-sync services see whole files. When one note changes on two devices before either uploads, the service cannot merge two edits to a text file, so it keeps both:

• Dropbox adds the editor’s name, “conflicted copy” and the date to the second file (Dropbox help).
• OneDrive appends the device name, as in Report-JOHNS-SURFACE.txt. Microsoft documents this on its troubleshooting page for work or school accounts.
• Syncthing renames the older file to <filename>.sync-conflict-<date>-<time>-<modifiedBy>.<ext> (Syncthing docs).

Each copy then syncs everywhere as a near-duplicate note, and you merge the two by hand.

Autosave raises the odds, since a note left open on a laptop keeps saving while you edit it on your phone. Obsidian’s help warns that iCloud Drive on Windows “may lead to file duplication or corruption.”

With any file-sync tool, wait for sync to finish on the phone before you type, and close a note on one device before editing it on another. Never point two sync services at one folder. Obsidian’s guide says to avoid that “to prevent data conflicts or corruption.”

Note-aware services merge the text themselves. Obsidian Sync merges markdown with Google’s diff-match-patch algorithm by default, and since version 1.9.7 you can switch it to create a conflict file instead (Obsidian help). Jotura Sync runs a three-way merge against the last version both devices agreed on.

Jotura Sync

Jotura is a markdown notes app for macOS, Windows, Linux and Android, with a paid sync service built in. The desktop app opens any folder of .md files as it stands, an Obsidian vault included. The server holds an encrypted copy, so no device has to stay switched on for the others to catch up.

Each note is encrypted on your device before upload, with its own key, and file paths become keyed hashes the server cannot reverse (how the encryption works). When a text note changes on two devices, Jotura merges the edits into the real file. A text file of 10,000 lines or more is too long to merge, so the incoming version is saved beside it as a conflict copy. An image or PDF changed on two devices keeps the local file, and the other edit survives only in version history (conflict rules). Every synced note keeps three years of version history.

You can share a folder or a single note with another Sync user, as an editor or a view-only member. Everyone in a share needs a Sync subscription.

The limits that matter here:

• There is no iOS app.
• The Android app keeps its vault in private app storage with no folder picker. Syncthing, Dropbox and iCloud cannot feed it, and Obsidian’s Android app cannot open it. It reaches your desktop notes only through Jotura Sync.
• It costs £4 or $5 a month, or £40 or $50 a year, with no free trial. That is close to Obsidian Sync Standard.
• Sync runs inside the Jotura apps. Edits made in other apps, Obsidian included, upload while the Jotura desktop app is running, or on its next launch. Dot-prefixed folders such as .obsidian never sync.
• Each file can be up to 16 MiB, or 95 MiB for books.
• Jotura is closed source, and your encrypted notes pass through its server. Syncthing keeps every copy on your own devices.

When a subscription lapses, the plain files stay on your devices, and sync resumes when you subscribe again.

Cloud drives: iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive

Move the vault inside the drive folder and reopen it from there. Keep the vault fully downloaded by turning off “online only,” Files On-Demand or optimized storage for that folder, because an editor expects every file on disk.

iCloud Drive is the easiest free option for an all-Apple setup. On iPhone and iPad, Obsidian expects the vault at iCloud Drive/Obsidian/<vault name> and needs no extra apps. Android has no iCloud Drive client. Files are end-to-end encrypted only with Advanced Data Protection turned on. Apple’s support page, last updated September 22, 2025, says Apple can no longer offer that feature to new users in the UK and will give existing UK users more guidance.

Dropbox, Google Drive and OneDrive suit a Windows or Linux desktop. None of the three end-to-end encrypts files on its personal plans. Free tiers cover most text-only vaults. Dropbox Basic allows only three signed-in devices.

Syncthing

Syncthing copies a folder directly between your own devices over an encrypted connection. It is free and open source, and it needs no account because no server keeps your files. You pair devices by entering each one’s device ID on the other, then choose which folders each device gets.

The project’s discovery servers help devices find each other. Each device announces its ID and listening ports to them every 30 minutes, so they see your IP addresses, and relays used when a direct connection fails see device IDs (security docs). You can turn both off, at the cost of devices outside your home network becoming harder to reach.

Two devices sync only while both are on and connected. A note written on a laptop that then goes to sleep reaches your phone when the laptop wakes. The usual fix is an always-on member, such as a home server, a NAS or a Raspberry Pi, that every device syncs with. Syncthing can also treat a rented server as an untrusted device that stores only encrypted data, but its docs call that feature “beta / testing only.”

Syncthing vs a hosted sync service

	Syncthing	Jotura Sync	Obsidian Sync
Cost	Free	£4 or $5 a month	$4 to $10 a month
Source code	Open source	Closed source	Closed source
Always-on device	Needed unless your devices are often on together	Not needed	Not needed
Phones	Community apps, sync mostly while open on iOS	Official Android app, no iOS	Official apps on iOS and Android
Two edits to one note	Conflict file	Merged for text	Merged by default
Where history lives	On each device, optional	Jotura’s servers, 3 years	Obsidian’s servers, 1 or 12 months
What a server learns	Device IDs and IP addresses, unless you turn discovery off	Your encrypted notes, plus device names, the vault’s folder name and shared names	Your encrypted vault

Syncthing on Android

The official Syncthing Android app shipped its final release in December 2024. Its maintainer announced the retirement that October, citing difficulty publishing to Google Play. The community fork, Syncthing-Fork, carries on, and version 2.1.5.0 reached F-Droid on September 11, 2026. It is also published on the project’s GitHub releases page.

Its welcome wizard asks you to turn off battery optimization for the app, which keeps Android from stopping it. The folder it writes on the phone opens only in an app with a folder picker. Jotura’s Android app keeps its vault in private storage and syncs only through Jotura Sync.

Syncthing on iPhone

The Syncthing team has no plans for an iOS app. Synctrain is free, and its source is published under the MPL-2.0 license as Sushitrain. Möbius Sync is free up to 20 MB in its own storage, and a $4.99 one-time purchase unlocks unlimited sync, including folders that belong to other apps.

Both apps keep synced folders in their own storage by default, where a notes app cannot open them, and both can point at another app’s folder instead. Möbius Sync calls its Pick External Folder option “DANGEROUS” in its FAQ and asks you to keep backups. Jotura has no iOS app, so an iPhone needs a different editor for the synced folder.

Ignore patterns for a vault

Editors keep per-device state inside the vault, and syncing it breeds conflict copies. Create a .stignore file at the root of the shared folder:

// Layout files Obsidian rewrites whenever you open a note
.obsidian/workspace.json
.obsidian/workspace-mobile.json
// Local trash and per-device app state
.trash
.jotura
// OS clutter, removable so folder deletes can go through
(?d).DS_Store
(?d)Thumbs.db

Obsidian’s data storage page confirms that workspace.json changes whenever you open a file. Sync the rest of .obsidian to share plugins and themes, or ignore the whole folder so each device keeps its own setup. Excluding .jotura has one side effect: a note you delete in Jotura leaves its recoverable trash copy on the machine where you deleted it.

Syncthing never syncs .stignore itself (ignore docs). It can #include a file that does sync, so keep the patterns in a synced file such as .stglobalignore and give each device a one-line .stignore:

#include .stglobalignore

Version history in Syncthing

Turn on versioning for the folder and replaced files go into a .stversions folder. There are four types: Trash Can, Simple, Staggered and External, which hands the job to your own script (versioning docs).

Syncthing archives only changes that arrive from other devices. An edit you make locally does not save the old file on that machine. Versions also stay on the device that kept them, so a lost or stolen laptop takes its history with it.

Git

Git keeps every commit with its diff, back to the first day. Edits to different parts of a note merge cleanly when you pull. Nothing syncs until you run the commands. Set it up once:

cd ~/notes
git init
printf '.obsidian/workspace.json\n.obsidian/workspace-mobile.json\n.trash/\n.jotura/\n' > .gitignore
git add -A
git commit -m "Initial notes"
git branch -M main
git remote add origin [email protected]:<you>/notes.git
git push -u origin main

Start each session by pulling. The --autostash flag sets aside any uncommitted edits during the pull and puts them back afterward:

git pull --rebase --autostash

End each session by committing, then pulling in anything another device pushed, then pushing:

git add -A
git commit -m "Notes"
git pull --rebase
git push

The Obsidian Git plugin can run these on a schedule, though its README warns that “the Git implementation on mobile is very unstable.” On iPhone, the Working Copy app can hold the repository, and pushing commits needs its paid Pro unlock. A private repository on a host such as GitHub is readable by that host.

Obsidian Sync

Obsidian Sync works on macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android, encrypts end to end by default, and merges concurrent markdown edits. When you create a remote vault you can pick standard encryption instead, in which case Obsidian holds the keys (security page).

	Sync Standard	Sync Plus
Price, billed yearly	$4 a month	$8 a month
Price, billed monthly	$5 a month	$10 a month
Synced vaults	1	10
Storage	1 GB	10 GB, upgradable to 100 GB
Largest file	5 MB	200 MB
Note history	1 month	12 months

Attachment versions are kept for two weeks (version history). After a subscription expires, remote vault data is kept for one month and local vaults are untouched (Sync FAQ).

Both plans include shared vaults, end-to-end encrypted like any other remote vault, with up to 20 collaborators. Every collaborator needs a Sync subscription. Sharing covers a whole vault, and collaborators get the owner’s permissions except the right to invite.

Remotely Save, LiveSync and similar plugins

These community plugins run inside Obsidian on every platform, including iOS, which sidesteps the folder problem.

Remotely Save syncs through storage you already have: S3-compatible buckets, Dropbox, WebDAV servers such as Nextcloud, or OneDrive’s app folder in the free version. Set a password and it encrypts files before upload. Automatic sync runs on a schedule while Obsidian is open. The free version detects conflicts and leaves them to you. PRO Connect resolves a conflict by keeping the newer file, and PRO Merge merges markdown and adds Google Drive and other backends. PRO is free during its beta until January 1, 2027, with the price to be set later (remotelysave.com).

Self-hosted LiveSync syncs continuously through a CouchDB database, S3-compatible storage or a peer-to-peer WebRTC connection. It encrypts end to end and merges simple conflicts automatically. You run or rent the server, which makes it the hardest plugin to set up.

Which one to choose

Your devices and needs	Fits
Desktop and Android, end-to-end encryption, merges and three years of history, no server to run	Jotura Sync
Share one folder or note, with view-only members	Jotura Sync
An iPhone or iPad in the mix, and you stay with Obsidian	Obsidian Sync, or iCloud Drive for an all-Apple setup with no budget
Share a whole vault with a team on iPhone and Android	Obsidian Sync
Desktops plus an always-on box, free, nothing stored on a company’s server	Syncthing
Developer at a keyboard who wants full history	Git
Stay inside Obsidian on existing storage, no subscription	Remotely Save

Jotura Sync costs £4 or $5 a month with no free trial, and it carries edits made in other apps only while the Jotura desktop app runs.

The coming from Obsidian page lists what carries over when you open an existing vault in Jotura.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sync an Obsidian vault without paying for Obsidian Sync?

Yes. A vault is a plain folder, so iCloud Drive, Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, Syncthing or git can carry it between desktops. On iPhone, iCloud Drive is the simplest free route. The Remotely Save plugin works on both phones with storage such as Dropbox, and Syncthing-Fork keeps a real folder in step on Android.

Is Syncthing better than a paid sync service?

Syncthing is free and open source, and it never stores your notes on a server, which makes it the stronger choice when your devices are often on together or you run an always-on machine. A hosted service such as Jotura Sync or Obsidian Sync needs no device to stay awake and merges concurrent edits. Jotura Sync costs £4 or $5 a month and has no iOS app, and Obsidian Sync costs $4 to $10 a month and runs on iPhones.

Does Syncthing work on iPhone?

There is no official Syncthing app for iOS. Synctrain, which is free, and Möbius Sync, which costs $4.99 to unlock unlimited sync, both run the Syncthing protocol on iPhone. iOS limits how long any app runs in the background, so the phone syncs mainly while the app is open.

Is the official Syncthing Android app still available?

No. It shipped its final release in December 2024. The community-maintained Syncthing-Fork continues it and is distributed through F-Droid and the project’s GitHub releases.

Why do I keep getting conflicted copy files?

Dropbox, OneDrive and Syncthing keep a second file whenever a note changes on two devices before they catch up, because they cannot merge text. It happens most when you open a note on your phone before sync finishes. Waiting for sync before you type prevents most of them, and a service that merges edits, such as Jotura Sync or Obsidian Sync, prevents the rest.