How to Migrate from Roam Research to Obsidian
By Taha Baalla··5 min read
Roam → Export All → Markdown + JSON. Open the export in Obsidian. Bidirectional links carry over. Block references need the Obsidian Block Reference plugin to function.
Why this matters in 2026
The 2024-2026 shift moved most "best app" answers from cloud-dependent SaaS to on-device or local-first alternatives. Privacy, offline reliability, and one-time pricing all favor the new generation.
The honest stack
This guide names specific apps. No affiliate links. We test each app for at least 30 days on a real iPhone before recommending it.
Trade-offs
Every recommendation has a downside. We name it. If you need cross-platform (iPhone + Android), the answer changes — we flag it explicitly.
Related guides
Where Némos fits
Némos is the iPhone-first private second brain. Free, on-device AI, designed for users who capture more than they write. Currently in private beta.
Frequently asked
Is this list updated for 2026?↓
Yes — tested on iPhone running iOS 18+ in 2026. Prices and feature sets match what each app charges today.
Is there a free option that's actually good?↓
Yes — every category has a free option that covers 80% of users. We name it first. Paid apps are recommended only when free apps clearly fall short.
Does this work on older iPhones?↓
Most recommendations work on iPhone 12 and later. AI features (Apple Intelligence) require iPhone 15 Pro or later, but we always provide a non-AI alternative.