Heptabase
Visual note-taking workspace that maps notes, PDFs, and research on whiteboards.
About
Heptabase is a note-taking tool built for visual learners: notes live as cards on infinite whiteboards, so research, reading, and thinking stay spatially organized instead of buried in folders. It leans into deep work with PDF annotation, YouTube transcripts, tags, and AI insights that summarize and connect material, with real-time sync across web, desktop, and mobile.
It has found a loyal niche among researchers, students, and knowledge workers who find Obsidian too fiddly and Notion too database-y, trading plugin ecosystems for an opinionated, beautiful out-of-the-box experience.
Limitations: there is no free tier — it costs roughly $12/month ($9/month billed yearly) with only a 7-day trial, which is a hard sell next to free Obsidian. The company is small, so buyers are betting on its longevity, and export is Markdown/PDF only.
What it can do
- Whiteboard note cards
- PDF highlights and annotation
- AI insights and summaries
- Real-time sync
Setup
Sign up on heptabase.com, start the 7-day trial, and create whiteboards with note cards; import PDFs to annotate.
Prerequisites
A paid subscription after the trial; a browser or the desktop/mobile apps.
Use cases
Works with
Trust score — 6/10
Scored 6/10 (metrics tier, metrics-v1). Evidence: Verified via vendor site/docs/GitHub and reputable coverage, wave 67; Trending score 60/100 from researcher assessment.
Sources
Every fact above was checked against these sources. Where a claim comes from the provider and couldn't be independently verified, the text says so.