Anytype vs Capacities: which object-based notes app in 2026?
Anytype vs Capacities comes down to one trade: Capacities is the smoother product today, Anytype the stronger architecture — end-to-end encrypted, offline-first, self-hostable. Both organize knowledge as typed objects (people, books, meetings, projects) rather than files or outlines, which is why Capacities vs Anytype is the comparison the two purest object-based notes apps keep drawing. The companies are opposites: Capacities is a polished cloud service from a small bootstrapped team that has sworn off collaboration; Anytype is betting its future on collaboration. Capacities published its own comparison on September 8, 2026 — this is the independent one, with dated prices and versions.
The short answer to “Anytype or Capacities?”: Capacities is the better product experience today — smoother, prettier, easier to live in. Anytype is the better architecture — encrypted everything, offline always, your own server if you want it. Decide which failure you can’t accept: a cloud provider reading (or losing) your notes, or an app that’s heavier and rougher day to day.
- Choose Capacities if you want typed notes in a beautiful, low-friction app that syncs free across devices, with a native AI assistant and a growing API — and cloud storage without end-to-end encryption is acceptable for what you write.
- Choose Anytype if end-to-end encryption, offline-first storage and a self-hosting exit hatch are requirements — or you want shared spaces and real-time collaboration, which Capacities has ruled out entirely.
| Capacities | Anytype | |
|---|---|---|
| Data model | Typed objects with properties, daily notes | Objects with types, relations, sets |
| Price | Free; Pro $9.99/mo (annual; $11.99 monthly); Believer from $12.49 | Free; storage tiers $4 / $8 / $16 per mo (annual) |
| Encryption | In transit and at rest; not end-to-end (documented) | End-to-end, everything, per-object keys |
| Sync | Built in, free, cloud | Built in, free, peer-to-peer |
| Self-hosting | No | Sync network (any-sync) in Docker |
| Collaboration | None — stated as not planned | Multiplayer shared Spaces, encrypted chat |
| Mobile | iOS, Android — redesigned Aug 2026; plus web app | iOS, Android — polished; no web app |
| Agents | Hosted MCP server + REST API (OAuth) | Official API + MCP server; no cloud AI |
As of September 27, 2026 — Capacities prices re-verified on capacities.io (Release 69, Aug 2026); Anytype desktop 0.57.0 (Sep 22, 2026). Anytype tier prices as read in August 2026.
What is Capacities?
Capacities organizes your knowledge by what things are. Instead of files in folders, you create objects — people, books, meetings, projects, quotes — each with its own properties and views, connected through backlinks and daily notes. Browsing by object type (every book you’ve noted, every person you’ve met) falls out of the design for free, and a calendar-centric daily view ties it to your day.
It’s a polished, cloud-based app on web, desktop and mobile, with a generous free core plan; Pro (about $10/month billed annually) adds the AI assistant, calendar sync and advanced queries. In July 2026 it shipped a developer API with OAuth, opening it up to integrations. One deliberate omission to know about: there is no collaboration, and the team has said it isn’t planned — Capacities is intentionally a personal tool.
What is Anytype?
Anytype wants to be the privacy-maximalist answer to Notion: objects with types, relations and sets, composed from blocks — but stored on your device, end-to-end encrypted, and synced peer-to-peer through a network you can self-host. The source is available (under its own license), and the free plan includes the full feature set with local storage limited only by your disk.
Collaboration arrived in 2024–25 via multiplayer shared Spaces, and publishing to the web followed, so it’s no longer strictly single-player. Paid tiers (Plus $4, Pro $8, Ultra $16 per month) mostly buy network storage rather than features. An official API and MCP server (2025) let AI assistants work with your data — notably, without Anytype itself pushing your notes through cloud AI, in keeping with its privacy stance.
Capacities vs Anytype at a glance
| Capacities | Anytype | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Pro ~$9.99/mo annual ($11.99 monthly); Believer ~$12.49/mo | Plus $4/mo; Pro $8/mo; Ultra $16/mo (mostly network storage) |
| Free plan | Yes — generous core plan | Yes — full features, local storage unlimited |
| Platforms | Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android — no web app |
| Storage model | Cloud (offline support, not local-first) | Local-first, peer-to-peer encrypted sync, self-hostable |
| Editing model | Object-based pages with properties, blocks and daily notes | Object-based — types, relations, sets, blocks |
| Backlinks & wiki links | Yes — backlinks between objects | Yes — relations and backlinks |
| Graph view | Yes — per-object connection views | Yes — graph view |
| Search | Full-text; AI search on Pro | Local full-text |
| Web capture | Weblink reader and mobile share | Basic clipper; mobile share |
| Email-in capture | No | No |
| RSS / feeds | No | No |
| Team collaboration | No — explicitly not planned | Yes — multiplayer shared Spaces |
| Publishing & sharing | Read-only share links for pages | Publish objects to the web |
| AI assistant access | Built-in AI assistant (Pro); developer API (OAuth) since 2026 | Official API + MCP server; no built-in cloud AI |
| Offline access | Partial | Yes — fully offline |
| Open source | No | Source-available (own license) |
| End-to-end encryption | No | Yes — end-to-end, everything |
| Data export | Markdown export | Markdown, JSON (protobuf) |
Pricing and features as of mid-2026 — check each product’s site for current details.
New to personal knowledge management? Start here: choosing a second brain app — every tool on this page, with a pick for each kind of thinker.
Same object model, different centers of gravity
Both apps reject files and folders for objects: define types with properties, and every note becomes a typed thing you can browse by kind, query and relate. Capacities leans editorial — object types feel like a well-designed stationery set, daily notes and a calendar anchor the experience, and the app stays out of your way. Anytype leans systemic — types, relations and Sets are Notion-grade database machinery, more powerful and more ceremonial.
Day to day: Capacities is widely considered the more polished and approachable of the two (its mobile apps included), while Anytype offers more modeling depth and has historically drawn more complaints about sync reliability and app weight. Neither has a plugin ecosystem; both are opening up through APIs instead.
Privacy — a documented no vs an engineered yes
This is the cleanest split. Capacities is cloud-hosted and explicitly not end-to-end encrypted — the team publishes its reasoning (E2E would cost features like full-text search and painless sync). Data is encrypted in transit and at rest, but the service can read it, there’s no self-hosting, and offline support is a cache, not a home.
Anytype was built from the opposite premise: everything end-to-end encrypted with per-object keys, stored on your device first, synced peer-to-peer over the open-source AnySync protocol — free on the hosted network, or entirely on your own Docker-deployed infrastructure. It works fully offline, including a LAN-only mode that never touches the internet. If your notes include journals, clients or anything you’d mind a subpoena reaching, this section is the decision.
Collaboration — never vs the whole roadmap
Capacities has done something unusual: put in writing that collaborative features and team workspaces are not planned — it is deliberately a tool for individuals, with view-only share links as the ceiling. That focus is part of why the solo experience is so coherent; it also means no amount of waiting will bring teams.
Anytype is sprinting the other way: multiplayer shared spaces since 2024, and through 2025–2026 a full pivot toward “decentralized collaboration” — real-time, end-to-end-encrypted chat channels on spaces and objects shipped mid-2026. If you’ll ever want a shared vault with a partner or team, only one of these apps will do it.
Pricing, AI and the exit question
The pricing models differ in kind. Capacities sells features: free covers unlimited notes and sync (with a 5 GB media cap), Pro at $9.99/month billed annually ($11.99 monthly) adds the AI assistant, tasks, calendar, queries, formulas, unlimited media and API access, Believer starts at $12.49/month, and since August 2026 optional Pro+ / Believer+ add-ons (about $8.33/month, annual) buy a larger AI budget in place of the old bring-your-own-key model. Anytype sells capacity: the app and all features are free, encrypted sync included, and paid tiers ($4–16/month billed annually, as read in August 2026) mostly buy network backup storage — local and self-hosted use costs nothing.
AI splits along the same line: Capacities builds it in (Pro assistant, plus an official hosted MCP server and a real REST API with OAuth); Anytype ships no cloud AI on principle — its official MCP server (since May 2025) lets you bring your own assistant against local data. Exit-wise, both flatten typed structure on Markdown export, but Anytype uniquely offers continuity if the company dies: public code and a self-hostable sync network. Capacities’ answer is its export plus a sustainably bootstrapped, small team. If neither architecture convinces you, the files-first alternative is Obsidian vs Capacities / Anytype vs Obsidian, the fully open-source, self-hostable one is SiYuan vs Anytype, and supertags against objects is Tana vs Capacities.
Anytype vs Capacities vs Obsidian — which Obsidian alternative?
Most people weighing these two arrived from Obsidian, so the three-way question deserves a straight answer. The three data models are: Obsidian keeps plain Markdown files on your disk and adds structure through plugins; Capacities keeps typed objects in its cloud; Anytype keeps typed objects on your device, end-to-end encrypted, and syncs them peer-to-peer. Obsidian still wins when you want files any editor can open, the largest plugin ecosystem in the category, and $0 with no storage tier — free for personal and commercial use, with Sync and Publish as the optional paid add-ons — on every platform including Windows and Android at parity.
Pick Capacities over Obsidian when you want typed objects, daily notes and a native AI assistant without assembling them from plugins, and cloud storage is acceptable. Pick Anytype over Obsidian when you want the object model and encryption or self-hosting — the one combination Obsidian’s file model can’t offer without third-party tooling. The pairwise pages carry the detail: Obsidian vs Anytype and Obsidian vs Capacities. If “tana vs capacities vs anytype” is your version of the question, Tana’s supertags are a third object model — see Tana vs Capacities. The outliner and open-source routes out of Anytype are Logseq vs Anytype and SiYuan vs Anytype.
Where Capacities shines
- Object types with properties give structure without the rigidity of databases or the chaos of free-form notes.
- One of the most polished, beautiful interfaces in the category, consistent across web, desktop and mobile.
- A genuinely useful free plan, with Pro at a mid-pack price.
- Daily notes plus calendar integration make it a natural journal-of-record.
Worth knowing: No collaboration — explicitly not supported and not planned; sharing is read-only page links. Cloud-first and proprietary, with no local-first storage or end-to-end encryption. Power features like queries sit behind Pro, and the object model can feel like ceremony for quick, messy capture.
Where Anytype shines
- The strongest privacy architecture in the category: local-first, end-to-end encrypted, peer-to-peer sync, self-hostable.
- Object types, relations and sets bring real database power to personal notes.
- Nearly everything is free — paid tiers mainly add network storage.
- Official API and MCP server let AI assistants integrate on your terms.
Worth knowing: No web app — desktop and mobile apps only. The object/relation model has a steeper learning curve than plain notes. Web capture, feeds and email-in aren’t part of the picture; it expects you to create, not collect.
Which should you choose?
Choose Capacities if:
- You think in entities — people, books, meetings — and want your tool to as well.
- Interface polish and aesthetics genuinely affect whether you’ll keep using a tool.
- You’re strictly solo and don’t need sharing or teamwork.
Choose Anytype if:
- End-to-end encryption and local storage are your first filter, not a nice-to-have.
- You want Notion-like structure (types, relations, sets) in a personal tool.
- Self-hosting matters to you, now or as an exit option.
A third option: Dexi
Both apps ask you to model your knowledge before you write it. If you’d rather structure emerged on its own — and a lot of your knowledge arrives from the web anyway — Dexi inverts the workflow: #tags, @mentions and [[wiki links]] typed inline do the organizing, and everything you capture from your browser, inbox or RSS lands in the same searchable graph as your notes. Semantic search finds things by meaning, per-note sharing covers the collaboration Capacities won’t build, and an MCP server lets Claude work with your notes directly. Free for up to 1,000 notes, $5/month after.
Frequently asked questions
What is the main difference between Capacities and Anytype?
Architecture, not concept — both are object-based PKM tools. Capacities is a polished cloud service: syncs automatically, not end-to-end encrypted (documented deliberately), no self-hosting, strictly single-player. Anytype is local-first and E2E-encrypted with per-object keys, syncs peer-to-peer, can be fully self-hosted, and supports shared multiplayer spaces with real-time chat.
Is Capacities or Anytype end-to-end encrypted?
Anytype: yes, everything, by default (the one exception is pages you explicitly publish to the web). Capacities: no — it encrypts in transit and at rest but has published its reasoning for not implementing E2E, trading it for search and sync simplicity.
Can I self-host Capacities or Anytype?
Anytype yes — self-hosting the AnySync network is officially supported via Docker, so your devices can sync entirely through your own server. Capacities no — it is a hosted cloud service with no self-hosting option.
Is Anytype completely free?
The app is: every feature, encrypted peer-to-peer sync and offline use cost nothing, and self-hosting the sync network is free too. Paid tiers ($4–16/month billed annually, as read in August 2026) mainly buy backup storage on Anytype’s network. Capacities is also free at its core — unlimited objects and cross-device sync with a 5 GB media cap — with AI, tasks and the API on Pro ($9.99/month billed annually, $11.99 monthly, verified September 2026).
Which is better on iPhone and Android, Capacities or Anytype?
Both have native iOS and Android apps with the full data model, and both are good. Capacities redesigned its mobile app in August 2026 and also has a web app, so it works from any browser; Anytype’s mobile apps are polished and encrypted sync is running the moment you enter your recovery phrase, but there is no web app at all. If phone capture is a daily habit either works; if you sometimes need a browser, only Capacities offers one.
Does Capacities or Anytype support collaboration?
Anytype does — multiplayer shared spaces plus real-time, E2E-encrypted chat channels (2026), with collaboration now central to its roadmap. Capacities explicitly does not and has stated in writing that team features are not planned; sharing is limited to read-only links.
Do Capacities and Anytype work with AI assistants like Claude?
Both, on different terms. Capacities has a native AI assistant on Pro plus an official hosted MCP server and REST API. Anytype has no built-in cloud AI — in keeping with its privacy stance — but ships an official MCP server (since May 2025) so assistants you choose can work with your local data.
What are the best alternatives to Anytype?
Capacities is the closest in concept — typed objects and daily notes, cloud-synced, without end-to-end encryption or self-hosting. Obsidian if you want local Markdown files and plugins instead of objects; Logseq if you think in outlines; SiYuan if you want a fully open-source, self-hostable block database; Notion if a team needs shared databases more than privacy. Each of the first four is compared with Anytype on this site.
Collect, connect and search everything you read — free, no credit card required.
Try Dexi free