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Scratchpad vs Logseq

Scratchpad works the same on every device with nothing to set up, and shares, co-edits, marks up PDFs, and keeps version history. Logseq is a free, open source outliner with block references, journals, and queries, partway through a move to a new database version.

Facts checked Sources All comparisons

Logseq is a free, open source outliner where every line is a block you can link to, embed, and query. It's also being rebuilt, with Logseq OG getting no new features and the new database version, Logseq 2.0, in beta since April 2026. Scratchpad is ordinary notes with links and backlinks, nothing to configure, and every feature on every device today.

The short answer

Choose Scratchpad if

  • You want to open it and write, with no graph folder, sync method, or plugins to set up
  • You want to share a note by link, or write in it with someone at the same time, without them needing an account
  • You want search to read the text in your pictures and scanned PDFs, and inside your Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files
  • You want a pen, highlighter, and sticky notes for your PDFs, version history, and an assistant, on your phone as well as your computer
  • You'd rather not move your notes while the app underneath them is being rebuilt

Choose Logseq if

  • You think in outlines, and want to reference, embed, and query single blocks
  • You want a daily journal page, flashcards, and templates built in
  • You want free, open source software that keeps your notes on your own device
  • You like adding plugins and themes to make the app your own

At a glance

Scratchpad Logseq
Price a month US$12, or US$8 with your own AI key Free. Sync goes to Open Collective backers, who give US$5 or US$15 a month
Price a year US$120, or US$80 with your own AI key Free. Sync has no yearly or public price yet
Free plan With a 30-day money-back guarantee The whole app
Open source Under the GNU AGPL
Status Released Logseq OG is maintained without new features. The new database version is in beta
Setup None Choose a folder or create a graph, and a way to sync it
Where notes live Scratchpad's servers, synced to your devices On your device, as Markdown or Org-mode files in Logseq OG, or in a database in the new version
Platforms Apps for Mac and Linux, plus any browser, installable on iPhone, iPad, Android, and Windows Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iPhone. The new version also runs in a browser, and its phone apps are still in testing
Works offline Keeps going when the connection drops, and syncs after Fully
End-to-end encryption Locked notes are encrypted with their own password Everything Sync carries
Web clipper For Chrome and Firefox. Safari coming soon Not in Logseq's documentation
Share one note by link To read or edit, with a password or expiry Read only, with Logseq Publish in the new version, for people with Sync, with an optional password
Writing together Live. Guests need no account In alpha, in the new version, for people with Sync. Not in Logseq OG
Publishing A note or a whole folder as a site Pages exported as a site you host yourself, from the desktop app, or published to logseq.io in the new version, for people with Sync
Search text in pictures and PDFs On every device Not in Logseq's documentation
PDF markup Pen, highlighter, shapes, sticky notes, and forms Highlights on text and areas, in colour, in the desktop app, each one a block you can link to
Reminders By email and notification Scheduled and deadline dates on tasks
Version history Up to 200 versions per note, on every device Page history for up to a year with Sync, in Logseq OG
Built-in AI On every device Not in Logseq's documentation
API and AI connectors A web API and an MCP server, from any device A local API, and an MCP server through the desktop app or command line in the new version
Writing Rich text with Markdown shortcuts An outliner, where every line is a block in a tree of bullets
Organising Folders, #tags, links, and backlinks Pages, tags, links, backlinks, properties, and namespaces
Block references and embeds
Daily journal Keep one note a day, made by you rather than for you A page for every day
Queries Simple and advanced
Flashcards With spaced repetition
Whiteboards In Logseq OG. Removed from the new version
Plugins None With themes, on desktop. The new version also runs some in a browser

Where Scratchpad is better

Scratchpad on a computer: folders on the left, a list of notes, and a note called Lisbon in October with a checklist and a day-by-day plan in a table.

Ready now, on every device

Logseq is between two versions. Logseq OG, the one that keeps your Markdown files, is maintained but gets no new features. The new database version is in beta, its phone apps and real-time collaboration are in alpha, and Logseq's own instructions warn that data loss is possible and suggest a test graph. Scratchpad is one finished app that works the same on a Mac, a Linux PC, a phone, or any browser.

There's nothing to set up

Open Scratchpad and you're in a note. There's no graph folder to choose, no sync method to pick, no Open Collective donation to make before your phone and computer agree, and no plugins to choose.

Share a note, and write in it together

Logseq OG's Sync doesn't support collaboration at all, and the new version's live collaboration is in alpha, for people who have Sync. Its published pages are read only. In Scratchpad you send a link that reads or edits one note, give it a password or an expiry date, share a whole folder, and watch the other person's changes arrive as they type. They don't need an account.

Search reads your pictures and files

Scratchpad reads the text in your pictures and scanned PDFs, and inside Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files and everything you've had transcribed, from any device. Logseq's documentation doesn't describe reading text in pictures or inside attached files.

PDFs you can mark up

Logseq highlights text and areas of a PDF in colour, and makes each highlight a block you can link to from your notes, which is lovely for research. Scratchpad's reader adds a pen, underline, shapes, sticky notes, and form filling to the highlighter. It keeps your marks beside the original rather than rewriting it, and downloads a copy with them burned in.

History you can open anywhere

In Logseq OG, page history comes with Sync, and in the new version it's still on the roadmap. Scratchpad keeps up to 200 versions of every note, compares two side by side, and puts back the one you want, from any device.

An assistant built in

Scratchpad's assistant is part of the plan, works on every device, reads the note you're in, and asks before it changes anything. Logseq has no assistant of its own in its documentation. Its new version runs an MCP server from the desktop app, so an AI app on that computer can reach your graph, while Scratchpad's MCP server and API work over the web, from anywhere.

Reminders and voice memos, built in

Reminders written in plain words arrive by email and as a notification, and voice memos turn into text you can search, with 20 hours a month included. Logseq's tasks carry scheduled and deadline dates, and transcription is on its roadmap.

And everything else Scratchpad does.

  • Reminders in a sentence

    Type /remind call the vet Friday at 9am, and get an email and a notification.

  • Voice memos, transcribed

    Record into a note and get the words back as text you can search. 20 hours a month.

  • Write on PDFs

    Pen, highlighter, shapes, sticky notes, and forms, and a copy to download with your marks on it.

  • Every version, kept

    Up to 200 versions of each note, compared side by side and brought back in a click.

  • Search inside your files

    The words in your PDFs, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, your pictures and scans, and your transcripts, as you type.

  • Tabs, panels, and callouts

    Split a long note into tabs, fold a section away, or set a tip apart in a callout.

  • Code, maths, and footnotes

    Highlighting for about 35 languages, LaTeX that renders as you type, and footnotes that number themselves.

  • Locked notes

    Encrypted with a password of their own, and opened with Face ID or Touch ID once you set that up.

  • Share links you control

    Read or edit, with a password or an expiry date, and nobody needs an account. On paid plans.

  • Publish in one click

    Turn a note into a clean web page, and take it down just as fast. On paid plans.

  • An assistant that asks first

    It reads the note you are in, and its edits arrive as a change you approve.

  • Works with Claude and ChatGPT

    Any app that speaks MCP can search, read, and add to your notes. On paid plans.

  • Two-step sign-in and passkeys

    An authenticator code or an emailed one, backup codes, and passkeys for Touch ID and Face ID.

  • Folders, tags, and backlinks

    Three levels of folders, each with its own colour and icon, #tags as you type, and backlinks.

  • Bring your notes in

    Markdown, Word, HTML, RTF, or a whole zip, with its folders.

  • Markdown in and out

    Export a note, a folder, or everything as Markdown, plain text, or JSON.

Where Logseq is better

Free and open source

The whole app costs nothing, and its code is open under the GNU AGPL. Sync currently goes to people who back Logseq on Open Collective, for US$5 or US$15 a month, and in the new version you can host Sync and Publish yourself. Scratchpad is US$120 a year, or US$80 with your own AI key, with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

An outliner built for connected thinking

In Logseq every line is a block. You can link to a single block from anywhere, embed it on another page so it stays in step, give it properties, and gather blocks from across your graph with a query. Each day opens on a fresh journal page, and templates fill in the structure you repeat. Scratchpad links whole notes to each other and shows their backlinks, but has no block references, embeds, or queries. You can keep a journal as one note a day, but Scratchpad doesn't make the day's page for you.

Your notes stay on your device

Logseq keeps your notes on your own disk, as plain Markdown or Org-mode files in Logseq OG, or in a local database in the new version, and works fully offline. Scratchpad exports everything as Markdown whenever you like, but day to day your notes live on our servers.

Flashcards built in

Tag any block as a card and Logseq quizzes you on it with spaced repetition. Scratchpad has no flashcards.

Sync is end-to-end encrypted

Logseq Sync encrypts your graph on your device, file names and pictures included, before it leaves. Scratchpad encrypts the notes you lock, not the rest, which is what lets search, sharing, and the assistant work on them.

Plugins and themes

Logseq's marketplace adds plugins and themes, and you can write your own. Scratchpad has no plugins.

Moving from Logseq to Scratchpad

Scratchpad reads a Logseq OG graph, which is a folder of Markdown files. Zip the graph's pages, journals, and assets folders together, leaving out the logseq folder, which holds settings and backups, and bring the zip in from Settings → Your data → Bring notes in. What to expect:

  • Pages and journal days arrive as notes, in folders called pages and journals. A journal day is titled with its file name, like 2026_10_27.
  • Your outline arrives as bulleted lists, nested as it was, with formatting, code, and tables intact.
  • [[Page links]] between your pages stay links. A link to a journal date, like [[Oct 27th, 2026]], or to a namespaced page, like [[Projects/Beta]], becomes plain text.
  • Pictures and PDFs from the assets folder come back in the notes that use them.
  • Tags typed as #tag come with you. A tag with spaces keeps only its first word.
  • Block references ((…)), embeds, queries, property:: value lines, and TODO and DONE markers stay as the plain text Logseq saved them as.
  • PDF highlights arrive as a note of text, not as marks on the PDF, and whiteboards and flashcard schedules don't come across.

The new database version keeps its notes in a database Scratchpad can't read, so export it with Export graph → Export as standard Markdown (no block properties) first. See Bringing your old notes in.

Good questions.

Is Logseq free?

Yes. The app is free and open source on every platform. Logseq Sync is a paid feature that currently goes to people who back Logseq on Open Collective, for US$5 or US$15 a month, and it has no public price yet. Scratchpad has no free plan. It's US$12 a month, or US$8 with your own AI key, with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

What is the difference between Logseq OG and the new Logseq?

Logseq OG is the original app, which keeps your notes as Markdown or Org-mode files. Since April 2026 it gets maintenance but no new features. The new Logseq keeps your notes in a database, unites pages and blocks, reworks properties, tags, and flashcards, and drops whiteboards. It's in beta, and Logseq says data loss is possible.

Does Logseq have real-time collaboration?

Only in the new version, where it's in alpha and needs Sync. Logseq OG's Sync doesn't support collaboration. Scratchpad has live co-editing today, and the other person doesn't need an account.

Is Logseq end-to-end encrypted?

Logseq Sync is. Your graph is encrypted on your device with a password before it's synced. Without Sync, your notes simply stay on your device. Scratchpad encrypts the notes you lock with a password of their own, and not the rest.

Does Scratchpad have block references or daily notes?

Not block references. Scratchpad links whole notes with [[ and shows each note's backlinks, but it has no block references, embeds, or queries. For daily notes, keep one note a day, in a folder of its own if you like. Scratchpad won't make each day's page for you, as Logseq does. If blocks are how you think, Logseq suits you better.

Can I move my notes from Logseq to Scratchpad?

Yes, from Logseq OG. Zip the graph's pages, journals, and assets folders and import the zip. Pages, journal days, nested bullets, links between pages, pictures, PDFs, and #tags come across. Block references, embeds, queries, and properties stay as plain text.

Sources

Checked on 27 October 2026, from Logseq's own pages:

And for Scratchpad, the documentation and pricing.

The best way to decide is with your own notes.

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US$12 a month, or US$8 with your own AI key. 30-day money-back guarantee.