BrainVault vs Evernote: Modern Markdown Alternative
Evernote was revolutionary in 2008. BrainVault represents what note-taking looks like in 2025: markdown, local-first, privacy-focused, and developer-friendly.
The Evolution
Evernote pioneered digital note-taking but hasn't evolved much. Proprietary formats, cloud dependence, and subscription fatigue have pushed users to seek alternatives.
BrainVault represents the new generation: Plain text markdown, local storage, wiki-style linking, and graph visualization. Simple, fast, and built for modern workflows.
Feature Comparison
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Markdown vs Rich Text
BrainVault uses Markdown—the universal plain text format. Your notes work in any editor, version control friendly, future-proof. Write with syntax like #heading, **bold**, and [[links]].
Evernote uses proprietary rich text. Formatted notes stored in their custom format (ENEX). Harder to migrate, harder to version control, locked into Evernote's ecosystem.
Pricing: Free vs Premium
BrainVault is completely free. All features, no limits, no tiers. Forever.
Evernote requires Premium ($15/month) for offline access and higher upload limits. That's $180/year. Free tier is heavily restricted (60MB/month uploads, 2 devices only).
Local vs Cloud
BrainVault stores notes locally as plain files. Complete privacy, no cloud required. Your notes never leave your device unless you export them. Works offline forever.
Evernote is cloud-only. Your notes are on their servers. Offline access requires Premium subscription. If Evernote shuts down or changes terms, your notes are at risk.
Developer-Friendly Features
BrainVault is built for developers and power users:
- Markdown with code block support
- Git-friendly plain text files
- Wiki-style [[linking]] for connected notes
- Graph visualization of note connections
- Full-text search (instant, local)
- Open source—customize or extend it yourself
Evernote is designed for general consumers. No markdown (unless you use third-party tools), no wiki links, no graph views. Better for clipping articles than writing code documentation.
Migration from Evernote
Moving from Evernote to BrainVault:
- Export your Evernote notebooks as ENEX files
- Use a conversion tool (enex2md or similar) to convert to Markdown
- Open BrainVault and point it to the converted folder
- Review and clean up formatting as needed
Note: Some Evernote features don't translate (web clips with complex formatting, OCR). Basic notes, text, and images migrate well.
What You'll Miss from Evernote
To be fair, here's what Evernote does that BrainVault doesn't:
- Web clipper: Save articles from browser with one click
- OCR: Search text within images
- Document scanning: Built-in mobile document scanner
- Email to note: Forward emails to become notes
- Templates: Pre-built note templates
If these features are essential to your workflow, Evernote might be worth keeping. If you primarily write text notes, BrainVault is simpler and more powerful.
Our Take
Evernote makes sense if you rely on web clipping, OCR, and document scanning. It's mature software with mobile apps and broad platform support.
BrainVault makes sense if you want modern markdown notes, local storage, privacy, and developer-friendly features. Perfect for knowledge workers, developers, researchers, and writers who value owning their data and using open formats.
Try Modern Note-Taking
Compare with: Obsidian • Notion • Roam Research