--- description: "What Jotaid's free tier includes and what Pro unlocks, plus the two ways to pay for exactly the same Pro feature set." --- # Free vs Pro The free tier is genuinely useful on its own, and Pro unlocks the power features when you're ready. Everything you buy unlocks the **same Pro feature set** — you just choose how to pay. ## The Free Tier Everything you need to think and write in a single space: - The **Inbox** — an always-free home for your notes, and **fully featured** - The full **Markdown editor** with live highlighting and preview - **Backlinks**, the **knowledge graph**, the **co-occurrence matrix** and [link predictions](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/predictions) — computed over the `[[ ]]` links **you wrote yourself** - All three views: **Note**, **Node** and **Theme** - **[Semantic relations](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/semantic-relations)** — related notes and tag suggestions, worked out entirely on your own device: no network, no cost - Quick Note, [templates](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/templates), [tags](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/tags), import and export, encrypted backups, iCloud sync and the trash - **Filtering** — by tag, node or theme, but **one condition at a time** (stacking them is Pro; see below) > **Free is not a trial** > > Nothing is cut down inside the Inbox: the editor, backlinks, the graph, the matrix, the canvas and sync are all there. Pro adds **multiple projects**, **AI** and **cross-filtering** — it does not take anything away from free. > **The line is drawn at who makes the links** > > The analysis tools — graph, matrix, link predictions — are **entirely free**, but what they analyse are **the connections you made by hand**: the `[[ ]]` you typed, plus the literal matches you [backfill in one click](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/unlinked-mentions) (backfilling is free too; it is not AI). > > What needs Pro is having **the AI find what to link**: [Smart Node](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/create-nodes) scanning a project to propose concepts, [backlink suggestions](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/ai-suggestions) surfacing notes related in meaning but worded differently, [Smart Theme](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/themes) doing the affinity mapping. > > Put another way: **analysis of a network you built by hand is free; having the AI build it for you is Pro.** ### Pro-locked Projects Stay Readable Free users can still **open and read** a project that needs Pro — you can zoom, pan, and view notes. Only *editing* (moving cards, regrouping, changing content) prompts you to unlock. Your notes always stay visible. ## What Pro Unlocks Pro is for people who organize across many topics and want AI in the loop: | Feature | What it does | |---------|-------------| | **AI Features** | All AI helpers — smart node creation, summaries, auto title & tags, enrichment, tidy up, semantic suggestions | | **Multiple Projects** | Create projects beyond the single free Inbox, and sync them across your devices; [importing a folder](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/import-export) and importing into a project fall under this too | | **Bulk Move** | Move notes out of the Inbox into projects in bulk | | **Cross-filtering** | Filter by tags, nodes and themes at the same time (see below) | ### Cross-filtering The free tier filters by **one condition at a time**: - At most **one** of tags, **nodes** and **themes** can be active - Tags and nodes, the two multi-select dimensions, allow **one selection each** Pro lifts that entirely, letting you stack all three — "notes in theme A, tagged `to-read`, mentioning a given node". Unaffected: **sorting, search, the trash and project scope**, plus the backlinks filter inside a node's detail view — those stay complete on the free tier. Locked options are **greyed out but still clickable**, telling you why rather than hiding: you should be able to see what Pro does. > **Bring Your Own Key** > > Pro unlocks the AI *capability*; the AI itself runs on your own provider API key. Unlock Pro first, then add your key — see [AI Setup](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/ai-setup). ## Paying for It A yearly subscription, a one-time purchase, and a monthly plan coming soon — all unlocking **exactly the same Pro**. Pricing, Universal purchase, subscription management and restoring are covered in [Plans & Pricing](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/plans). ## Next Steps - [Plans & Pricing](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/plans) — The three ways to pay, and subscription management - [Unlock Pro](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/unlock-pro) — Where the unlock screen appears and what tapping does - [AI Setup](https://docs.jotaid.com/en/guide/ai-setup) — Configure AI after unlocking