Kaniban
Compared
Kaniban vs Notion
Notion can be a kanban board, along with a wiki, a database, a calendar and a place to write. Kaniban is only the board. That is the whole difference, and it decides most of the rest.
The short version
In Notion, a board is a view of a database you design: its properties, its filters, its other views. It lives on Notion's servers under your account, and its flexibility is the reason people love it and the reason a board there takes an afternoon to get right. Kaniban has no account and nothing to design. Open it, name a board, and the columns, the calendar, the timeline and the timer are already there. The board stays on your machine.
Side by side
| Notion | Kaniban | |
|---|---|---|
| Account | Required | None |
| Where it lives | Notion's servers | Your browser, or your PC with the desktop app |
| Offline | Designed around a connection; its apps can hold some pages for offline use | Works once loaded |
| Setup | A board is a database you design: properties, views, filters | None. Name a board and start |
| Views | Board, table, calendar, timeline, gallery and list, over a database you set up | Board, calendar, timeline and summary, over the same cards, built in |
| Time tracking | Not built in | A timer on every card |
| Price | Free plan for individuals; paid plans per user, per month | Free; Supporter from $3 for 30 days; Plus $10 once |
| Built for | Writing, databases and tasks, alone or with a team | One person's work in progress |
When Notion is the better choice
- You want notes, documents and tasks in one place, linked to each other.
- You share pages with other people, or publish them.
- You enjoy designing your own system and will keep it tuned.
- Your tasks carry many properties: owner, status, priority, effort, sprint, and a formula or two.
When Kaniban is
- You want a board that is ready in a second and never needs redesigning.
- You want the board on your machine rather than on a server, with no account attached to it.
- You track time on what you do, and want the timer on the card rather than in a separate tool.
- You keep the board on a second monitor all day and want it to stay legible from across the desk: nothing pulses, nothing nags, and a card's colour is a whisper.
Notes on a card
A Kaniban card is not a page. It carries a title, notes written in markdown, tags, a due date, a timer, and on Supporter a list of steps and a picture. That is enough for a paragraph of context or a checklist, and it is deliberately not enough for a wiki. If the writing is the work, Notion is where the writing should live; the board can point at it with a link in the notes.
Questions
Can Kaniban replace Notion?
Only the board. Kaniban does not do documents, wikis, databases or sharing. People who move do so because the board was the part of Notion they actually used every day, and they wanted it lighter, offline and on their own machine.
Does Kaniban have properties or databases?
No. A card has a fixed set of fields: title, notes, tags, a due date, a timer and an automatic ticket code, plus steps and a picture on Supporter. Filters work over those fields: text, ticket code, column, tag and a due-date range.
Does Kaniban sync between devices the way Notion does?
No. Sync means a server copy and an account, which are the two things Kaniban was built without. A board moves between machines as an export file and an import. Plus can also write a backup file to a folder you choose whenever the board changes.
Can I import a Notion board?
There is no importer. Kaniban reads its own export files. Bring across the cards that are in flight with the command deck: Ctrl K, then /nc:the title.
There is nothing to sign up for.
Open it, name a board, and start. If you do not like it, close the tab. You have not given anyone anything.