What is Capacities?
Capacities is a note-taking and personal knowledge management application built on a fundamentally different principle than traditional document-based tools. It describes itself as a "studio for your mind," with object-based note-taking at its core.
Instead of creating endless, isolated notes, users create and connect distinct "objects" for everything — a person, a book, a project, a concept, or a meeting. Each object type has its own set of properties, turning your notes into a structured, queryable database of your thoughts and information.
The aim is to move beyond a linear filing cabinet toward a dynamic, interconnected web of knowledge that mirrors how ideas relate in reality.
The application is developed by Berlin-based Capacities GmbH, led by founder and CEO Benni Boeckmann. The team has focused intensely on this object-oriented approach since the app's inception.
Development is active, with a clear roadmap and regular updates that emphasize linking, visualizing, and retrieving information rather than adding generic features. It is a product built for a specific methodology, reflecting a strong opinion on how digital thinking tools should work.
Who is Capacities best for?
Capacities is not a casual note-taking app for quick shopping lists or sporadic journal entries. It is a specialized tool designed for individuals who think in systems, value deep connections between ideas, and are willing to invest time in structuring their information ecosystem.
It appeals to those frustrated by the siloed nature of standard notes and folders, and who believe a more database-like approach could unlock new insights. The learning curve is present, making it less ideal for users seeking immediate, simple utility.
Ideal users
- Knowledge workers and researchers: Academics, writers, and analysts who need to connect concepts, sources, and people across long-term projects.
- Second Brain and Zettelkasten practitioners: Users dedicated to personal knowledge management (PKM) methodologies that prize atomic, interlinked notes.
- Project planners and content creators: Those managing complex initiatives with many moving parts — clients, tasks, resources, and deadlines — that benefit from relational views.
- Curious thinkers and lifelong learners: Individuals who habitually collect and synthesize information from diverse fields and want a tool to help discover unexpected relationships.
Key features
Object Types and Properties
This is the foundational feature. You don't just create a note; you create an object of a specific type, like "Book," "Person," or "Project." Each type has a customizable set of properties.
For a "Book" object, properties might include Author, Date Read, Rating, and Summary. This enforced structure transforms loose information into consistent, filterable data, making your entire library searchable and organizable in ways a folder of text files never could be.
The Everything View and Graph
The "Everything" view is a central dashboard that aggregates all your created content — notes, images, PDFs — into a single, chronologically ordered stream. More powerful is the Graph view, which provides a visual, interactive map of all objects in your workspace and the links between them.
This allows you to visually navigate your knowledge base and see the density of connections around specific topics or entities, revealing the structure of your thinking.
Daily Notes as an Inbox
Like other modern note-taking apps, Capacities features a reliable daily notes page that is created automatically each day. However, it integrates uniquely with the object system.
You can write free-form text here, but you can also instantly create new objects or link to existing ones using the "@" mention syntax directly from your daily log. This makes the daily note a powerful intake and processing hub, bridging unstructured thought and structured knowledge.
Powerful Search and Filtering
Because information is stored as typed objects with properties, search goes beyond full-text. You can construct detailed filters, such as "show all Book objects where Rating is 5 stars and Author is linked to Person X."
This turns search into a data query, allowing you to surface very specific cross-sections of your knowledge base that would require manual trawling in a conventional app.
Embeddable Blocks and Whiteboards
To combat the rigidity that can come with structured data, Capacities includes flexible canvases. You can embed a wide variety of content blocks — tables, images, PDFs, audio recordings, even live web embeds — directly into any note.
The Whiteboard feature provides an infinite canvas to arrange these blocks, objects, and freehand drawings spatially, useful for brainstorming and creating visual summaries of complex topics.
Capacities pricing
Capacities operates on a subscription model with two tiers: Free and Plus.
| Plan | Price | Key limits |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | Unlimited objects and types; 50 file uploads; 50MB storage; basic search and graph view; no version history or publishing |
| Plus | $9/mo (annual) or $12/mo (monthly) | Unlimited uploads and storage; unlimited version history; advanced whiteboard; custom publishing domains; early access to new features |
The Free plan is a functional but constrained trial, useful for determining if the object-oriented workflow suits you. The Plus plan is essentially the full product.
The value proposition hinges entirely on how much you value the structured database approach. For a dedicated knowledge worker who will use linking, properties, and querying daily, $9 per month can be excellent value. For a casual user, it is likely excessive compared to simpler, cheaper, or free alternatives.
Bottom line: The Plus plan at $9/mo is strong value for serious knowledge workers; casual users will likely find the free tier sufficient.
What we like
- Object-property model: It genuinely changes how you think about organizing information, promoting consistency and discoverability.
- Visual graph and filtered search: Rediscovering and connecting old notes is surprisingly intuitive.
- Daily note integration: The bridge between free-form capture and structured objects creates a seamless workflow.
- Focused development: Updates meaningfully expand the app's core philosophy rather than chasing trends.
- Clean interface: The minimalist design avoids feeling cluttered despite the underlying data complexity.
What could be better
- Steep learning curve: It requires a shift in mindset and time to set up object types before feeling productive.
- Limited mobile app: It currently feels like a companion viewer rather than a fully-featured creation tool compared to the desktop experience.
- No native offline mode: The desktop app runs in the browser, which can be a limitation for some users.
- Minimal collaboration: It is a strictly personal tool, unsuitable for shared team knowledge bases.
Capacities verdict
Capacities is a profoundly opinionated and innovative tool in the crowded note-taking space. It is not an all-purpose replacement for apps like Evernote or OneNote. Instead, it is a specialized environment for building a personal knowledge database.
When its methodology clicks with your way of thinking, it can feel notable, turning your notes from a passive archive into an interactive map of your mind. The act of linking objects and defining properties forces deeper engagement with your material, often leading to new insights.
Capacities Plus is recommended for knowledge workers, researchers, system thinkers, and serious PKM enthusiasts who are frustrated by the limitations of traditional, linear note-taking. The investment in learning the system and structuring your data pays dividends in retrieval and connection-making.
Look elsewhere if you need a simple, fast scratchpad, require reliable real-time collaboration, primarily work on mobile, or are unwilling to adopt a more structured workflow. Apps like Obsidian offer similar linking power with more flexibility, while tools like Notion provide greater database versatility for project management, albeit with a different focus.
Final verdict: Capacities is a premium, focused tool for a specific audience. For the right user, it is not just an app but a transformative thinking environment.
