FAQ
What is Pensum?
Section titled “What is Pensum?”An Obsidian plugin that adds a complete productivity system: tasks, meetings, projects, wiki, calendar, AI features, and agent access.
Does it work on mobile?
Section titled “Does it work on mobile?”Yes. The same plugin runs in Obsidian Mobile on iOS and Android.
Is my data safe?
Section titled “Is my data safe?”All data stays as markdown in your vault. Pensum doesn’t operate cloud storage. Uninstalling Pensum leaves your vault fully functional.
What’s free vs Pro?
Section titled “What’s free vs Pro?”Free: tasks, projects, wiki, all views, capture, calendar, search, filters. Pro BYO ($9/mo): meetings, AI, MCP, CLI — bring your own API keys. Pro All-in-One ($29/mo): everything included, no keys needed.
How much does Pro cost?
Section titled “How much does Pro cost?”$9/month (BYO) or $29/month (All-in-One). Annual plans save 2 months.
Do I need API keys?
Section titled “Do I need API keys?”For Pro BYO: yes. Anthropic for Smart Capture/Triage/summarization, OpenAI for transcription. You pay providers directly. For Pro All-in-One: no keys needed, AI is included.
How much do AI features cost?
Section titled “How much do AI features cost?”On Pro BYO: Smart Capture/Triage pennies per use, transcription ~$0.36/hour. A heavy meeting user (15h/week) spends ~$20-30/month in provider fees. On Pro All-in-One: included in your subscription.
Where does my meeting audio go?
Section titled “Where does my meeting audio go?”On Pro BYO: directly from your device to OpenAI’s API using your own key. Pensum never receives your audio. On Pro All-in-One: routed through Pensum’s proxy for billing, not stored or retained. Recordings and transcripts stay as local files in your vault.
Can I use local transcription instead of cloud?
Section titled “Can I use local transcription instead of cloud?”Yes. If you run a Whisper-compatible server locally (Ollama, LocalAI, whisper.cpp), enter its URL in Settings. Audio never leaves your device. Pensum does not install or manage local transcription software.
Does it conflict with the Tasks plugin?
Section titled “Does it conflict with the Tasks plugin?”Both use the same task syntax. We recommend using one or the other, not both.
How does sync work?
Section titled “How does sync work?”Pensum is sync-agnostic. Works with Obsidian Sync, iCloud, Syncthing, or any file-based sync.
Are API keys secure?
Section titled “Are API keys secure?”Keys are encrypted with AES-256-GCM before storage. They never leave the device except to call the provider directly.
Can agents modify my vault?
Section titled “Can agents modify my vault?”Yes, through MCP. But agent content has agent-suggested-pending provenance and requires your review before it becomes part of your vault.
What data does Pensum collect?
Section titled “What data does Pensum collect?”The plugin itself collects nothing. No telemetry, no analytics, no phone-home. Your license key validates with our server every 7 days (just the key, no vault data). That’s the only network call Pensum makes to our infrastructure.