Backdrop vs. Memex
Knowledge management with permanent storage.
Full-text search across everything you save.
Memex (memex.garden) is a browser extension that lets you highlight, annotate, and full-text search the pages you visit. It creates a personal search engine of your browsing history with powerful recall features. Backdrop shares the same vision — making web content permanently accessible and searchable — but takes a different approach: instead of indexing your browsing, you explicitly archive pages on demand in four formats, giving you curated, organized collections with permanent storage.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Backdrop | Memex |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-format capture Memex captures page content for search, not formats | ||
| Full-text search Both provide powerful content search | ||
| Annotations & highlights Memex excels at highlighting | ||
| Entity tagging | ||
| Organized collections Memex uses tagging and lists | ||
| Permanent storage Memex indexes browsing history, not archives | ||
| AI-powered features Both offer AI — Backdrop AI chat, Memex AI sidebar | ||
| Browser extension Both are extension-driven | ||
| Automatic capture Memex auto-indexes everything. Backdrop captures on demand | ||
| Format exports Backdrop: HTML, PDF, screenshot, readable. Memex: text/notes |
Backdrop wins here
Where Backdrop is the stronger choice
- Deliberate curation — you choose what to archive, avoiding information overload
- Four capture formats per page — HTML, PDF, screenshot, and readable text
- Permanent cloud storage with organized collections and public/private sharing
- Entity tagging for structured discovery of people, places, organizations, and topics
- Annotations and highlights persist as part of the permanent archive
Memex wins here
Where Memex might be a better fit
- Automatic indexing of everything you browse — no manual saving required
- Powerful AI features including summarization and natural language recall
- Excellent for serendipitous rediscovery of past browsing
Pricing
Backdrop
Free tier with 100 archives. Paid plans start at $5/month for unlimited archiving, full-text search, and priority processing.
Start freeMemex
Free tier with limited queries. Memex Pro at $5/month for unlimited search and AI features.
Verdict
Memex and Backdrop approach knowledge management from different angles. Memex is about automatically indexing everything you browse so you can find it later. Backdrop is about deliberately curating a permanent archive of pages that matter to you, with richer preservation and organizational tools. They complement each other — use Memex for recall, Backdrop for lasting preservation. Which one you prefer depends on whether you want automatic capture or curated archiving.
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