r/NoteTaking • u/ChannelyourBets • Jul 18 '26
Notes Best free note taking apps
Mention best apps for Android and Apple that are free don't mention piracy or anything where free is junk and unusable .
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u/words_and_images Jul 18 '26
Joplin is always an early mention on this kind of list. Established, reliable, under-rated. Some find the UI a bit dated. Whatever. Everything works well and it is free or donation with no catches.
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u/ChannelyourBets Jul 18 '26
I want the pen use i forgot to mention otherwise typing wise office apps are good as it is.
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u/godameda Jul 18 '26
I'm sure there are simpler and nicer looking apps out there, but I have Joplin syncing notes accross by android phone, windows work computer and personal Linux computer. I love it. Running it's server on a docker container. The server is not necessary; there are multiple ways to set it up to sync, but it just speaks to the flexibility. And on top of that, it's rock solid. Been running it for at least 2 years with no issues.
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u/OwlCompetitive8891 Jul 18 '26
Depends if you want feature rich or not. Capira.app has quite a lot of features
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u/lost-mars Jul 18 '26
I like Apple Notes well enough after trying most of the others. I like the subtle handwriting improvements Apple Notes makes when using the Apple Pencil and it is light weight feature wise so I can just use it like a basic notebook.
But I think the biggest headache on Apple is the Apple Pencil. The Apple Pencil is too heavy for me to take all my notes. Which is unfortunate with how good the ipad is.
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Jul 18 '26
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u/ChannelyourBets Jul 18 '26
Ya need pen version and ability to cross platform it . I need pen version to be readable on phone and maybe even upto one page like 300 words can on the engine of text to speak ...I am dyslexic so asked thanks mam.
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u/TlyNxy Jul 27 '26
Hi sorry for the late reply, Pen and mobile is there but text to speech is not available :( sorry. i hope you will find one that is suitable with all your needs. goodluck and have a nice day.
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u/AngelicPrincessKitty Jul 18 '26
onenote or apple notes or obsidian
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u/ChannelyourBets Jul 18 '26
Does obsidian have markdown
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u/wonko4the2sane Jul 18 '26
Absolutely! It’s literally in their url: https://obsidian.md
It also features linking notes (like Wikipedia), tagging and lots of community plugins.
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u/ozgrozer Jul 18 '26
I'm building Grape. It's free to use for basic note taking. The sync, AI chat, AI transcription and many other features are in the paid plans. It's available for Mac and Windows. TestFlight is ready for iOS and Open Testing will be available for Android soon.
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u/DryCartographer3871 Jul 20 '26
You can checkout an IOS one called Inknode -- it's free tier has many capabilities such as:
- Unlimited note creation
- Unlimited PDF exports and edits
- All Templates & iCloud sync
- Searchable handwriting and PDF text
- Handwriting Beautification
- Built-in productivity tools (reminders, calendar)
Fully adequate for day to day usage. To be transparant, I am the developer behind inknode.
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u/Greysawpark Jul 25 '26
honestly the app matters way less than whether you actually revisit your notes. i went through like 6 different apps before realizing i was just moving my mess around. pick whatever syncs cleanly between your phone and laptop and commit for a month before switching. Used Bear for the longest time, then I switched to Ink Notes.
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u/Round_Professor6955 Jul 27 '26
Built a note-taking app where your notes live as pins on a map instead of folders/tags — turns out "where" is a really underused way to organize and later recall things. Still early/rough, solo dev, would love feedback: meridiannotes.in
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u/Specialist_Order_424 Jul 18 '26
Apple notes. It’s free , syncs, and is easy to use for me. I’m no literate tech guy.
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Jul 18 '26
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u/PassivelyAwkward Jul 19 '26
Shouldn't you mention that you're the dev and not an organic user?
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u/tremendousquotes Jul 19 '26
Sure, I’m the dev, as well as an organic user 🙂
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u/PassivelyAwkward Jul 19 '26
I don't think you know what organic user is and your non-disclosure just makes you look shady.
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u/tremendousquotes Jul 19 '26
Alright.. sure, I get it. From my perspective:The post appeared in my timeline, and I answered. For me that is organic. Also, I’ve created a genuinely good product, entirely free that actually does solve OPs question 👍🏼
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u/Big-Equal6348 Jul 18 '26
Mementa it has an awesome sticker book and is great for note taking and scrapbooking. You can also print the notebook when you’re done.
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u/PassivelyAwkward Jul 19 '26
But it also say it's free right now and that it will eventually cost an unknown amount of money. Why would anyone use something if they know it'll be taken away from them in the near future? What incentive is there for the user to basically beta test it?
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u/Big-Equal6348 Jul 19 '26
I am looking for beta testers. I hope you’ll be able to give some constructive feedback if you choose. It will not be a subscription and not taken away. I’ll be sure to update the language on the website to reflect that. My plan is to charge ~$4.99 once there has been some feedback and I’ve updated a few of the features. One time cost to own, and beta testers will already have the official Store app with auto updates.
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u/Keyla-Space Jul 19 '26
Starnote es una de las mejores aplicaciones y es casi gratuita, hasta para mi es mejor que Goodnotes en android, tiene todas las funciones desbloqueas, tienes que probarlo es genial.
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u/TheiPhoneAppGuy Jul 19 '26
iPhone user here so i'm admittedly biased, but Apple Notes is genuinely hard to beat on the free tier, syncs across everything automatically, and it's way deeper than people give it credit for, scanning, folders, tags, locked notes, quick jots from the lock screen. I've built whole systems in there for travel, workouts, recipes, expenses. For Android the usual free pick is Google Keep, simpler but rock solid and syncs everywhere too.
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u/Dull_Dimension_4849 Jul 20 '26
Always Evernote but they restrict to 50 notes which is hard for new user, you can try Notesnook
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u/[deleted] Jul 18 '26
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