Element Note

Element Note

Handwriting Note & PDF Markup

2.6K ratings
334 reviews
Free
In-App Purchases

Details

  • Released
  • Updated
  • November 3, 2022
  • September 10, 2026

Features

Element Note screenshot #1 for iPhone
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iphone
ipad
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About

This app offers a distraction-free digital notebook experience with advanced handwriting, PDF annotation, and sketching capabilities. It features unique brushes, a powerful rendering engine, and smart organization tools. Sync your notes across devices and collaborate with others seamlessly.

Unique handwriting brushes
Smooth drawing engine
PDF annotation
Text, shape, and image attachments
On-device OCR search
Smart dark mode
iCloud sync and collaboration
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What users say

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What's New in Element Note

2.13.0

September 10, 2026

Fixed • Fixed brush-drawn shapes disappearing while erasing. • Pasted content stays selected after page reloads. • Improved gesture handling when switching drawing tools. • Fixed opening PDFs shared from other apps.

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Subscription plans

Element Note Yearly

Unlock the full Element Note app - yearly

$3.491 Year
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3

In-App Purchases

$9.99

Lifetime

Unlock the full app forever

User reviews

Good with unique features but not great

This app has a lot of unique features with the brushes compared to most note taking apps. I also LOVE the price and the dark mode. What I think it lacks is the ability to add links to other pages as well as some documents hyperlinks would not work. I also think it could use sticky notes feature but overall I like the app a lot.
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Manual page add disappointing

I have really enjoyed this app, but the recent update makes it useless for note taking—new pages used to add automatically, now users have to manually add each new page. No longer works for classrooms where you cannot pause to manually add each new page. Please revert this to the way it was.

A nice, simple notetaking app.

Honestly, for a one time payment of 14 dollars, this is good stuff! It’s got all the features you’d need for taking notes whilst having a simple interface that is completely customizable. My only complaints is that the ‘find in text’ function seems to not work for me, and I really wish you could have multiple notes open at the same time using a tab system like that of browsers. Still, it’s worth the money imo.

Update: I figured out the issue with the find in text feature, you’d have to specify what language your notes are in within the settings. Now it works like a charm :)
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One big problem

On this app I downloaded it a while back but when I try to write or draw it glitches and doesn’t work so please fix it for me because that would be really good

Please

I love your app! Personally, I think it’s the best note-taking app for iPad. But could you please add an option to lock the zoom? It drives me crazy when I’m writing and the zoom suddenly changes. Other than that, I absolutely love the app.

Developer apps

User experience

🐞

Reported Bugs

4 issues

Notes and files randomly disappearing

Bug

Inconsistent behavior when using the floating keyboard

Bug

Handwriting recognition not working as expected

Bug

Exported PDFs losing formatting and background colors

Bug

Requested Features

6 requests

Ruler tool

Feature

Ability to resize/rotate selections

Feature

Improved text editing and formatting

Feature

Presentation mode for connecting to displays

Feature

Ability to import/export multiple files at once

Feature

Seasonal or custom sticker packs

Feature

FAQ

What does Element Note do?

Element Note is a next-generation app for taking notes, annotating PDFs, and light sketching. It focuses on providing an elegant, distraction-free writing space with powerful features and a modern interface.

What are the key features of Element Note?

Key features include a variety of unique brushes (pencil, pen, brush, marker), a smooth drawing engine powered by Metal technology with gradient ink support, powerful attachments like text, shapes, stickers, and images, universal search with on-device OCR, smart dark mode, iCloud sync and collaboration for up to 100 users, and desktop-class organization with intuitive drag-and-drop gestures.

How much does Element Note cost?

Element Note is free to try for up to three notes. To unlock the full app and create unlimited notes, an in-app purchase is required. There are no ads within the application.

What devices is Element Note compatible with?

While the description doesn't explicitly list device compatibility, it mentions iCloud Sync and Collaboration, suggesting compatibility with Apple devices that support iCloud. The mention of 'system darkmode' also implies compatibility with operating systems that support this feature.

What are common use cases for Element Note?

Common use cases include taking handwritten notes in meetings or lectures, marking up and signing PDF documents, creating quick sketches or diagrams, organizing research materials, and collaborating on projects with others through shared notes.