Comparison

Decision vs Side Notes

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Decision

This app helps you make better choices by using a weighted-average formula. It allows you to evaluate multiple options against various factors and their importance to calculate a final score for each choice.

Highlights
  • Weighted-average formula for calculations
  • Evaluate job offers, purchases, and business decisions
  • Define factors and their importance
  • Score options against weighted and binary factors
  • Rank options with overall scores
  • Delete unwanted decisions and factors
Features
Read full description

Increase your chances of success with this decision matrix app! This app uses a weighted-average formula which calculates results based on your factors and their importance. FAQ: What can I use this app for? - Evaluating job offers - Choosing your next car or house - Deciding on a holiday destination - Business decisions Can I delete unwanted decisions, factors and options? Yes, just swipe from right to left in order to reveal the delete button. What's the difference between weighted and binary factors? Both factors must be given a score of 1-10 for their importance (10 being very important). When adding an option, weighted factors are scored from 0-10 and binary factors are scored as true or false. Both weighted and binary factors contribute to the final score for each option. How does it work? This app uses a decision matrix in order to rank options against weighted factors. This provides an overall score for each option and helps with comparison. Example: You add a factor named 'pay' and set its importance to 8 (high). Company A pays averagely so you score it 5. This gives it a weighted score of 40 (5 x 8). Company B pays well so you score it 9. This gives a weighed score of 72 (9 x 8). This option is the winner. This is a powerful tool when analysing multiple factors and options at once.

About

Side Notes

This app helps you organize thoughts by viewing multiple notes simultaneously. It offers layouts for comparing options, conducting analyses, or structuring complex ideas. Focus on your thinking with a clean, intuitive interface and privacy-focused design.

Highlights
  • Side-by-side note viewing
  • Multiple layout options (Dual, Four, Single)
  • Visual comparison of ideas
  • SWOT analysis and Eisenhower Matrix support
  • Rich text editing
  • Offline functionality
  • Export notes as PDF or text
Features
Read full description

See both sides of every decision at once. Side Notes shows several notes on one screen, so your pros and cons, two options or a SWOT analysis sit side by side instead of hiding in separate lists. Pick a template, start typing, and compare at a glance. Free, with no ads and no account. START FAST WITH TEMPLATES • Pros & Cons: two columns, one clearer answer • Option A vs Option B: compare two choices side by side • SWOT analysis: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in one grid • Eisenhower matrix: sort tasks by urgent and important • Retrospective: went well, to improve, ideas, actions • Blank board: any layout, your own structure THREE LAYOUTS FOR THE WAY YOU THINK • Dual: two notes side by side • Four: a 2x2 grid for matrices and frameworks • Single: one full note when you need room to write Tap any note to edit it full screen, then swipe to move to the next one. MADE FOR REAL DECISIONS Should you take the job offer? Which apartment, which laptop, which city? Put every argument where you can see it. Run a SWOT on a business idea or a career move, plan your week with the Eisenhower matrix, and close a project or a sprint with a retrospective. ON ALL YOUR DEVICES, NO SIGN UP Your boards sync with iCloud across iPhone, iPad and Mac. There is no account to create and nothing to log in to. WRITE, THEN FIND IT AGAIN • Rich text formatting such as bold and italic (iOS 26 and later) • Word count on every note • Search board titles and note content, filter by Today or This week • Swipe to duplicate or delete a board, or long press for more options SHARE YOUR THINKING Export any board as a PDF or share it as text, ready for a meeting, a teammate or your future self. MAKE IT YOURS Light or dark mode and the Ink accent color, with Brick, Forest and Ocean in Side Notes Plus. A calm, paper-like design with serif titles. GREAT ON IPAD AND MAC More room to see every note at once, plus keyboard shortcuts on iPad and Mac (Apple silicon). Fully translated into 34 languages and redesigned for the latest iOS with Liquid Glass. GO FURTHER WITH SIDE NOTES PLUS Everything above stays free. Side Notes Plus is an optional upgrade for when you want more: • Advanced templates: weighted decision matrix, OKR, weekly review, 5 whys • Your own templates: save any board as a template • Lock a board with Face ID or Touch ID • All accent colors: Brick, Forest and Ocean • Markdown export to Notion, Obsidian or any editor Choose a yearly plan with a 1-week free trial, a monthly plan, or a one-time lifetime purchase. Side Notes is free, with no ads and no account. Just a clear space to think things through. Side Notes Plus is an optional auto-renewable subscription. Payment is charged to your Apple Account; it renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the period. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://side-notes.app/en/privacy

Screenshots

Decision4 screens
Side Notes4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Side Notes at 3.9 against Decision's 3.0. Side Notes also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (22 vs 4). Decision's advantage is update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 17.0). On price, review sentiment, ads and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Decision sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Side Notes asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Side Notes holds the better App Store score, 3.9 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Side Notes has 22 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Decision's written reviews are positive against 57% of Side Notes's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Decision ships an update every 4 weeks, Side Notes every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Decision versus Side Notes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDecisionSide Notes
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (4 ratings)3.9 (22 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews57.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings422 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS9.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size31 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTom GlanvilleStraw Technologies

Customer experience

Decision

All ratings4 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral16.7%
Negative33.3%

Side Notes

All ratings22 ratings
Positive68.2%
Neutral9.1%
Negative22.7%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive57.1%
Neutral28.6%
Negative14.3%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Decision

One-time1
  • Upgrade App$0.99
None

Side Notes

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Decision free?
Decision is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Side Notes free?
Side Notes is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Decision or Side Notes?
Side Notes is rated higher. Decision averages 3.0 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Side Notes averages 3.9 from 22 ratings.
Do Decision or Side Notes have ads?
Neither Decision nor Side Notes shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Decision or Side Notes?
Decision ships an update every 4 weeks, and Side Notes every 2 months. Most recently, Decision was updated on October 5, 2026 and Side Notes on October 11, 2026.

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