Comparison

Lock Notes vs MemoTaro

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

Head to head
About

Lock Notes

Securely store and protect your private notes with a passcode or Touch ID. Keep sensitive information like passwords, secrets, and diary entries safe from unauthorized access. Backup and sync notes across devices, customize their appearance, and even add images.

Highlights
  • Passcode and Touch ID protection
  • Security question recovery
  • iCloud backup and sync
  • Customizable font style and size
  • Insert images into notes
  • Print and share notes
Features
Read full description

FINALLY AN APP FOR ALL YOUR PRIVATE NOTES! Keep your most valuable, private, and secret notes away from prying eyes. Keep them all totally secret and safe. Store passwords, secrets, contacts or just keep your diary private. KEY FEATURES: • Use Touch ID or passcode to safely lock access to your private notes. • Set a security question and answer in case you forget your passcode. • Safely Backup your valuable notes to iCloud. • Quickly Sync notes between iPhone & iPad with iCloud. • Sort notes list by name, date or manual. • Select notes font style and size. • Insert images & photos into notes. • Print your notes. • Send notes via text message or email. • Save notes to Camera Roll. • Support for Emoji Emoticons. This app allows you to automatically backup your notes for $9.99 a year through an auto-renewing subscription. Subscriptions will be charged to your credit card through your iTunes account. Your subscription will automatically renew unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period You will not be able to cancel a subscription during the active period. You can manage your subscriptions in the Account Settings after purchase. Terms of use: http://www.katans.com/terms-of-use Privacy policy: http://www.katans.com/privacy-policy This app can be freely used up to two notes. A SINGLE PURCHASE COVERS ALL YOUR IPHONE AND IPAD DEVICES.

About

MemoTaro

Securely store your notes with a password lock and biometric authentication. Easily organize, edit, and share your memos with intuitive drag-and-drop and swipe gestures. Find information quickly with powerful search and customize your viewing experience with font settings.

Highlights
  • Password lock with Touch ID/Face ID
  • Drag-and-drop memo organization
  • Swipe to delete notes
  • Direct sharing to messages, mail, social media
  • Memo search and character search
  • Customizable font size and color
Features
Read full description

MemoTaro is a memo app with ease of operation, utility, password lock function.  Compatible with Touch ID / Face ID. ◆ Password lock function: · Password lock can be selected. · When lock setting is done, it will be locked when in the background etc so it is safe.  Compatible with Touch ID / Face ID. ◆ Editing function: · Movement of memo is possible by drag & drop. Deleting notes can also be done with swipe, and operability is simplified. · Because you can lock the edits, if you keep the important memo locked, you can prevent mistakes that you accidentally erase. · Selective deletion, all deletion function is also installed ◆ Activity function: · Functions that can post directly to messages, mail, LINE, Twitter etc. ◆ Search refinement function: · It is also possible to narrow down the target memo and display it by entering a search word. ◆ Character search function on the edit screen: ・Even if you write a lot of notes, it is easy to find where you wrote it. ◆ Font setting: The font size and font color (select from black and gray) of the list screen and memo edit screen can be changed. * The maximum number of characters that can be entered in one memo is 100,000 (6.0 or later). * When you delete an application, the saved memo data will be deleted. * If the password becomes unknown, third parties can not invalidate the lock, so please be careful when managing the setting. ◆ Note: Ads will be hidden if you pay.

Screenshots

Lock Notes4 screens
MemoTaro4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: MemoTaro at free with in-app purchases against Lock Notes's subscription. MemoTaro also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.5). Lock Notes's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (1.1K vs 13). On price, update cadence and in-app purchases 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. Lock Notes sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per year and MemoTaro sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

MemoTaro holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Lock Notes has 1.1K ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Lock Notes ships an update every 10 days, MemoTaro every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and August 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Lock Notes versus MemoTaro: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLock NotesMemoTaro
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (1.1K ratings)4.9 (13 ratings) — better
Positive reviews73.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.1K — better13
Update frequencyEvery 10 daysEvery 9 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB23 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJulyApps LtdMasashi Sasaoka

Customer experience

Lock Notes

All ratings1,149 ratings
Positive89.6%
Neutral1.4%
Negative9.0%
Written reviews831 reviews
Positive73.3%
Neutral6.1%
Negative20.6%

MemoTaro

All ratings13 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Lock Notes

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Notes disappearing after updates
  • Inability to access notes after device reset
  • Sync issues between devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Advanced formatting options
  • Ability to change passcode
  • Improved search capabilities
  • Folder/organization system
  • Better backup and restore options

MemoTaro

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Lock Notes

Subscriptions1
  • Auto Backup$14.991 Year
One-time2
  • Unlimited Notes$4.99
  • Lock Notes Pro$9.99
1 purchases

MemoTaro

One-time1
  • Ad-free$1.99

Questions

Is Lock Notes free?
Lock Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is MemoTaro free?
MemoTaro is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Lock Notes or MemoTaro?
MemoTaro is rated higher. Lock Notes averages 4.5 out of 5 from 1.1K ratings, while MemoTaro averages 4.9 from 13 ratings.
Do Lock Notes or MemoTaro have ads?
MemoTaro shows ads; Lock Notes does not.
Which is updated more often, Lock Notes or MemoTaro?
Lock Notes ships an update every 10 days, and MemoTaro every 9 days. Most recently, Lock Notes was updated on September 23, 2026 and MemoTaro on August 11, 2026.

Other comparisons