# Standard Notes vs OctoNote

The clearest difference is rating: Standard Notes at 4.7 against OctoNote's 3.7. Standard Notes also leads on ratings volume (3.8K vs 10) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Standard Notes sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $119.99 per year and OctoNote sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Standard Notes holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Standard Notes has 3.8K ratings behind it against 10, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 64% of Standard Notes's written reviews are positive against 60% of OctoNote's.

Standard Notes ships an update every 5 weeks, OctoNote every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Standard Notes | OctoNote |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (3.8K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/standard-notes/id1285392450/reviews)** | [3.7 (10 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/octonote/id1433164731/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **3.8K** | 10 |
| Positive reviews | **63.9% of reviews** | 60.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 90 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.1** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Standard Notes Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/586976285) | [Base11 Studios Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1082229198) |

## What reviewers say

### Standard Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/standard-notes/id1285392450)

Securely capture and sync your thoughts across all devices with end-to-end encryption. This app offers a simple, lasting place for all your notes, from personal thoughts to sensitive information, with robust privacy features.

**Highlights:** End-to-end encryption, Cross-device syncing, Offline access, Passcode and biometric lock, Tagging system, Open-source code, Optional productivity editors and themes

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Professional Plan | $119.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and reliable sync
- 🔒 Excellent privacy and security
- 👍 Simple and intuitive interface
- 📚 Great for organizing notes
- 💻 Cross-platform availability

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional bugs and crashes
- 🔑 Frustrating login/authentication issues
- 💰 Expensive premium subscription
- 📱 Limited features in free version
- 🖍️ Lack of formatting options

**Reported bugs**

- Notes disappearing or getting deleted unexpectedly
- Sync issues between devices
- Keyboard and UI bugs on mobile
- Compatibility problems with older iOS versions

**Requested features**

- Add support for images and attachments
- Implement a more robust search function
- Introduce a dark mode option
- Allow for better note organization (folders, nested tags)
- Add undo/redo functionality


### OctoNote

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/octonote/id1433164731)

This app lets you write and store notes in markdown format, syncing them directly to your GitHub Gists. It offers beautiful rendering, code syntax highlighting, and version control for organized and accessible notes.

**Highlights:** Markdown writing and rendering, GitHub Gists integration, Code syntax highlighting, Live preview, Version history, Secret Gists (Premium), Custom syntax themes (Premium)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium (Monthly) | $1.99 | per month |
| Premium (Yearly) | $11.99 | per year |
| OctoNote Premium - Lifetime | $49.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Standard Notes free?

Standard Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is OctoNote free?

OctoNote is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Standard Notes or OctoNote?

Standard Notes is rated higher. Standard Notes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 3.8K ratings, while OctoNote averages 3.7 from 10 ratings.

### Do Standard Notes or OctoNote have ads?

Neither Standard Notes nor OctoNote shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Standard Notes or OctoNote?

Standard Notes ships an update every 5 weeks, and OctoNote every 2 months. Most recently, Standard Notes was updated on November 6, 2026 and OctoNote on November 2, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*