Standard Notes vs NordLocker
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Standard Notes
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.
- End-to-end encryption
- Cross-device syncing
- Offline access
- Passcode and biometric lock
- Tagging system
- Open-source code
- Optional productivity editors and themes
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Standard Notes is a private and secure end-to-end encrypted notes app. It allows you to write and sync your notes across all your devices, including your iPhone, iPad, Mac, and web browser. Private means your notes are end-to-end encrypted, so only you can read your notes. Even we can't read the contents of your notes. Simple means it does one job and does it well. Standard Notes is a safe and lasting place for your life's work. Our focus is making it easy to write notes wherever you are and syncing them with encryption to all your devices. Our users love us for: • Personal Notes • Tasks & Todos • Passwords & Keys • Code & Technical Procedures • Private Journal • Meeting Notes • Cross-platform Scratchpad • Books, Recipes, & Movies • Health & Fitness Log Standard Notes comes free with: • Seamless sync across all your devices, with easy to use applications on iPhone, iPad, Mac, web browsers, and other platforms. • Offline access, so you can access your downloaded notes even without a connection. • No limit on number of devices. • No limit on number of notes. • Passcode lock protection, along with Touch ID and Face ID protection. • A tagging system to organize your notes (like #work, #ideas, #passwords, #crypto). • The ability to pin, lock, protect, and move notes to trash, which allows you to recover deleted notes until the trash is emptied. Standard Notes is completely open-source, which means when we say your notes are encrypted with industry-leading XChaCha-20 encryption, and that only you can read your notes, you don't have to take our word for it. Our code is open to the world to audit. We made Standard Notes simple because longevity is important to us. We want to make sure we're here, protecting your notes, for the next hundred years. You shouldn't have to find a new notes app every year. To sustain our development, we offer optional paid subscriptions which give you access to powerful tools like: • Productivity editors (like Markdown, Code, Spreadsheets) • Beautiful themes (like Midnight, Focus, Solarized Dark) • Powerful cloud tools including daily backups of your encrypted data delivered to your email inbox every day, or backed up to your cloud provider (like Dropbox and Google Drive). We're always happy to talk, whether it be a question, thought, or issue. Please feel free to email us any time at help@standardnotes.com. When you take the time to send us a message, we'll be sure to do the same. EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
NordLocker
Securely store and encrypt your photos, videos, and files in the cloud or locally. This app offers end-to-end encryption and zero-knowledge architecture, ensuring only you have access to your data. Share files securely with others while maintaining complete control.
- End-to-end file encryption
- Zero-knowledge cloud storage
- Local encryption tool
- Secure file sharing
- Cross-device syncing
- Access control
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NordLocker is an encrypted cloud storage app that puts privacy first. Store your files in a securely encrypted cloud that provides maximum protection from data leakage. Why NordLocker? NordLocker was built by the team behind NordVPN, the world’s most popular VPN. As a company, we strive to build the best cybersecurity tools anyone could use. That’s why NordLocker has been recognized by the Cyber Security Awards as the Cloud-Based Product of the Year. Our secure storage uses an end-to-end encryption algorithm to secure your files in the cloud. All data is encrypted with a unique key that gives you complete access control. Encrypted at all times Protect your precious files, upload them to the cloud storage, or sync them across your devices for easy access. And even when files are synced to a shared device, your data stays private. Because no one can see or access your data without your permission. When it comes to sharing files, you can securely share any file or folder via NordLocker in just two steps. Share your files with however many people you like, and wait until they accept your invitation. NordLocker offers an option to share your files via a securely generated link that encrypts the file in transit. You always remain the owner of your files and can stop sharing it whenever you want. Hassle-free security Upload your files into NordLocker, and they’re encrypted instantly. Make NordLocker what you want it to be — media or other files storage for sensitive data. Your data is yours only What's yours is yours. That's why we believe using a cloud app should never be based on trust. Unlike mainstream cloud providers, we can never see your encryption keys or know what you store in your cloud. NordLocker is built on zero-knowledge architecture, meaning we know nothing about what you store in your cloud. Not only is this more secure, but it also gives you complete access control. Download NordLocker and protect your digital assets now!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Standard Notes at 64% against NordLocker's 10%. Standard Notes also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.7) and ratings volume (3.8K vs 13). NordLocker's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Standard Notes sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $119.99 per year. NordLocker asks for nothing beyond the download.
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 13, 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 10% of NordLocker's.
Standard Notes ships an update every 5 weeks, NordLocker every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Standard Notes | NordLocker |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (3.8K ratings) — better | 3.7 (13 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 64.1% of reviews — better | 9.6% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3.8K — better | 13 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | Every 4 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 92 MB | 67 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Standard Notes Ltd. | Nordvpn S.A. |
Customer experience
Standard Notes
NordLocker
User reviews
Standard Notes
From 3.8K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fast and reliable sync
- 🔒 Excellent privacy and security
- 👍 Simple and intuitive interface
- 📚 Great for organizing notes
- 💻 Cross-platform availability
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional bugs and crashes
- 🔑 Frustrating login/authentication issues
- 💰 Expensive premium subscription
- 📱 Limited features in free version
- 🖍️ Lack of formatting options
NordLocker
From 13 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🔒 Secure encryption
- 👍 Decent free storage plan
- 🚀 Improving with updates
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes and freezes
- 👎 Clunky and unintuitive UI
- 🕰️ Slow file uploads/downloads
- 🔒 Excessive password requirements
Bugs and requests
Standard Notes
Reported bugs
4 issues- Notes disappearing or getting deleted unexpectedly
- Sync issues between devices
- Keyboard and UI bugs on mobile
- Compatibility problems with older iOS versions
Requested features
5 requests- 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
NordLocker
Reported bugs
3 issues- Login issues and recovery key problems
- Compatibility problems on newer devices
- Inconsistent file sync and upload failures
Requested features
5 requests- Add thumbnail previews for files
- Allow batch/folder uploads
- Implement biometric login
- Integrate with native Files app
- Add dark mode option
In-app purchases
Standard Notes
- Professional Plan7 Days trial$119.991 Year
NordLocker
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Standard Notes free?
Is NordLocker free?
Which has better reviews, Standard Notes or NordLocker?
Do Standard Notes or NordLocker have ads?
Which is updated more often, Standard Notes or NordLocker?
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