Comparison

Standard Notes vs Bitwarden Authenticator

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

Head to head
About

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.

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
Read full description

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/

About

Bitwarden Authenticator

Generate secure verification codes for two-factor authentication on your device. This app supports any website or application using industry-standard TOTP, adding an extra layer of protection to your online accounts.

Highlights
  • Generate 2FA verification codes
  • Supports TOTP standard
  • Universal compatibility
  • Simple, intuitive interface
  • Adds extra layer of protection
Features
Read full description

New from Bitwarden, provider of the password manager trusted by millions, Bitwarden Authenticator generates verification codes for two-factor authentication, ensuring your identity is verified when you log into accounts. Using industry-standards, Bitwarden Authenticator supports any website or application that uses TOTP. ADD AN EXTRA LAYER OF PROTECTION Generate verification codes to ensure your identity is verified, keeping your sensitive data out of reach of imposters. UNIVERSAL COMPATIBILITY Bitwarden Authenticator uses industry standard methods for verification code generation, so it will work with any website or application that utilizes time-based one-time passwords. EASY TO USE A simple, intuitive design and straightforward interface makes it easy to start incorporating authentication into your digital life Bitwarden empowers organizations to secure passwords, developer secrets, and passkeys. Visit Bitwarden.com to learn more about Bitwarden Password Manager, Bitwarden Secrets Manager and Bitwarden Passwordless.dev!

Screenshots

Standard Notes4 screens
Bitwarden Authenticator4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Standard Notes at 4.7 against Bitwarden Authenticator's 3.5. Standard Notes also leads on review sentiment (64% vs 41%) and ratings volume (3.8K vs 95). Bitwarden Authenticator's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 5 weeks). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. Standard Notes sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $119.99 per year. Bitwarden Authenticator asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Standard Notes holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Standard Notes has 3.8K ratings behind it against 95, 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 41% of Bitwarden Authenticator's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Standard Notes ships an update every 5 weeks, Bitwarden Authenticator fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Standard Notes versus Bitwarden Authenticator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStandard NotesBitwarden Authenticator
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (3.8K ratings) — better3.5 (95 ratings)
Positive reviews64.1% of reviews — better41.3% of reviews
Number of ratings3.8K — better95
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size92 MB71 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperStandard Notes Ltd.Bitwarden Inc

Customer experience

Standard Notes

All ratings3,751 ratings
Positive92.5%
Neutral2.2%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews594 reviews
Positive64.1%
Neutral10.4%
Negative25.4%

Bitwarden Authenticator

All ratings95 ratings
Positive56.8%
Neutral11.6%
Negative31.6%
Written reviews155 reviews
Positive41.3%
Neutral22.6%
Negative36.1%

User reviews

Standard Notes

From 3.8K App Store ratings

What 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

Bitwarden Authenticator

From 95 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Good start
  • 🚀 Supports export and import
  • 🔒 Backed by a trusted company
  • 💡 Dedicated authenticator app

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes on launch
  • 🐛 Search function not working
  • 🐛 Backup not working as expected
  • 🐛 Compatibility issues with older devices

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

Bitwarden Authenticator

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Search results showing placeholder codes
  • Backup not restoring codes after device restore
  • Crashes after app updates

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add icons for services
  • Allow rearranging of entries
  • Implement iCloud/cloud sync
  • Add Apple Watch support
  • Require biometric authentication on each app open

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Standard Notes

Subscriptions1
  • Professional Plan7 Days trial$119.991 Year
None

Bitwarden Authenticator

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Standard Notes free?
Standard Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Bitwarden Authenticator free?
Bitwarden Authenticator is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Standard Notes or Bitwarden Authenticator?
Standard Notes is rated higher. Standard Notes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 3.8K ratings, while Bitwarden Authenticator averages 3.5 from 95 ratings.
Do Standard Notes or Bitwarden Authenticator have ads?
Neither Standard Notes nor Bitwarden Authenticator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Standard Notes or Bitwarden Authenticator?
Standard Notes ships an update every 5 weeks, and Bitwarden Authenticator fortnightly. Most recently, Standard Notes was updated on October 12, 2026 and Bitwarden Authenticator on October 7, 2026.

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