Comparison

Joplin vs Craft

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

Head to head
About

Joplin

A privacy-focused note-taking and to-do application that allows you to capture multimedia notes, organize them with notebooks and tags, and sync across devices. It offers end-to-end encryption and an offline-first approach for secure and accessible information management.

Highlights
  • Capture multimedia notes (speech, photos, videos, PDFs)
  • Organize notes with notebooks and tags
  • Create to-dos and set reminders
  • End-to-end encryption for privacy
  • Cross-device synchronization (Joplin Cloud, Dropbox, OneDrive)
  • Offline-first access
  • OCR search for text within images and PDFs
Features
Read full description

Privacy-first app Capture your thoughts freely and without distractions, tracking, or ads. With Joplin’s end-to-end encryption and open-source code, you can concentrate on your ideas and tasks without worrying about your privacy. Capture multimedia notes Capture multimedia notes effortlessly. In Joplin you can : • create manuscript notes, • transcribe speech to note, • add multimedia: photos, videos, PDFs, and images, • insert documents as attachments, • create math expressions, add tables, write code and insert diagrams, • create to-dos and add reminders. Organise your ideas Organise your notes into notebooks. Connect your notes with tags by subject or priority. Use colours and rich text editor to format your notes with ease. Make task lists, create to-dos and add reminders. Effortlessly find your notes, even within PDFs and images, thanks to the powerful search feature enhanced by Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology. Use Joplin to store your bills, lecture notes, photos or receipts. Reliable synchronisation Access your notes from computer, phone or tablet by synchronising with various services including Joplin Cloud, Dropbox and OneDrive. Seamlessly move from one device to another. Offline-first You can access your notes anytime and anywhere, even without Internet. If you’re using Joplin on multiple devices, they will synchronise and update once you regained the connection. Enhance your productivity across devices Extend your note-taking experience by using Joplin on additional devices such as a desktop computer or tablet. Make the most of each device by using its specific features. On the desktop app, use a web clipper extension, wide-range of community plugins and a Markdown editor. Experience flawless handwriting and drawing on your tablet. Join active community Connect with Joplin’s vibrant community on Joplin Forum. It’s a place where users can share ideas, ask questions, exchange information and give feedback. Joplin’s dynamic community also develops powerful plugins, so you can customise your app to suit your needs.

About

Craft

This app helps you organize your thoughts, manage tasks, and boost productivity with an AI assistant. Create structured documents, plan your day, and connect with other tools for a seamless workflow across all your devices.

Highlights
  • AI Assistant for research and writing
  • Structured document creation
  • Native task management system
  • Daily notes and calendar view
  • Offline access and sync
  • Integrations with other tools
Features
Read full description

Unleash your creativity and take control of your plans with Craft, a productivity app that transforms how you write, organize, and get things done. Create structured documents, manage tasks, organize your knowledge with Collections, and chat about it all with the AI Assistant. With seamless sync across iPhone, iPad, Mac, and the web, your workspace is always ready, online or offline. WRITE ANYWHERE, ANYTIME Your best ideas don’t wait for an internet connection. Work seamlessly offline with full access to all features, then let your changes sync automatically when you reconnect. Whether you’re on iPhone, iPad, or Mac, Craft keeps your writing experience consistent and powerful. AI ASSISTANT IS THERE TO HELP For seamless research, text editing, or searching across your entire knowledge base, Craft’s AI Assistant keeps you in flow on every device you use Craft on. Powered by advanced large language models, it finds any note, answers questions based on your content, and helps you stay on top of your knowledge without making you maintain a strict organizational system. BUILT-IN TASK MANAGEMENT Turn your ideas into action with our native Tasks system. Capture tasks as they emerge in your notes, manage them in a dedicated Inbox, and access them from any page with the Assistant’s help. Set target dates, due dates, and reminders to stay on track. With a unified tasks view, it’s the perfect balance between AI-powered fluidity and a dedicated, always-available space. STAY ON TOP OF YOUR DAY Make daily planning effortless with Daily Notes. Capture quick thoughts, plan your schedule, track tasks, or maintain your personal journal, all in one dedicated space. Switch to the calendar view to visualize your progress, reflect on your week, and understand how your days are shaping up. CONNECT YOUR DOCS TO OTHER TOOLS Turn Craft into the home for your whole workflow. Connect your documents to popular AI chat tools and productivity apps using deep integrations and APIs. Save conversations into Craft, pull in tasks, events, or other content from your existing tools, or even use your Craft documents as a CMS for powering a blog or website. EVERYTHING YOU NEED - Available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and the web - Markdown and keyboard shortcuts - Link sharing and web publishing - Version history - Fast, reliable sync - Advanced integrations and API support - AI-powered Assistant - Incredible customer support WHAT’S NEW Craft Assistant: your smart partner to brainstorm, research, and write. It can help you find your notes across your space, rewrite and summarize documents, all while keeping you in the flow. MCP & API: connect Craft to AI models and other tools in your productivity stack, turning it into an organizational layer and live memory. Whiteboards: turn thoughts into visuals with a spacious canvas for sketching ideas, mapping projects, and collaborating creatively. QUESTIONS? Contact us on X at @craftdocs or email feedback@craft.do SUBSCRIPTION DETAILS If you purchase a Craft subscription, you’ll be charged via the payment method associated with your Apple ID. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours of the end of the current period. You can turn off auto-renewal at any time in your account settings on the App Store. Craft subscriptions are available as one-month and 12-month packages. Prices may vary depending on country and are subject to change without notice. Current subscriptions cannot be canceled during the active subscription period. If you don’t choose to purchase a Craft subscription, you can continue using Craft for free. Terms of service: https://www.craft.do/terms Privacy policy: https://www.craft.do/privacy

Screenshots

Joplin4 screens
Craft4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Craft at 4.8 against Joplin's 4.1. Craft also leads on review sentiment (85% vs 66%) and update cadence (every 10 days vs monthly). Joplin's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, ads and device support 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. Craft sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Joplin asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Craft holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Craft has 6.6K ratings behind it against 476, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of Joplin's written reviews are positive against 85% of Craft's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Joplin ships an update monthly, Craft every 10 days. Both last shipped on September 26, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Joplin versus Craft: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterJoplinCraft
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.1 (476 ratings)4.8 (6.6K ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.5% of reviews84.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings4766.6K — better
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS15.6 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size73 MB314 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLaurent CozicCraft Docs Limited

Customer experience

Joplin

All ratings476 ratings
Positive76.7%
Neutral6.3%
Negative17.0%
Written reviews495 reviews
Positive66.5%
Neutral9.3%
Negative24.2%

Craft

All ratings6,610 ratings
Positive97.1%
Neutral1.0%
Negative1.9%
Written reviews1,631 reviews
Positive84.7%
Neutral6.1%
Negative9.2%

User reviews

Joplin

From 476 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great app
  • 🔒 End-to-end encryption
  • 👍 Excellent cross-platform support
  • 👍 Intuitive Markdown support
  • 👍 Flexible sync options (Dropbox, OneDrive, WebDAV)

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Sync issues, especially on iOS
  • 🐛 Buggy UI, especially on iOS
  • 🐛 Crashes and freezes
  • 🐛 Slow performance at times
  • 🐛 Confusing interface, not very intuitive

Craft

From 6.6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Absolutely amazing
  • 👍 Beautiful, clean, simple, increasingly powerful
  • 👍 Fantastic Essential App
  • 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 👍 Seamless sync between devices

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive subscription
  • 🐛 Crashes after recent update
  • 🔍 Lack of customization options (e.g. font size)
  • 🔍 Inconsistent and confusing UI conventions
  • 🔍 Lack of basic features like tags and tables

Bugs and requests

Joplin

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Sync issues with WebDAV and Dropbox
  • Crashes when creating new notes
  • Keyboard issues, text getting obscured
  • Rendering problems in dark mode
  • Compatibility issues with older iOS versions

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add web clipper functionality on iOS
  • Implement nested notebooks on iOS
  • Allow password/biometric protection for notes
  • Improve text editing experience on mobile
  • Add more font and formatting options
Show 1 more
  • Implement a trash/recycle bin for deleted notes

Craft

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when using voice control dictation
  • Inconsistent behavior when rearranging notes
  • Exporting to PDF creates blank first page

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for tables and columns
  • Implement tagging system for better organization
  • Improve text editing and formatting options
  • Integrate with more third-party apps and services
  • Add graph view for visualizing note connections

In-app purchases

None

Joplin

No in-app purchases

9 purchases

Craft

Subscriptions9
  • Plus Monthly Subscription1 Month trial$9.991 Month
  • Legacy - Monthly Subscription$10.991 Month
  • Family Monthly Subscription1 Month trial$17.991 Month
Show 6 more
  • Team Monthly Subscription$59.991 Month
  • Plus Annual Subscription1 Year trial$95.991 Year
  • Legacy - Annual Subscription$99.991 Year
  • Family Annual Subscription1 Year trial$179.991 Year
  • Business Monthly Subscription2 variants$299.001 Month
  • Team Annual Subscription$599.001 Year

Questions

Is Joplin free?
Joplin is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Craft free?
Craft is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Joplin or Craft?
Craft is rated higher. Joplin averages 4.1 out of 5 from 476 ratings, while Craft averages 4.8 from 6.6K ratings.
Do Joplin or Craft have ads?
Neither Joplin nor Craft shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Joplin or Craft?
Joplin ships an update monthly, and Craft every 10 days. Most recently, Joplin was updated on September 26, 2026 and Craft on September 26, 2026.

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