Joplin vs Note Fold
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- 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
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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.
Note Fold
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Note Fold is a powerful note-taking app for students, professionals, and lifelong learners who need more than a flat list. Create nested folders, write with rich text formatting, embed photos and videos, and tag notes for instant cross-referencing. • Unlimited Folder Structure • Rich Text Editor • Embed Photos, Videos & Links • Smart Tagging System • Search Everything • Works Offline, No Account Required • Archive & Restore • Import & Export Your Library • Customize Your Workspace UNLIMITED FOLDER STRUCTURE Organize notes in folders within folders. Drag and drop to rearrange instantly. Color-code folders and notes to find what you need at a glance. Perfect for coursework, research projects, creative writing, or building your personal knowledge base. RICH TEXT EDITOR Write beautifully formatted notes with bold, italic, headings, bullet points, numbered lists, blockquotes, and inline code. No markdown syntax required, just tap and type. EMBED PHOTOS, VIDEOS & LINKS Insert images from your camera roll or capture new photos Embed videos directly from your device Paste YouTube links for inline video playback Add web links with automatic preview cards SMART TAGGING SYSTEM Create color-coded tags and apply multiple tags to any note. Browse all notes by tag to find related content across your entire folder structure, perfect for connecting ideas across subjects. SEARCH EVERYTHING Find any note instantly. Search results show the full folder path so you can jump directly to what you need. WORKS OFFLINE, NO ACCOUNT REQUIRED Your notes are stored locally on your device. Write and organize without internet. No sign-up, no cloud. Your data stays on your device. ARCHIVE & RESTORE No accidental deletion. Archived notes are kept safe until you restore or permanently remove them. IMPORT & EXPORT YOUR LIBRARY Back up everything or share individual folders. The .notefold format preserves your complete structure including notes, folders, and tags. CUSTOMIZE YOUR WORKSPACE Light and dark themes Adjustable text sizes Custom colors for folders, notes, and tags NOTE FOLD PRO Unlock the complete experience: • Unlimited folder nesting depth • Embed photos, videos, and YouTube • Rich link preview cards • Import & export functionality • Ad-free note-taking Available as monthly, yearly, or lifetime purchase. Download Note Fold today and organize your notes the way your mind actually works. Privacy Policy: https://barrelofsunshine.com/privacy-policy Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Joplin at none against Note Fold's 3. Joplin also leads on ads (none vs shown). Note Fold's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs monthly) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.6). On price 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
Both are free to download. Note Fold sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Joplin asks for nothing beyond the download.
Joplin ships an update monthly, Note Fold every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and September 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Joplin | Note Fold |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.1 (476 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 66.5% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 476 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 73 MB | 62 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Laurent Cozic | Barrel of Sunshine |
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
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- Implement a trash/recycle bin for deleted notes
Note Fold
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Joplin
No in-app purchases
Note Fold
- Monthly - Note Fold Pro$1.991 Month
- Annual - Note Fold Pro$9.991 Year
- Lifetime - Note Fold Pro$24.99









