Comparison

FSNotes vs References

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

Head to head
About

FSNotes

A fast, modern notes manager for macOS and iOS that uses plain text Markdown files. It's designed for speed and keyboard shortcuts, allowing for seamless iCloud syncing and support for images, code blocks, and math.

Highlights
  • Plain text Markdown notes
  • Fast launch and operation
  • Keyboard shortcuts
  • iCloud syncing
  • Markdown preview
  • Image and code block support
Read full description

FSNotes is a fast, modern notes manager for macOS and iOS. Write and organize your notes in pure Markdown with full control over your files. All notes are stored as plain text on disk, so your data stays open, portable, and future-proof. FSNotes is built for speed. It launches instantly, stays lightweight, and works smoothly even with tens of thousands of notes. Designed for keyboard lovers, it lets you capture ideas and find information in seconds using powerful shortcuts. Sync seamlessly via iCloud Drive, preview Markdown, work with images, code blocks, diagrams, and math — all in a clean, distraction-free interface. Fast. Open. Keyboard-driven.

About

References

Browse and interact with your BibTeX libraries on your mobile device. View references, follow links, and access file attachments like PDFs. Supports both classic BibTeX and BibLaTeX formats.

Highlights
  • Browse BibTeX libraries
  • Search references
  • Follow links (DOIs, URLs)
  • View file attachments (PDFs)
  • Supports BibLaTeX
  • Group by keywords
Read full description

Carry your BibTeX libraries with you on your iPad and iPhone! A BibTeX library is a collection of bibliographic references (papers, books, reports, etc.), designed to work with the LaTeX typesetting system. Each library is stored in a specially-formatted text file (typically ending in .bib), which you can create with your favourite text editor. The References app gives you an easy way to browse through and interact with your BibTeX libraries. You can scroll, search, follow links, and view file attachments. In particular: - The app creates links from DOIs, MathSciNet references, ACM IDs, and of course URLs. - The app understands elementary LaTeX, so if your titles and/or abstracts contain markup or mathematics (and if your LaTeX is simple enough) then the app can display them nicely. - If you used BibDesk or JabRef to create your library, the app can view your file attachments (e.g., PDFs that you have attached to your references). - You can view references grouped by keywords, if you use the Keywords field in your BibTeX libraries. You can also view all of your smart/static groups from BibDesk, and your dynamic/static groups from JabRef. - The app supports BibLaTeX libraries as well as classic BibTeX. The References app can open BibTeX libraries from anywhere on your device. In particular, you can use iCloud Drive to keep them synchronised between your devices. This app is read-only, not an editor. It takes great care in helping you view and explore BibTeX libraries and their links and file attachments; however, it does not provide a way to modify your libraries. FILE ATTACHMENTS: To view file attachments (e.g., PDFs), the path to each file should be included in the corresponding entry in your BibTeX library. You can do this using the specially encoded Bdsk-File-* fields (as used by BibDesk), or the plain text File field (as used by JabRef). If you are writing your BibTeX files by hand, just add a File field giving the location of the attachment, such as File = {../PDFs/foo.pdf}. You can tell References where to find these attachments by linking folders in your app settings. The app will look for your attachments within these folders – for example, if you link your Documents folder then the app will be able to match the BibTeX field {../PDFs/foo.pdf} to a real location such as Documents/PDFs/foo.pdf or Documents/foo.pdf. The app is able to read attachments stored on your device, or on iCloud Drive, or on third-party providers including Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, Nextcloud or OneDrive. If you are having trouble viewing attachments from a third-party provider, please mail the References developer with the details. FURTHER INFORMATION: To learn more about BibTeX, see http://www.bibtex.org/ .

Screenshots

FSNotes4 screens
References4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: FSNotes at free against References's paid. FSNotes also leads on chart position (#159 vs unranked) and ratings volume (86 vs 25). References's advantage is review sentiment (88% vs 66%) and rating (4.9 vs 4.7). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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

FSNotes costs $4.99 and References $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

References holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 86 and 25 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of FSNotes's written reviews are positive against 88% of References's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

FSNotes ships an update every 3 weeks, References monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
FSNotes versus References: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFSNotesReferences
Price$4.99$4.99
Rating4.7 (86 ratings)4.9 (25 ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.5% of reviews87.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings86 — better25
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
Best chart rank#159 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS18.018.0
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB55 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperOleksandr HlushchenkoBenjamin Burton

Customer experience

FSNotes

All ratings86 ratings
Positive93.0%
Neutral1.2%
Negative5.8%
Written reviews58 reviews
Positive65.5%
Neutral8.6%
Negative25.9%

References

All ratings25 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews40 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral2.5%
Negative10.0%

In-app purchases

None

FSNotes

No in-app purchases

None

References

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is FSNotes free?
FSNotes costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is References free?
References costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, FSNotes or References?
References is rated higher. FSNotes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 86 ratings, while References averages 4.9 from 25 ratings.
Do FSNotes or References have ads?
Neither FSNotes nor References shows ads.
Which is updated more often, FSNotes or References?
FSNotes ships an update every 3 weeks, and References monthly. Most recently, FSNotes was updated on October 9, 2026 and References on October 5, 2026.

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