Comparison

Notes Writer vs My Notebook

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

Head to head
About

Notes Writer

This app is a comprehensive note-taking and PDF editing solution for mobile devices. It allows users to write, format, and organize notes, annotate PDFs, fill forms, and scan documents. The app offers advanced editing tools, powerful search, and seamless sharing and export options.

Highlights
  • Write and format notes
  • Annotate PDFs and fill forms
  • Organize with unlimited notebooks
  • Powerful full-text search
  • Document scanning
  • Sync with cloud services
  • Export to multiple formats
Features
Read full description

Every note. Every format. Unlimited Digital Notebooks. Like paper, but better. Take lecture notes, prepare for exams and develop your research. Bring the same tools to manuscripts, interviews, lesson plans, meetings and creative projects. Notes Writer keeps your work together on iPad, iPhone and compatible Apple silicon Macs. Designed for students and anyone who wants to learn, create and stay organized—including teachers, writers, journalists, doctors, architects, illustrators, mathematicians, researchers and business professionals. WRITE & CAPTURE • Handwriting, sketching & painting Take handwritten notes with Apple Pencil, type a document or explore a concept through drawing. Use dedicated sketching, watercolor and oil painting tools for illustrations and creative work. • PDF annotation Review lecture slides, medical literature and professional reports. Highlight PDFs, add comments, images and shapes, fill forms and sign documents. Keep your annotations beside the source material. • Recording & transcription Record lectures, business meetings and interviews, transcribe the audio and search the transcript for the detail you need. Add recordings to PDF notes and whiteboards, then listen back at your own pace. STUDY & RESEARCH • Courses, manuscripts & research projects Choose an optional project tree to arrange topics, sources and drafts in a Study Project. Use the Binder for structure, the Corkboard to plan sections and compilation to assemble a document or ebook. • Whiteboards, diagrams & outlines Create whiteboards with notes, images, recordings and tables. Build flowcharts and diagrams to explain a process, compare findings or plan a lesson or project. Use Outline Notes when your ideas need a hierarchy. • Flashcards & review Create flashcards with text, handwriting and images, or generate them from notes and PDFs with optional AI tools. Review with spaced repetition, answer by typing or speaking, and track your progress. MATH & SCIENCE • Calculations, Python & charts Math Notebooks combine written reasoning, symbolic calculations and Python cells. Plot results, explore a model and present your data in editable Chart documents. • LaTeX & technical PDFs Write technical papers in LaTeX and compile them to PDF with a preview of the result. For plans and technical drawings, set a scale and measure distances, perimeters and areas directly on the PDF. ORGANIZE & SHARE • Notebooks, folders & templates Create and customize folders, subfolders and notebooks. Choose names, covers and paper templates that suit each course or project. Scan handouts, search your collection and manage documents with sorting, moving and grouping tools. • Documents side by side Open documents in tabs and work with your reading and draft side by side. Create a study planner, lesson plan, research journal or manuscript within the same library. • Formats for your work Work across PDF, Microsoft Word (DOCX), EPUB, RTF, Markdown, plain text (TXT), HTML, LaTeX and OPML outlines. Edit formatted documents, read ebooks and export supported documents as PDF, DOCX, RTF, HTML or EPUB. Export options vary by document type. • Sync, backup & privacy Sync with iCloud and work with Dropbox and Google Drive files through the Files app, with changes synced by your provider. Set up automatic document backups, use autosave and recovery, and protect the app and folders with a passcode. OPTIONAL AI ASSISTANT Ask questions about your notes and documents, simplify an explanation, summarize a reading or refine your writing. Use translation, grammar and tone tools when they help. Review every suggestion and decide what belongs in your work. Start a notebook. Study, create and work your way. Privacy Policy http://www.noteswriter.com/Kairoos_Privacy_Policy.html Terms of Use https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

My Notebook

Capture ideas and annotate documents with a versatile note-taking and PDF writing tool. Utilize colorful markers and a shape generator for enhanced creativity. Your work is automatically saved and synced via iCloud for easy access across devices.

Highlights
  • Note-taking on new or existing PDFs
  • Variety of colorful markers
  • Advanced geometric shape generator
  • Auto-save functionality
  • iCloud integration for cloud storage
Features
Read full description

This simple, but powerful app allows users to either take notes on a new or existing PDF. A variety of bright and colourful markers ensure that your notes are always looking their best. Advanced geometric shape generator allows you to draw perfect shapes every time. Auto save and iCloud integration ensures your notes are up to date and stored on the cloud. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Notes Writer4 screens
My Notebook1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Notes Writer at 4.5 against My Notebook's 3.9. Notes Writer also leads on review sentiment (45% vs 18%) and ratings volume (7.3K vs 29). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Notes Writer sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days and My Notebook sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Notes Writer holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notes Writer has 7.3K ratings behind it against 29, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 45% of Notes Writer's written reviews are positive against 18% of My Notebook's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Notes Writer ships an update every 4 days, My Notebook every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Notes Writer versus My Notebook: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNotes WriterMy Notebook
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (7.3K ratings) — better3.9 (29 ratings)
Positive reviews44.8% of reviews — better18.2% of reviews
Number of ratings7.3K — better29
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.026.0
Further details — not scored
Size660 MB44 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperKairoos Solutions SLAlistair Shaw

Customer experience

Notes Writer

All ratings7,332 ratings
Positive86.8%
Neutral5.1%
Negative8.1%
Written reviews966 reviews
Positive44.8%
Neutral15.1%
Negative40.1%

My Notebook

All ratings28 ratings
Positive67.9%
Neutral7.1%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews11 reviews
Positive18.2%
Neutral9.1%
Negative72.7%

Bugs and requests

Notes Writer

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Notes randomly disappearing or getting corrupted
  • Inability to recover deleted documents
  • Unexpected behavior when adding/deleting pages
  • Syncing issues and broken links between documents

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more brushes and pen customization options
  • Improve the clipping/selection tool
  • Implement OCR and handwriting search
  • Provide a Mac version

My Notebook

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Notes Writer

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly$1.997 Days
  • Notes Writer Unlock All and AI3 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Notes Writer Unlock All and AI3 Days trial$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Pro Full Unlock$14.99
1 purchases

My Notebook

Subscriptions1
  • MyNotebook Premium (Monthly)$2.991 Month

Questions

Is Notes Writer free?
Notes Writer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is My Notebook free?
My Notebook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Notes Writer or My Notebook?
Notes Writer is rated higher. Notes Writer averages 4.5 out of 5 from 7.3K ratings, while My Notebook averages 3.9 from 29 ratings.
Do Notes Writer or My Notebook have ads?
Neither Notes Writer nor My Notebook shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Notes Writer or My Notebook?
Notes Writer ships an update every 4 days, and My Notebook every 2 weeks. Most recently, Notes Writer was updated on November 10, 2026 and My Notebook on November 7, 2026.

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