# Penman vs AiNote

The clearest difference is rating: AiNote at 4.8 against Penman's 4.1. Penman's advantage is ratings volume (252 vs 20) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Penman sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and AiNote sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

AiNote holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Penman has 252 ratings behind it against 20, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Penman ships an update every 2 weeks, AiNote fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Penman | AiNote |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.1 (252 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/penman-ai-note-taker/id1434184098/reviews) | **[4.8 (20 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ainote-ai-note-taker/id6502425644/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **252** | 20 |
| Positive reviews | 57.7% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Freemium | Freemium |
| Size | 104 MB | 164 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | **17.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [SER_INT](https://appshunter.io/developer/525443615) | [LatentApps Company Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/536817471) |

## What reviewers say

### Penman

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/penman-ai-note-taker/id1434184098)

Effortlessly convert spoken words into text notes in over 120 languages using advanced speech-to-text technology. Enhance your writing with AI-powered actions and organize your notes with a powerful, intuitive editor. Sync securely across devices and export your work in various formats.

**Highlights:** Speech to text transcription, AI-powered writing enhancements, Intuitive text editor, Note organization and categorization, Cross-device iCloud sync, Export to PDF, TXT, Image, HTML, Multiple language support

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (12)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Discount Premium | $2.99 | per month |
| Monthly Penman Premium | $4.99 | per month |
| 3 Months Penman Premium | $8.99 | per 3 months |
| Annual Voice to Text Live | $14.99 | per year |
| Yearly Discount Premium | $14.99 | per year |
| 6 Months Penman Premium | $16.99 | per 6 months |
| Yearly Voice to Text plan | $19.99 | per year |
| Yearly Speech to Text Live | $19.99 | per year |
| Yearly Speech Voice to Text | $29.99 | per year |
| Unlimited Voice to Text | $29.99 | one-time |
| Unlimited Voice to Text | $39.99 | one-time |
| Unlimited Voice to Text | $59.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Accurate speech-to-text transcription
- ⚡ Fast and efficient note-taking
- 🎨 Beautiful, intuitive UI design
- 🌍 Supports multiple languages
- 📱 Easy text export to various formats

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and freezing
- 💾 Data loss and disappearing text issues
- 🔄 Unreliable syncing across devices
- ⏸️ Recording stops when phone sleeps
- ❌ Inconsistent speech-to-text accuracy

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on launch or during use
- Text disappears without user action
- Transcription halts when device enters sleep mode
- iCloud sync failures between devices
- Notes deleted when free trial expires

**Requested features**

- Persistent highlighting tool color selection
- Export to Markdown (.md) format
- Custom photo book covers
- More font options
- Ability to keep handwritten notes without conversion


### AiNote

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ainote-ai-note-taker/id6502425644)

This app transforms spoken words into text, allowing you to record or import audio for accurate transcriptions. Enhance your notes with annotations, integrate multimedia files, and organize everything into custom folders for efficient workflow.

**Highlights:** Effortless audio transcription, Seamless annotation of transcripts, Document and multimedia integration, Customizable audio playback speed, Efficient file organization with folders, On-device privacy and security

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $7.99 | per month |
| Yearly | $39.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Penman free?

Penman is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is AiNote free?

AiNote is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Penman or AiNote?

AiNote is rated higher. Penman averages 4.1 out of 5 from 252 ratings, while AiNote averages 4.8 from 20 ratings.

### Do Penman or AiNote have ads?

Neither Penman nor AiNote shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Penman or AiNote?

Penman ships an update every 2 weeks, and AiNote fortnightly. Most recently, Penman was updated on October 19, 2026 and AiNote on September 25, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*