# Minimal | Notes vs Paper

The clearest difference is monetization model: Paper at freemium against Minimal | Notes's subscription. Paper also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and review sentiment (100% vs 81%). Minimal | Notes's advantage is ratings volume (294 vs 2). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Minimal | Notes sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Paper sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Paper holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Minimal | Notes has 294 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 81% of Minimal | Notes's written reviews are positive against 100% of Paper's.

Minimal | Notes ships an update monthly, Paper fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Minimal | Notes | Paper |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (294 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/minimal-notes/id1442727443/reviews) | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/paper-smart-notes-and-memos/id6449750600/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **294** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 81.3% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Subscription | **Freemium** |
| Size | 59 MB | 77 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **16.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Timeless](https://appshunter.io/developer/1183067513) | [Steve NOSSE](https://appshunter.io/developer/1690451530) |

## What reviewers say

### Minimal | Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/minimal-notes/id1442727443)

This app offers a distraction-free writing environment inspired by meditation. It features collaborative writing, note expiration, and the ability to publish notes as websites. Organize tasks with integrated to-do lists and sync across all your Apple devices.

**Highlights:** Note Lifetime reminders, Collaborative writing, Publish notes as websites, Todo lists sync with Calendar, Beautiful formatting, Sync across Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch

**Features:** Family Sharing, Apple Watch app, iMessage stickers, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Minimal Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Minimal Annual | $49.99 | per year |
| Minimal Family Plan | $79.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Excellent note-taking app
- 👍 Beautiful and simple design
- 🚀 Seamless syncing across devices
- 👍 Customizable appearance and formatting
- 🚀 Responsive and helpful developer

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
- 🔒 Lack of password protection or locking for notes
- 💰 Expensive subscription model

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when using certain formatting or pasting content
- Syncing issues between iOS and macOS versions
- Incompatibility with older macOS versions

**Requested features**

- Add ability to insert images or attachments
- Improve iCloud sync reliability
- Implement a folder-based organization system
- Add a word/character count feature


### Paper

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/paper-smart-notes-and-memos/id6449750600)

Capture, organize, and sync your thoughts with a smart note-taking app. Features include rich formatting, AI summarization, and secure encryption across all your devices. Ideal for students, professionals, and anyone seeking enhanced productivity.

**Highlights:** Customizable notebooks, Military-grade encryption, Smart search, Rich formatting (images, sketches), AI note summarization, Voice-to-text capture, Cross-device sync

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly Premium | $1.99 | per month |
| Yearly premium | $14.99 | per year |
| Lifetime access | $9.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Minimal | Notes free?

Minimal | Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Paper free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Minimal | Notes or Paper?

Paper is rated higher. Minimal | Notes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 294 ratings, while Paper averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do Minimal | Notes or Paper have ads?

Neither Minimal | Notes nor Paper shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Minimal | Notes or Paper?

Minimal | Notes ships an update monthly, and Paper fortnightly. Most recently, Minimal | Notes was updated on October 17, 2026 and Paper on October 1, 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.*