Comparison

Goodnotes vs Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader

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

Head to head
About

Goodnotes

Capture ideas, enhance productivity, and unlock insights with advanced AI features. This app offers tools for professionals, students, and creatives, including infinite whiteboards, AI-powered transcription and summarization, and customizable digital notebooks.

Highlights
  • AI-powered transcription and summarization
  • Infinite whiteboard canvas
  • Digital notebooks with customizable templates
  • Study Sets for flashcards
  • Presentation mode with laser pointer
  • Real-time collaboration
Features
Read full description

Goodnotes has always been the place to capture your ideas — from quick notes to big plans. Now, it goes further. With powerful AI and new ways to capture information, Goodnotes helps you connect the dots, unlock insights, and turn ideas into action. *Existing Goodnotes 5 users can continue to use Goodnotes 5 indefinitely or upgrade to the new Goodnotes. Either way, your notes are safe!* For professionals: Increase productivity at work ■ Whiteboard + Goodnotes AI: Brainstorm, mind-map, and diagram freely on an infinite canvas that grows with your ideas. Enhanced diagramming tools and real-time collaboration make it easy for teams to workshop & ideate together, while Goodnotes AI helps you capture and organize key takeaways instantly. ■ Goodnotes AI Audio & Meetings: Stay fully present in every conversation while Goodnotes does the work for you. AI-powered transcription and live summarization automatically capture discussions and turns them into clear meeting minutes. After the meeting, merge transcripts with your own handwritten or typed notes to create polished, shareable documents in seconds. ■ Text Documents + AI: Create documents that think with you. Enjoy a superior typing experience with rich inline blocks, build on ideas with external insights, and collaborate seamlessly with teammates. With AI-powered summarization, automated note generation, and transcript support, turn rough notes and meetings into finished content faster than ever. ■ Present your notes, slides, and content directly from Goodnotes when you connect your device via AirPlay or HDMI to an external screen. ■ Use Laser Pointer to guide your audience's attention during your presentation. ■ Export your handwritten and typed notes to email, print, or share them anywhere as PDFs. ■ Send a link to your notebooks to work on the same notes. ■ Import documents by emailing them to your custom Goodnotes email. For students: Ace your exams with ease ■ Record audio notes that are magically synced to your iPhone or iPad exact moment you write: perfect for lectures, seminars, and presentations. ■ Take handwritten notes that stay fully searchable: instantly find any word across every class notebook, even mid-lecture. ■ Study and practice straight from your notes with study Sets: flashcards built on active recall and spaced repetition. ■ Use AI to summarize, shorten, change the tone of your words, and turn messy handwritten or typed student notes into polished, structured study material. For planners and journalers: Let your creativity flow ■ Plan your week, month, or year on your iPhone/ iPad with built-in and importable planner templates, fully customizable to match how you plan. ■ Keep a daily journal alongside your planner. Combine handwriting, typed reflections, photos, and stickers on the same page. ■ Use Goodnotes AI to summarize a week's worth of journal entries on your iPhone or iPad into key themes and takeaways. ■ Customize the size and color of your paper templates to create the planner or journal you want. ■ Add, create, or import stickers, stamps, washi tapes, images, and more on your iPad. Digital notebooks: unlimited notebooks for the price of a single physical one ■ Combine handwriting and typed text on one page, alongside images, stickers, diagrams, and doodles. ■ Create digital notebooks, planners, and journals with customizable paper templates, including Blank Paper, Ruled Paper, Cornell Paper, Checklists, Planners, and more. ■ Navigate long documents with ease. PDF tables of contents are automatically imported, or create custom outlines yourself. ■ Back up all your handwritten and typed notes to Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive, and use iCloud to sync across iPad, iPhone, and Mac — so your notes are always safe. ■ Edit your handwriting by resizing it, changing the text color, or moving it to another spot on the page. Privacy Policy: https://www.goodnotes.com/privacy-policy Terms and Conditions: https://www.goodnotes.com/terms-and-conditions

About

Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader

This app is a comprehensive note-taking and PDF reader designed for Apple devices. It allows users to edit PDFs, annotate documents, create bullet journals, and record audio, all while offering intuitive gesture controls and seamless integration with cloud services.

Highlights
  • Edit PDF pages
  • Annotate documents with gestures
  • Record and playback audio
  • Create bullet journals
  • Cloud sync across devices
  • Masking pen for precise annotations
Features
Read full description

Flexcil: The world’s ultimate iOS note-taking app Loved by Apple Editors - Editor's Choice, App of the Day, Note-taking on the next level, College Life, Apple Pencil Enhanced, New Apps We Love, Noteworthy Apps & Game, Productivity Boost for teachers Whether you’re taking notes, bullet journaling, reading documents, or editing pages from textbooks ー use Flexcil! It’s the #1 note-taking tool for any Apple device. Simply highlight by pen gestures and capture images and text on the study-note by pen gestures! Save time transcribing summaries by gestures on study-note with your Apple pencil. ALL IN ONE NOTE TAKING • Edit PDF pages • Annotate almost anything • Endless pen colors, sizes, and fonts • Seamlessly highlight and underline text with GESTURE • Summarize and organize your thoughts, texts and notes • Instantly open any PDF for reading and studying • Zoom to read small text • Organize and manage your books AND notes EASY AND INTUITIVE • Drag and paste text flawlessly • Add text and annotate with ease • Smooth Image selection • Reading and pen gesture mode - FLEXCIL EXCLUSIVE • Search the dictionary for any definitions you need • Improved the tiring, old-fashioned way of writing which results in wrist/palm pain BULLET JOURNAL & TAKE BETTER NOTES • Easily create bullet journal pages • Hundreds of colors and pen stroke sizes • Colorful covers & templates • Endless creativity ー perfect for artists, hobbyists, or anyone that wants to make studying more fun • Proven to boost productivity & happiness RECORD & PLAYBACK AUDIO • Record everything you hear whenever you take class notes or writing meeting notes • Replay audio recording and review what you wrote during the class or in the meeting • Tab on your note and hear what was said at the moment MULTITASK • Use Flexcil while other apps are open - take notes during lectures! • Edit 2 PDFs at once • Advanced viewing: full screen view, vertical scroll, 4-page view, and so much more COMPATIBLE WITH: • Zoom • Google Classroom • Google Drive • Dropbox • Box • iCloud • Notes • Digital textbooks • ebooks • PDFs and more! APPLE PENCIL • Simulate real-life note-taking by using your Apple Pencil - easy to use for all ages • Guaranteed ZERO touch malfunctions • Support Apple pencil 2nd generation & double tap Plus, enjoy these NEW FEATURES! • Cloud sync: Access your notes from anywhere, and seamlessly sync across devices. • Masking pen: Enhance your annotations with precision using the masking pen. Take your note-taking to the next level with Flexcil. Download the most comprehensive, easy to use, and innovative study tool on the App Store today! * Support: https://support.flexcil.com * Website: https://www.flexcil.com * Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/flexcil * Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flexcil * Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjro4WpiFnxqKxAXQmASNwg [Access Permission Guide] • Storage (Photos and Videos): Used for adding images to documents in Flexcil, accessing PDF files, purchasing and downloading store content. • Music and Audio: Used for voice recording features, purchasing and downloading store content. • Microphone: Used for voice recording. • Camera: Used for taking pictures when adding photos. • Notifications: Used to display important notification content.

Screenshots

Goodnotes4 screens
Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Goodnotes at none against Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader's shown. Goodnotes also leads on ratings volume (455K vs 399) and rating (4.7 vs 4.4). Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader's advantage is review sentiment (59% vs 34%) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.6). On price, update cadence, 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. Goodnotes sells 16 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader sells 13 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Goodnotes holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Goodnotes has 455K ratings behind it against 399, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 34% of Goodnotes's written reviews are positive against 59% of Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Goodnotes versus Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGoodnotesFlexcil Note & Good PDF Reader
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (455K ratings) — better4.4 (399 ratings)
Positive reviews33.6% of reviews59.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings455K — better399
Update frequencyWeeklyWeekly
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#86 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS18.614.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size794 MB227 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGoodnotes LimitedFlexcil Inc.

Customer experience

Goodnotes

All ratings454,853 ratings
Positive93.4%
Neutral1.9%
Negative4.7%
Written reviews6,458 reviews
Positive33.6%
Neutral11.3%
Negative55.0%

Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader

All ratings399 ratings
Positive86.0%
Neutral4.3%
Negative9.8%
Written reviews766 reviews
Positive59.1%
Neutral11.9%
Negative29.0%

User reviews

Goodnotes

From 455K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent note-taking experience
  • 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
  • 🚀 Smooth writing with Apple Pencil
  • 📁 Powerful organization with folders and notebooks
  • 🖼️ Ability to annotate PDFs and documents

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Glitches and crashes
  • 🔍 Syncing and iCloud issues
  • 🔍 Lack of flexibility with text input
  • 🔍 Limited eraser and highlighting options
  • 🔍 Subpar performance on Mac app

Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader

From 399 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Best Apps for STUDENTS!!! 😀😀
  • 👍 Love this app
  • 🚀 Powerful multi-page PDF viewer
  • 👍 Great for studying
  • 👍 Excellent app for note taking

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and performance issues
  • 🐛 Syncing and backup problems
  • 🐛 Buggy handwriting recognition
  • 🐛 Unreliable palm rejection
  • 🐛 Missing key features from previous version

Bugs and requests

Goodnotes

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Text box issues - unable to edit, resize, or move properly
  • Handwriting recognition problems, especially with cursive
  • Unreliable scrolling and page navigation
  • Inconsistent behavior when using the zoom feature

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add bullet point and formatting options for typed text
  • Implement a full-screen writing mode
  • Improve the straight line and shape tools
  • Integrate audio recording and synchronization
  • Allow more customization of the toolbar and interface

Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Sudden data loss and file deletion
  • Inability to restore purchases
  • Frequent app crashes and freezes
  • Inconsistent behavior of undo/redo functions
  • Annotations not exporting correctly

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add iCloud sync and backup
  • Improve handwriting search and recognition
  • Bring back reading mode and one-page scrolling
  • Add more pen and brush options
  • Allow customizing notebook paper styles
Show 1 more
  • Implement auto-save and version control

In-app purchases

16 purchases

Goodnotes

Subscriptions5
  • AI Pass (Monthly)7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Goodnotes 6 (1 Year)1 Year trial$9.991 Year
  • Essential (Yearly)7 Days trial$11.991 Year
Show 2 more
  • Essential (Yearly)1 Year trial2 variants$11.991 Year
  • Goodnotes Pro (Yearly)7 Days trial$35.991 Year
One-time11
  • Bunny Oasis StickersFree
  • Medicine-Academia Sticker SheeFree
  • Goodnotes 6 Free TrialFree
Show 8 more
  • Marketplace Content$1.99
  • Marketplace Content$6.99
  • Marketplace Content$8.99
  • GoodNotes 5 Unlock$9.99
  • Marketplace Content$9.99
  • Marketplace Content$10.99
  • Goodnotes 6 One-Time Payment$28.99
  • Special Edition$35.99
13 purchases

Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader

One-time13
  • Upgrade product for old usersFree
  • Premium$8.99
  • Flexcil Standard$9.99
Show 10 more
  • 2021-2022 Color Planner$11.99
  • Flexcil NEW Design Planner 22$11.99
  • Premium & Toolbar Skin Pack$12.99
  • Hello Kitty Planner 2022$13.99
  • My Melody & Kuromi Planner 22$13.99
  • Standard & 21-22 Planner Pack$14.99
  • Standard & Design Planner Pack$14.99
  • Standard & 2023 Planner Pack$14.99
  • 2026 Ultimate Planner(Dated) : Pro$15.49
  • Nelna 6-in-1 Planner Bundle$19.99

Questions

Is Goodnotes free?
Goodnotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader free?
Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Goodnotes or Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader?
Goodnotes is rated higher. Goodnotes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 455K ratings, while Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader averages 4.4 from 399 ratings.
Do Goodnotes or Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader have ads?
Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader shows ads; Goodnotes does not.
Which is updated more often, Goodnotes or Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader?
Goodnotes ships an update weekly, and Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader weekly. Most recently, Goodnotes was updated on September 24, 2026 and Flexcil Note & Good PDF Reader on September 22, 2026.

Other comparisons