# Excerpt vs Notesnook

The clearest difference is update cadence: Notesnook at every 8 days against Excerpt's every 4 months. Notesnook also leads on ratings volume (693 vs 36). Excerpt's advantage is review sentiment (95% vs 79%) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.6). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Excerpt sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and Notesnook sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Excerpt against 4.7 for Notesnook. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notesnook has 693 ratings behind it against 36, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 95% of Excerpt's written reviews are positive against 79% of Notesnook's.

Excerpt ships an update every 4 months, Notesnook every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Excerpt | Notesnook |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (36 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/excerpt-the-book-highlighter/id1447907126/reviews)** | [4.7 (693 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notesnook-private-notepad/id1544027013/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 36 | **693** |
| Positive reviews | **95.2% of reviews** | 78.9% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | **Every 8 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 46 MB | 82 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Ryan Maksymic](https://appshunter.io/developer/1416136388) | [Streetwriters LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1536533660) |

## What reviewers say

### Excerpt

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/excerpt-the-book-highlighter/id1447907126)

Capture and organize quotes and images from physical books using your device's camera. Add notes, customize highlighter colors, and share your findings. Export your compiled excerpts into a PDF for easy reference.

**Highlights:** Scan book pages with camera, Capture quotes and images, Add notes to excerpts, Organize by page and chapter, Share excerpts, Export to PDF, Customizable highlighter colors

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlock Colors 1 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Colors 2 | $2.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Colors 3 | $9.99 | one-time |


### Notesnook

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notesnook-private-notepad/id1544027013)

This open-source app offers secure, encrypted note-taking and organization across all your devices. It features a robust editor, to-do lists, and a private journal with advanced security to protect your personal information.

**Highlights:** Military-grade encryption, Cross-platform synchronization, To-do lists and task management, Private journal with media support, Rich text and Markdown editor, Notebook organization, App lock with fingerprint support

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Notesnook Essential Plan | $1.99 | per month |
| Notesnook Pro | $4.49 | per month |
| Notesnook Pro Plan | $6.99 | per month |
| Notesnook Believer Plan | $8.99 | per month |
| Notesnook Essential Plan | $19.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Pro | $49.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Pro Plan | $69.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Believer Plan | $89.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and efficient
- 🔒 Secure and private
- 👍 Clean and intuitive UI
- 👍 Cross-platform compatibility
- 👍 Generous free tier

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync and login issues
- 🐛 Buggy and crashes
- 💰 Expensive premium tier
- 🔒 Lack of free encryption features

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes on launch on older iOS devices
- Sync issues leading to data loss
- Unreliable login and verification process

**Requested features**

- Improved search functionality
- Reminders and calendar integration
- Handwriting and drawing support
- Multilingual support
- Improved table and spreadsheet features


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Excerpt free?

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

### Is Notesnook free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Excerpt or Notesnook?

Excerpt is rated higher. Excerpt averages 4.8 out of 5 from 36 ratings, while Notesnook averages 4.7 from 693 ratings.

### Do Excerpt or Notesnook have ads?

Neither Excerpt nor Notesnook shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Excerpt or Notesnook?

Excerpt ships an update every 4 months, and Notesnook every 8 days. Most recently, Excerpt was updated on November 2, 2026 and Notesnook on November 11, 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.*