Comparison

MapNote2 vs Element Note

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

Head to head
About

MapNote2

This app offers an infinitely expanding canvas for capturing and organizing thoughts. It's designed to mimic the natural, radial way the brain generates ideas, moving beyond linear note-taking. Ideal for brainstorming, mind mapping, and sketching out concepts.

Highlights
  • Infinite canvas for idea spreading
  • Radial thinking support
  • Mind mapping
  • Brainstorming tool
  • Idea sketching
Features
Read full description

Using MapNote, you can spread your ideas anywhere on an infinitely spread canvas. I think the way the brain works when thinking about ideas is random and radial rather than linear. Traditional notes that need to be written sequentially from left to right are not very suitable for this process. If you use this infinite size notebook application, you can freely spread your ideas from the center of the page, so you can come up with ideas more naturally. Ideal for creating rough mind maps, brainstorming and idea sketches.

About

Element Note

This app offers a distraction-free digital notebook experience with advanced handwriting, PDF annotation, and sketching capabilities. It features unique brushes, a powerful rendering engine, and smart organization tools. Sync your notes across devices and collaborate with others seamlessly.

Highlights
  • Unique handwriting brushes
  • Smooth drawing engine
  • PDF annotation
  • Text, shape, and image attachments
  • On-device OCR search
  • Smart dark mode
  • iCloud sync and collaboration
Features
Read full description

Element Note is the next-gen note taking, PDF annotation, and light sketching app. We stripped down the unnecessaries and carefully polished the elemental functions for a digital notebook. With a modern look and powerful features, Element Note strives to provide an elegant writing space free of distractions. Features: Unique brushes - Pencil (HB Pencil, Mechanical Pencil) - Pen (Pen, Line Pen, Fountain Pen) - Brush (Art Brush, Round Brush) - Marker (Marker, Round Marker) Best-in-class note rendering engine - Smooth and fluid drawing powered by Metal technology - Support gradient ink for more expressive notes Powerful attachments - Text - Shape - Sticker - Image Universal Search - Search through your PDF & Handwritting using on device OCR Smart Darkmode - Smartly adapts all of your notes to the system darkmode without changing the paper or stroke colors. iCloud Sync & Collaboration - Sync via your personal iCloud (No data is passed to our server) - Collaborate through iCloud collaboration for up to 100 users. Desktop class organization - Intuitive multi-select drag and drop gesture to organize your notes or pages Element Note is free to try for up to 3 notes. Unlock the full app with an in app purchase to create unlimited notes. Terms and Conditions https://elementnote.app/terms Privacy Policy https://elementnote.app/privacy

Screenshots

MapNote24 screens
Element Note4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Element Note at Free against MapNote2's $5.99. Element Note also leads on rating (4.6 vs 4.1) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 months). MapNote2's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 5) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 17.0). On ads and device support 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

Element Note is free to download; MapNote2 costs $5.99 up front. Element Note sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $3.49 per year. MapNote2 asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Element Note holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Element Note has 2.6K ratings behind it against 36, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 45% of MapNote2's written reviews are positive against 68% of Element Note's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MapNote2 ships an update every 6 months, Element Note fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 16, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
MapNote2 versus Element Note: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMapNote2Element Note
Price$5.99Free — better
Rating4.1 (36 ratings)4.6 (2.6K ratings) — better
Positive reviews45.2% of reviews68.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings362.6K — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS11.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size153 MB129 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNaoya EnokidaSoysauce Lab

Customer experience

MapNote2

All ratings36 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral8.3%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews104 reviews
Positive45.2%
Neutral18.3%
Negative36.5%

Element Note

All ratings2,564 ratings
Positive90.5%
Neutral4.1%
Negative5.4%
Written reviews335 reviews
Positive68.1%
Neutral11.6%
Negative20.3%

Bugs and requests

MapNote2

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Element Note

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Notes and files randomly disappearing
  • Inconsistent behavior when using the floating keyboard
  • Handwriting recognition not working as expected
  • Exported PDFs losing formatting and background colors

Requested features

6 requests
  • Ruler tool
  • Ability to resize/rotate selections
  • Improved text editing and formatting
  • Presentation mode for connecting to displays
  • Ability to import/export multiple files at once
Show 1 more
  • Seasonal or custom sticker packs

In-app purchases

None

MapNote2

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

Element Note

Subscriptions2
  • Element Note Yearly$3.491 Year
  • Element Note Yearly$4.991 Year
One-time3
  • Lifetime Launch Special$4.99
  • Lifetime$9.99
  • Lifetime$14.99

Questions

Is MapNote2 free?
MapNote2 costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Element Note free?
Element Note is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, MapNote2 or Element Note?
Element Note is rated higher. MapNote2 averages 4.1 out of 5 from 36 ratings, while Element Note averages 4.6 from 2.6K ratings.
Do MapNote2 or Element Note have ads?
Neither MapNote2 nor Element Note shows ads.
Which is updated more often, MapNote2 or Element Note?
MapNote2 ships an update every 6 months, and Element Note fortnightly. Most recently, MapNote2 was updated on September 16, 2026 and Element Note on September 24, 2026.

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