Notebooks vs Simple5

Own your notes — forever. Notebooks is a writing and organization app with no subscription, no lock-in, and no worries. Your documents are stored as standard files you can always access, export, or move freely. Pay once. Use for life. Use Notebooks as a personal wiki, Zettelkasten, document archive, task manager, or long-term writing space. Capture quick notes, turn them into actionable tasks, combine text fragments into chapters, organize research, or keep business documents separate from personal journals — without ever switching apps. Designed to help you stay focused and work at your own pace, Notebooks grows with your needs and is always ready to support you. WRITE AND CREATE Create beautifully formatted documents with styles, attachments, tables, checklists, and optional tables of contents. Choose from ready-made styles or design your own. Write in different ways: Formatted text (WYSIWYG) Plain text, with smart handling of lists, automatic character pairing, and a focused writing view Markdown, supporting MultiMarkdown and Discount, with syntax highlighting, dedicated keyboard keys, wiki-style links, and interactive checklists Sketch ideas or annotate images and PDFs using Apple Pencil. STORE AND ORGANIZE Notebooks stores all documents as regular files in standard formats. You always remain in control — no lock-in, no export worries, fully compatible across devices and over time. Organize your work in books and nested hierarchies without limits. Import PDFs, emails, web pages, MS Office and iWork documents, images, audio, video, and more. Use full-text search to find even the most deeply nested document. PLAN AND ACT Turn books into project lists and documents into tasks. Assign due dates and alerts, create nested projects, and track progress naturally — right where your work lives. Use simple checklists in formatted documents or Markdown for lightweight task tracking. STAY FOCUSED Link documents together to build knowledge over time. Use wiki-style links, backlinks, contexts, and smart books to keep everything connected and within reach. When you rename or move documents, links stay intact. A PLACE YOU CAN RELY ON Sync your documents between iPhone, iPad, Mac, and PC. Work on documents stored in other apps, compile selections into PDFs or eBooks, scan documents and extract text using OCR, and trust that your data stays accessible — now and in the future. With time, Notebooks often becomes the one place users rely on to keep everything that matters close at hand. WHAT USERS SAY “Notebooks is a wonderful app — sophisticated in an unassuming way. I feel more productive without spending time managing the app itself.” “You are GTD in every way that makes it efficient — and makes me efficient.”

Add up to 5 daily tasks by tapping the blue plus, then tap to complete or swipe left for 5-minute reminders. Each new day automatically gives you a fresh, clean slate to focus on what matters most. While other task apps overwhelm you with endless features and infinite task lists, Simple5 embraces the power of constraints. You're limited to just 5 tasks per day - not as a restriction, but as liberation from digital clutter and decision paralysis. This isn't random - it's based on cognitive science showing our brains can effectively prioritize maximum 5 items at once. When you can only choose 5 things, you automatically choose the RIGHT 5 things. When adding your tasks, you naturally consider the most important things you want to do. The app relies on that. Furthermore, you cannot delete your tasks once they have been written down. This is because it is not possible to "delete" something that has been written down with pen and paper. Choose how you want to spend your time wisely! Add up to 5 daily tasks by tapping the blue plus, then tap to complete or swipe left for 5-minute reminders. Each new day automatically gives you a fresh, clean slate to focus on what matters most. Key Features: * 5-task daily limit forces real prioritization * Automatic priority numbering (1-5) * Daily reset - no overwhelming backlog * Tap to complete, swipe for reminders * Built-in tutorial for instant understanding * Share your daily list as simple text * Clean, distraction-free design Why should I spend money: * No Subscriptions - Pay once, own forever * No Ads - Completely clean experience * Privacy First - Your tasks stay on your device * Thoughtful Design - Every detail carefully crafted * Quality Focus - Built for effectiveness, not feature bloat