Comparison

Notebooks vs Lector

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

Head to head
About

Notebooks

This app helps you write, organize, and manage documents, tasks, and files. It offers flexible writing modes, robust organization tools, and task management features, all while ensuring your data remains accessible and under your control.

Highlights
  • Formatted text, plain text, and Markdown writing
  • Create documents with styles, tables, and attachments
  • Organize with nested hierarchies and 'books'
  • Task management with due dates and checklists
  • Wiki-style linking and backlinks
  • Full-text search
  • Cross-device synchronization
Features
Read full description

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.”

About

Lector

Features
Read full description

Lector is a clean and minimal reading app designed for people who want to focus. Upload your PDFs and read without distractions. No feeds, no noise, no clutter. Features: • Clean and distraction-free reading experience • Support for PDF documents • Simple navigation based on the original document pages • Dark mode support • Offline access to your files Lector is built for readers who value simplicity and clarity. More features coming soon (AI, VoiceReader, and more) Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://lector.thefndrs.com/privacy

Screenshots

Notebooks4 screens
Lector4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Lector at Free against Notebooks's $17.99. Notebooks's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and chart position (#157 vs unranked). On update cadence, in-app purchases 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

Lector is free to download; Notebooks costs $17.99 up front. Notebooks sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Lector sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Notebooks ships an update monthly, Lector every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Notebooks versus Lector: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNotebooksLector
Price$17.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (1.1K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews82.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.1K — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationPaid—
Best chart rank#157 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.1
Further details — not scored
Size48 MB10 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAlfons SchmidMarlon Geovany Castro Mejia

Bugs and requests

Notebooks

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Data loss after iOS upgrades
  • Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved Markdown support
  • More font and color customization options
  • Better Apple Watch integration
  • Export to Word format

Lector

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Notebooks

One-time4
  • Small Tip$0.99
  • Custom Storage Locations$2.99
  • Medium Tip$2.99
Show 1 more
  • Generous Tip$4.99
3 purchases

Lector

Subscriptions2
  • Lector Pro Access (Monthly)1 Month trial$5.991 Month
  • Lectro Pro Access (Yearly)$59.991 Year
One-time1
  • Early Founder Access$99.99

Questions

Is Notebooks free?
Notebooks costs $17.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Lector free?
Lector is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Notebooks or Lector have ads?
Lector shows ads; Notebooks does not.
Which is updated more often, Notebooks or Lector?
Notebooks ships an update monthly, and Lector every 3 weeks. Most recently, Notebooks was updated on November 3, 2026 and Lector on October 31, 2026.

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