# Notehot vs MarginNote 4

The clearest difference is price: MarginNote 4 at Free against Notehot's $0.99. MarginNote 4 also leads on ratings volume (716 vs 175). Notehot's advantage is iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.0). On rating, review sentiment, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

MarginNote 4 is free to download; Notehot costs $0.99 up front. Notehot sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days and MarginNote 4 sells 12 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 — 4.5 for Notehot against 4.5 for MarginNote 4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 175 and 716 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 63% of Notehot's written reviews are positive against 58% of MarginNote 4's.

Notehot ships an update every 11 days, MarginNote 4 every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on October 17, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notehot | MarginNote 4 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $0.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.5 (175 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notehot-notes-and-voice-text/id1491473755/reviews) | [4.5 (716 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/marginnote-4-ai-notesmindmap/id1531657269/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 175 | **716** |
| Positive reviews | **62.7% of reviews** | 58.5% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 11 days** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 134 MB | 330 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Play Era](https://appshunter.io/developer/1491473754) | [Beijing Yunsi Software Technology Co., Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/723205556) |

## What reviewers say

### Notehot

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notehot-notes-and-voice-text/id1491473755)

This app offers a versatile note-taking experience, combining text, handwriting, audio, and photos. It features speech-to-text conversion, OCR for image text extraction, and iCloud synchronization across devices. Organize notes with hierarchical folders and set timed reminders for important tasks.

**Highlights:** Multi-form recording (text, hand-drawn, audio, photo), Speech to text conversion, OCR text extraction from images, Hierarchical folder management, Timed reminders, iCloud synchronization, Export to PDF, PNG, JPEG

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| VIP Subscription | $1.99 | per 7 days |
| VIP Subscription | $2.99 | per month |
| VIP Subscription | $5.99 | per 3 months |
| VIP Subscription | $9.99 | per year |
| VIP Subscription | $17.99 | per year |
| VIP Subscription | $14.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Very convenient for note-taking
- 👍 Smooth and clean interface
- 👍 User-friendly and convenient
- 👍 Good for recording things
- 👍 AI text generation is great

**What reviewers complain about**

- 😞 Misleading pricing, asks for subscription after download
- 😞 In-app purchases required for voice-to-text
- 😞 Limited language choices
- 😞 Requires money immediately after installation
- 😞 App is not free

**Reported bugs**

- App freezes and crashes
- Lost entire notes after app freezes
- Files are stretched or narrowed after import
- Imported files take up the entire screen
- Search function rarely finds existing text

**Requested features**

- Add Dark Mode
- Add smart shapes for diagraming
- Add a paper guide (college or wide)
- Add a 'pen' tool similar to pencil and marker
- Ability to add images


### MarginNote 4

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/marginnote-4-ai-notesmindmap/id1531657269)

This app integrates reading, note-taking, mind mapping, and flashcards into a unified study environment. It supports active learning with features like study sets, book compilation, and dual-article views. Enhance your understanding with visual learning tools and AI-powered content extraction for long-term memory retention.

**Highlights:** Integrated reading, note-taking, mind mapping, and flashcards, Quick Extend Note and Handwriting Layers for annotation, Study Set for organizing PDFs, EPUBs, videos, and audio, Mind Map and Concept Diagram for visual learning, AI Content Detection for formula and chart extraction, FSRS spaced-repetition algorithm for reviews, iCloud sync across Apple devices

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (12)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Subscription to MAX (Monthly) | $1.99 | per month |
| Subscription to MAX (3 months) | $4.99 | per 3 months |
| Subscription to MAX (6 months) | $7.99 | per 6 months |
| Subscription to MAX (Annually) | $12.99 | per year |
| MarginNote Max Annual | $16.99 | per year |
| 14 days Free Trial | Free | one-time |
| Upgrade to PRO from MN3(iOS) | $4.99 | one-time |
| Unlock PRO Forever (New) | $12.99 | one-time |
| Upgrade to MAX from MN3(macOS) | $19.99 | one-time |
| Unlock MAX based on PRO | $39.99 | one-time |
| Unlock MAX based on PRO (New) | $40.00 | one-time |
| Unlock MAX Forever (New) | $51.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Powerful features
- 📚 Great for academic/research use
- 👍 Useful note-taking and organization
- 🖊️ Improved handwriting and annotation

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy and crashes frequently
- 🕰️ Slow and laggy sync between devices
- 🤯 Steep learning curve, poor documentation
- 💰 Expensive upgrade from previous version

**Reported bugs**

- Disappearing annotations when using extend function
- Inability to restore accidentally deleted mind maps
- Inconsistent behavior with PDF file management

**Requested features**

- Improved iCloud/cloud sync reliability
- More intuitive and user-friendly interface
- Better support for external document libraries
- Ability to disable auto-excerpt selection


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notehot free?

Notehot costs $0.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is MarginNote 4 free?

MarginNote 4 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Notehot or MarginNote 4?

Notehot and MarginNote 4 are both rated 4.5 out of 5 on the App Store, from 175 and 716 ratings respectively.

### Do Notehot or MarginNote 4 have ads?

Neither Notehot nor MarginNote 4 shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Notehot or MarginNote 4?

Notehot ships an update every 11 days, and MarginNote 4 every 3 weeks. Most recently, Notehot was updated on October 17, 2026 and MarginNote 4 on October 17, 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.*