Comparison

Pocket Note 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

Pocket Note

Transform your device into a powerful business notepad. Quickly capture ideas with handwriting, typing, and rich media. Organize notes into groups and export them as images or PDFs for easy sharing and printing.

Highlights
  • Handwritten and typed input
  • Customizable pen sizes and colors
  • Paste photos and maps
  • Insert figures and lines
  • Export as image or PDF
  • Organize notes into groups
  • iCloud synchronization
Features
Read full description

Would you like to make your smartphone or tablet PC into a useful business tool?  Pocket Note is a notepad application specially designed for the business scene. With Pocket Note, you can quickly put your ideas together by a straightforward, simple operation. [Major functions] - We provided grid lines and horizontal ruled lines on the notepad to make it easier to organize what you write down.And when you don't need a grid or horizontal lines, you can choose "blank". - You can input either manually or from the keyboard (compatible with Apple Pencil).  For manual input, choose from 2 pens, "regular" or "thick", and an eraser.  For pen size and color, choose from 20 sizes and 25 colors. - You can paste up to 20 photos on each page. - You can paste maps.  With a map, you can do the following:   You can display your current position on the map using GPS.   By continuously pressing down at a given location on the map, you can place a pin at the location.   By inputting a name or address, you can place a pin at that location.   You can also specify the zoom factor as you wish. - By pasting figures and lines, you can display your notes graphically.  For figures, choose from rectangles, triangles or circles.  You can specify their size and shape freely.  Lines may be with or without arrows.  For figures and lines, choose from 25 different colors. - You can save your notes as an image or a PDF file. You can do the following:  Print them out with a printer.  Save them as images in iOS "Photos".  Attach them to emails as images or PDF files.  Share them as images with iCloud Photo Sharing.  Paste them as images in iOS standard "Notes".  Save them as PDF files in iOS standard "iBooks".  They can be uploaded as images to Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Evernote, Flickr, Line, etc.  (If these applications are installed. Also, if the application is compatible with iOS App Extensions, they can be uploaded as images.) - Notes can be organized into groups.  Several groups can be set for each note.  Notes can be displayed by group, or by modified date. - It's compatible with iCloud, so you can share your notes on your iPhone or iPad. - Compatible with Siri Shortcuts. You can use this application for free for 30 days. If you want to use this app from the 31th day onward, please watch the advertisement movie or make In-App Purchase. [Contact us] https://www.studioks.net/en/contact-us/ [Studio K's - Business Applications Maker] https://www.studioks.net/en/

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

Pocket Note4 screens
Element Note4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Element Note at none against Pocket Note's shown. Element Note also leads on review sentiment (68% vs 33%) and ratings volume (2.6K vs 14). Pocket Note's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

Both are free to download. Pocket Note sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Element Note sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $3.49 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Element Note holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Element Note has 2.6K ratings behind it against 14, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of Pocket Note's written reviews are positive against 68% of Element Note's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pocket Note ships an update every 2 months, Element Note fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on August 13, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Pocket Note versus Element Note: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPocket NoteElement Note
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (14 ratings)4.6 (2.6K ratings) — better
Positive reviews33.3% of reviews68.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings142.6K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size25 MB129 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNAOAKI SEKIGUCHISoysauce Lab

Customer experience

Pocket Note

All ratings14 ratings
Positive78.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative21.4%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral11.1%
Negative55.6%

Element Note

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

Bugs and requests

Pocket Note

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

1 purchases

Pocket Note

One-time1
  • Pocket Note License$3.99
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 Pocket Note free?
Pocket Note is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Element Note free?
Element Note is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Pocket Note or Element Note?
Element Note is rated higher. Pocket Note averages 4.3 out of 5 from 14 ratings, while Element Note averages 4.6 from 2.6K ratings.
Do Pocket Note or Element Note have ads?
Pocket Note shows ads; Element Note does not.
Which is updated more often, Pocket Note or Element Note?
Pocket Note ships an update every 2 months, and Element Note fortnightly. Most recently, Pocket Note was updated on August 13, 2026 and Element Note on September 24, 2026.

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