Comparison

NotePlan vs DayOS

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

Head to head
About

NotePlan

Organize your tasks, notes, and calendar in one unified app. Quickly plan your day with Markdown, link notes bi-directionally, and stay on top of your to-dos with powerful review and search features. Seamlessly integrates with your existing calendars and syncs across all your Apple devices.

Highlights
  • Unified task, note, and calendar view
  • Markdown for quick task and note creation
  • Bi-directional note linking
  • Calendar integration (iCloud, Google, Exchange)
  • Flexible recurring tasks
  • Global Command Bar for fast navigation
  • Plaintext note storage
Features
Read full description

Having trouble planning your day, managing your to-do list, and organizing your notes? Always jumping between apps and losing track of what to do and where you put things? Say hello to NotePlan! NotePlan lets you manage everything in one place: your tasks, notes, and calendar. Perfect for project managers, designers, researchers, writers, students, or anyone who wants to be organized and efficient. QUICKLY PLAN YOUR DAY WITH MARKDOWN • Plan your day by seeing your calendar, notes, and tasks in a single view • Create tasks and notes quickly with Markdown • Add #tags to organize tasks and notes • Use @mentions to find people • Reschedule to-do items easily • Create flexible recurring tasks • Work faster with autocomplete BUILD YOUR NETWORK OF NOTES • Create your own network of notes • Organize any way you want to: from simple folders over P.A.R.A. to a Zettelkasten system • Bi-directional notes: link your calendar and your notes in any direction, automatically • Cross-reference and link notes easily STAY ON TOP OF THINGS WITH REVIEW • Search all tasks and notes, instantly • See all open tasks with the click of a button • Get a list of overdue to-do items • See upcoming tasks at a glance • Create custom filters with your own queries using status, #tags, @mentions, or even text SEAMLESS INTEGRATION WITH YOUR CALENDAR • Create events and reminders right in NotePlan • Support for iCloud, Google, and Exchange calendars • Time-block tasks on your calendar simply by typing AVAILABLE ON MAC, IPHONE & IPAD • Sync everything between your Apple devices • Use any sync method you like: CloudKit or iCloud Drive • A single subscription for all your devices OPEN, PRIVATE & FAST • All your notes are stored in plaintext so you're never locked in • Your information is private and cannot be accessed • Enjoy lightning speed thanks to local files and native apps ANY THEME YOU WANT • Choose from a variety of built-in themes • Work with light or dark versions • Create your own custom theme SHORTCUTS FOR MAXIMUM SPEED • Extended Markdown syntax support with customization options • Move around without ever leaving the keyboard • Find everything with the Global Command Bar NotePlan is developed independently and prioritizes user features and requests. We have long-term roadmaps and listen to customers to improve the apps. - - - - - Price may vary by location. Subscriptions will be charged to your credit card through your iTunes account. Your subscription will automatically renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. After purchase, manage your subscriptions in App Store Account Settings. - - - - - Email: hello@noteplan.co Web: noteplan.co Discord: https://discord.gg/D4268MT Twitter: NotePlanApp Reddit: reddit.com/r/NotePlanApp Learn NotePlan course: https://noteplan.eo.page/newsletter Terms of use: http://noteplan.co/tos/ Privacy policy: https://noteplan.co/privacy/

About

DayOS

This app offers a streamlined workspace for daily organization, combining tasks, calendar, notes, and a private vault. It focuses on simplicity and efficiency without the complexity of project management tools. Available on iPad, it supports markdown notes, photo attachments, and spending tracking.

Highlights
  • Daily Home dashboard
  • Simple daily task management
  • Day, week, month calendar views
  • Markdown-supported notes with attachments
  • Spending tracking and bill reminders
  • Private, password-protected vault
  • Light, dark, and system themes
Features
Read full description

DayOS is a focused personal organization app designed to keep daily life simple, private, and efficient. It combines planning, notes, calendar, spending, and a private, password protected note vault in one clean workspace without the clutter of a traditional project-management app. Now available on iPad! All-in-one app of: - Tasks - Calendar - Notes - Private, password protected vault An extremely simple yet very functional and efficient app designed to manage your entire day all in one location Core features: • Daily Home dashboard with a clean overview of today’s calendar events • Today tab for simple daily task management without turning the app into a heavy weekly or monthly task system • Calendar with day, week, and month views, swipe navigation, event creation, editing, deletion, and color-coded entries • Notes with folder view or list view, custom folders, subfolders, quick notes, search, trash, and a minimalist modern layout • Hybrid markdown-supported notes with headings, bullet lists, numbered lists, and interactive checkboxes • Inline photo attachments in notes, plus file attachments • Spending section for quick transaction logging, monthly spending tracking, and recurring bill tracking with due dates • Floating quick actions for fast note capture and spending entry from the main screens • Vault for premium users: local-only private notes and passwords protected by a passcode, with recovery flow, export, folders, and vault trash • Light, dark, and system theme support • Sign in with Apple support • Premium lifetime license for only $14.99 • Low cost monthly subscription and free trial available • Local account separation between guest mode and signed-in Apple accounts • Data controls including sign out, delete app data, and vault-specific secure deletion flows Premium: • Founder's edition lifetime license: Promotional lifetime premium access at a lower price • Premium access gives unlimited access to the app • A one month free trial available • Available both as a very affordable monthly subscription or as a one-time purchase lifetime license • Specifically it gives you the ability to create more than 100 notes, more than 5 simultaneous tasks a day, custom folders, and access to the vault features Privacy and storage: • Vault data is stored locally on-device only, notes and files never leave your device. Password protection with added Face-ID functionality available • Guest and Apple account data are kept separate locally • The app includes options for erasing app data and managing sensitive vault content securely Privacy Policy: https://gist.github.com/murraydylan77-commits/3e26cb6da694fa7791ee9fc2a3076fe3 Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

NotePlan4 screens
DayOS4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: DayOS at freemium against NotePlan's subscription. DayOS also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs monthly) and rating (5.0 vs 4.8). NotePlan's advantage is ratings volume (1.5K vs 1). On price, ads, 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

Both are free to download. NotePlan sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days and DayOS sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

DayOS holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NotePlan has 1.5K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NotePlan ships an update monthly, DayOS every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
NotePlan versus DayOS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNotePlanDayOS
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (1.5K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews85.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.5K — better1
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFreemium — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size204 MB10 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNotePlan LLCDylan Murray

Customer experience

NotePlan

All ratings1,517 ratings
Positive95.3%
Neutral1.9%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews478 reviews
Positive85.1%
Neutral4.6%
Negative10.3%

DayOS

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

NotePlan

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Inconsistent sync between devices
  • Crashes when opening certain files

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved iPad and mobile app experience
  • Better integration with other productivity apps
  • More automation and scripting capabilities
  • Weekly or monthly calendar view

DayOS

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

8 purchases

NotePlan

Subscriptions8
  • Personal Weekly$4.997 Days
  • Personal Monthly$6.991 Month
  • Personal Monthly1 Month trial$11.991 Month
Show 5 more
  • Personal Monthly2 variants$12.001 Month
  • Personal Annual7 Days trial$59.991 Year
  • Personal Annual7 Days trial2 variants$99.991 Year
  • Personal Annual1 Month trial$119.991 Year
  • Business Class1 Month trial$199.991 Year
2 purchases

DayOS

Subscriptions1
  • Monthly Premium1 Month trial$2.991 Month
One-time1
  • Lifetime Premium$14.99

Questions

Is NotePlan free?
NotePlan is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is DayOS free?
DayOS is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, NotePlan or DayOS?
DayOS is rated higher. NotePlan averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.5K ratings, while DayOS averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do NotePlan or DayOS have ads?
Neither NotePlan nor DayOS shows ads.
Which is updated more often, NotePlan or DayOS?
NotePlan ships an update monthly, and DayOS every 3 days. Most recently, NotePlan was updated on October 29, 2026 and DayOS on October 14, 2026.

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