Comparison

Collected Notes vs Ikes

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

Head to head
About

Collected Notes

A note-taking platform that allows users to create private notes, share them publicly, and build a blog with a custom domain. It focuses on a simple, native experience with live Markdown previews and no ads or tracking.

Highlights
  • Markdown with live preview
  • Create private notes
  • Share notes publicly
  • Build a blog with custom domain
  • Native iPhone experience
  • No ads or tracking
Read full description

Upload your thoughts. The simplest, and most powerful note-taking blogging platform ever made. Create private notes, share them publicly and create your blog with a custom domain. ■ Markdown with live preview Live Markdown previews allow you to see the final result in real-time as you type. ■ Simplicity Every app out there eventually tries to do more than they should. We believe in doing less, but better. ■ Native experience The iPhone app allows for a fast native-first experience. Just open the app and go right into writing mode. ■ No nonsense No ads. No feature creep. No tracking. No annoying emails. No data sold. No comments. No vanity metrics. No proprietary formats. You'll never see popups, clutter, subscription up-sells, or anything that interferes with the reading experience. Collected Notes is a reading-first experience. Your attention matters. Terms of use: https://collectednotes.com/blog/terms

About

Ikes

Capture and organize text or image ideas with a dynamic feed. Intelligent search and discovery help you find inspiration and make unexpected connections. Syncs seamlessly across devices and prioritizes your privacy.

Highlights
  • Quick capture for text and images
  • Dynamic Idea Feed for discovery
  • Tag, source, and color organization
  • Intelligent search by meaning
  • Automatic idea discovery
  • Shuffle for serendipity
  • iCloud sync across devices
Read full description

Ikes is not your ordinary note app. It's built for capturing ideas and finding them again — fast. Got an idea? Read a great quote? Snapped a page from a book? Just throw it all into Ikes. Text, images, and links drop into a single feed, and you add tags, sources, and sparkles to whatever matters. Later, filters and search bring anything back in seconds. Now with a new unified export: send your whole library — or just the ideas matching your current filter — out as TXT, CSV, TSV, JSON, or YAML. JSON and YAML are designed for AI and RAG workflows, ready to drop straight into your pipeline. - Save text, images, and links instantly, with tags, sources, and sparkles. - Works inside Safari, X/Twitter, book readers, and other apps via the share extension. - Filter bar, tag/source browsers, and full-text search surface what you need. - Shuffle and random idea views bring forgotten ideas back to the top. - iCloud sync across iPhone, iPad, and Mac — included for free. - Place your favorite quotes on your Home Screen with widgets. [ Premium features ] - Intelligent Search — semantic search across your entire idea feed. - Intelligent Discovery — surface related ideas you had forgotten. - Unified Export to TXT / CSV / TSV / JSON / YAML (Export All or Export Filtered). - Text recognition (OCR) on captured images — perfect for reading physical books. - Filter which ideas appear in widgets. - Custom color schemes and app icons. [ Ikes at a glance ] - Free iCloud sync - Text, images, and links with tags, sources, and sparkles - Share extension for 3rd-party apps - Filter bar + tag cloud - Shuffle / random view - Home Screen widgets - Dark mode - Universal: iPhone, iPad, and Mac

Screenshots

Collected Notes4 screens
Ikes4 screens

Verdict

The call

Collected Notes and Ikes are too close to call on the numbers: across 10 compared parameters — price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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. Collected Notes sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Ikes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Collected Notes against 4.7 for Ikes. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 43 and 30 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 87% of Collected Notes's written reviews are positive against 93% of Ikes's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Collected Notes versus Ikes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCollected NotesIkes
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (43 ratings)4.7 (30 ratings) — better
Positive reviews86.7% of reviews92.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings43 — better30
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB284 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAlfajor Co.INCREDIBLE FOX, Inc.

Customer experience

Collected Notes

All ratings43 ratings
Positive90.7%
Neutral2.3%
Negative7.0%
Written reviews15 reviews
Positive86.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative13.3%

Ikes

All ratings31 ratings
Positive93.5%
Neutral3.2%
Negative3.2%
Written reviews14 reviews
Positive92.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative7.1%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Collected Notes

Subscriptions2
  • Collected Notes Basic7 Days trial$0.991 Month
  • Collected Notes Premium7 Days trial$4.991 Month
1 purchases

Ikes

One-time1
  • Ikes PREMIUM$9.99

Questions

Is Collected Notes free?
Collected Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Ikes free?
Ikes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Collected Notes or Ikes?
Ikes is rated higher. Collected Notes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 43 ratings, while Ikes averages 4.7 from 30 ratings.
Do Collected Notes or Ikes have ads?
Neither Collected Notes nor Ikes shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Collected Notes or Ikes?
Collected Notes ships an update every 2 weeks, and Ikes every 2 weeks. Most recently, Collected Notes was updated on October 2, 2026 and Ikes on September 23, 2026.

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