Kilonotes vs Freenotes®
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Kilonotes
This app offers a digital notebook experience for handwritten notes, PDF annotation, and study organization. It features freehand drawing, text extraction, AI assistance for learning, and customizable templates to enhance productivity and learning.
- Handwritten note-taking
- PDF annotation and markup
- AI assistant for learning
- OCR text extraction
- Customizable notebooks and templates
- Recording function
- Global PDF search
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We sincerely invite you to join us in exploring more efficient ways of taking notes and jointly reshape the modern learning mode. As a companion exploring new ways of taking notes, Kilonotes can meet your various needs. Whether it is recording class notes, annotating PDFs, doing test exercises, studying online courses, or organizing reading notes, Kilonotes will be your reliable study partner. Let's take good notes together. [Breakthrough the limitations of paper] ·Handwriting can be moved, scaled and rotated freely ·You can undo what you entered ·The size of the eraser can be adjusted to control the erasing range ·Scale paper function to make writing more comfortable You can insert pictures or photos, and combine text and pictures to deepen memory · Quick browsing function to help you quickly find what you need · Unlimited creation of paper, providing endless memory space ·Recording function, allowing you to take notes while listening to lectures ·Card function, create an exclusive knowledge base, you can create your card through pictures, brushes, and typing OCR function, convenient and fast text extraction A variety of fun-but-practical Journaling templates [Optimized reading experience] ·Global PDF search, quickly find what you need in the database · Outline function, convenient and fast positioning Multiple reading modes: eye protection, dark color, vision protection · Quick jump function, enter the page number to quickly navigate ·Translation function to help foreign language literature reading ·Extraction function, easy to collect important information ·PDF extension function, make reading and writing more free [Beyond the limits of the brush] · Change brush color, create custom colors, or pick any color with the eyedropper ·Adjustable brush width to adapt to various scenes ·Graffiti pen function, make notes more colorful [Custom Notebook] ·Provide many unique and beautiful covers for you to choose ·A variety of paper templates are available: blank paper, dot matrix paper, graph paper, to meet your needs ·You can import PDF and record freely in your own notebook [AI Assistant] • Built-in high-efficiency AI assistant helps you organize notes, expand knowledge points, and double your learning and work efficiency. • Exclusive AI problem-solving function supports selecting questions and sending them with one click, helping you easily overcome learning difficulties. [About subscription] Users can subscribe to the monthly subscription service of kilonotes to unlock advanced content, including custom time planning books. The subscription will be automatically renewed. If the user needs to cancel the subscription, the renewal needs to be closed 24 hours before the end of the current cycle. Users can close and cancel subscriptions and trials in their iTunes account. Contact us: feedback@top-stack.com Official website: https://www.kilonotesapp.com Privacy Policy: https://www.top-stack.com/page/ios_en_privacy.html User agreement: https://www.top-stack.com/page/Kilonotes_Terms_of_use_En.html
Freenotes®
This AI-powered digital notepad transforms your device into an intelligent workspace. It offers handwriting recognition, PDF annotation, and AI assistance for summarizing documents, answering questions, and aiding in study. Organize notes, sketch ideas, and sync across devices for a seamless paperless experience.
- AI Summaries and Chat with PDFs
- AI Homework and Study Helper
- Handwritten Note Organization
- OCR Search and PDF Annotation
- Infinite Canvas and Shape Recognition
- Active Recall Tape and Flashcards
- Picture-in-Picture Video Note-Taking
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Freenotes: Freedom to write, organize, and shine Transform your iPad into a powerful AI-driven digital notepad. Freenotes is an all-in-one workspace designed for students and professionals who want the natural feel of handwriting with the power of artificial intelligence. Whether you are annotating a complex PDF, planning your week, or recording a lecture, Freenotes helps you stay organized with seamless, free-form experience. AI Summary Quickly find key points and action items from long recordings or documents. AI Chat with PDF Ask questions directly to your imported files to get instant answers. AI Homework Helper Take a screenshot or upload a document (PDF or photo) to instantly get answers. AI Study Companion Clarify concepts, define terms, and check your handwritten notes for accuracy, turning passive review into active recall. Organize Notes Categorize and organize your notes by projects, courses, or topics, automating the organization of your note library. Quick Search via OCR Search through your handwritten scripts easily using accurate text recognition. PDF Annotation Highlight, underline, and add comments to documents with custom pen styles. Infinite Canvas Sketch ideas or mind map on a whiteboard that expands as you work. Apple Pencil Pro Support Experience low-latency writing that feels like real paper. Shape Recognition Turn rough drawings into clean, perfect geometric shapes for diagrams. Hyperlink Support Navigate through digital planners using clickable internal and external links. Active Recall Tape Hide specific parts of your notes to test your memory and study better. Paper Templates Access various backgrounds including grid, Cornell, and dotted paper. Flashcards Build study sets directly from your pages to help with exam prep. Seamless Video Learning Use Picture-in-Picture (PiP) to take notes while watching online videos (YouTube, lecture recordings), and instantly capture relevant screenshots directly into your notes. iCloud & Google Drive Sync Securely back up your digital notebook to access your data anywhere. Who is Freenotes For? Students: Create study guides, annotate lecture slides, and use the "Active Recall" tape tool for exam prep. Professionals: Record meetings, organize projects into folders, and sign PDF documents on the go. Creatives: Sketch ideas on an infinite whiteboard and export high-quality files to share with your team. Join over 1 million happy users transitioning to a smarter, paperless future. Try Freenotes today and experience the next era of AI note-taking. Privacy Policy: https://www.freenotetech.com/policy/ Terms of Service: https://www.freenotetech.com/terms/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Freenotes® at none against Kilonotes's shown. Freenotes® also leads on ratings volume (64K vs 5K). Kilonotes's advantage is review sentiment (71% vs 59%). On price, rating, update cadence and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Kilonotes sells 20 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Freenotes® sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Kilonotes against 4.7 for Freenotes®. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Freenotes® has 64K ratings behind it against 5K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 71% of Kilonotes's written reviews are positive against 59% of Freenotes®'s.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Kilonotes | Freenotes® |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (5K ratings) | 4.7 (64K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 70.9% of reviews — better | 59.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 5K | 64K — better |
| Update frequency | Weekly | Weekly |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.5 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 482 MB | 660 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hefei T-Stack Information Technology Co., Ltd. | Free Notes AI Note Taker LTD |
Customer experience
Kilonotes
Freenotes®
User reviews
Kilonotes
From 5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Affordable
- 🚀 Lots of free features
- 👍 Easy to use and intuitive
- 👍 Customizable notebooks and pages
- 👍 Good alternative to paid apps
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
- 🐛 Syncing and backup issues
- 🔒 Lack of password protection or privacy features
- 👎 Limited free notebooks
- 👎 Some features locked behind paywall
Freenotes®
From 64K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Completely free app with no ads or in-app purchases
- 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
- 📚 Comprehensive note-taking features (layers, templates, stickers, etc.)
- 🎨 Highly customizable (colors, fonts, covers, etc.)
- 🗂️ Excellent organization tools (folders, notebooks, etc.)
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional issues with syncing and iCloud backup
- 🖌️ Limited customization options for pen/pencil settings
- 🔍 Lack of handwriting recognition and search
- 🔗 No support for external links or clickable content
- 🔀 Difficulty in rearranging or splitting notebooks
Bugs and requests
Kilonotes
Reported bugs
3 issues- Notebooks and notes getting deleted or scrambled
- Lag and performance issues when writing or zooming
- Inconsistent behavior of the pen and eraser tools
Requested features
6 requests- Add more free sticker packs and templates
- Improve the lasso tool and image editing
- Implement iCloud or cloud sync
- Add a dark mode option
- Improve the audio recording and playback features
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- Allow more customization of notebooks and pages
Freenotes®
Reported bugs
3 issues- Occasional freezing or lagging when writing/drawing
- Issues with the shape recognition tool not working as expected
- Problems with the eraser tool not functioning properly
Requested features
5 requests- Add handwriting recognition and search functionality
- Improve iCloud sync and backup capabilities
- Expand pen/pencil customization options
- Implement support for external links and clickable content
- Introduce features for easier notebook organization and splitting
In-app purchases
Kilonotes
- Cloud space monthly membership$0.991 Month
- Monthly Subscription$1.991 Month
- Quarterly Plan$4.993 Months
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- AIChat$5.991 Month
- Year Subscription1 Year trial$8.991 Year
- Annual Plan$9.991 Year
- Cloud space annual membership$9.991 Year
- ExamPolitics_2019_2023_testFree
- Summer Forest 2022 Handbook$0.99
- Xiaofen Diary 2022 Handbook$0.99
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- Fresh 2022 Handbook$0.99
- 康奈尔笔记$0.99
- Cartoon mistake book$0.99
- Paid Notebook$0.99
- Alice$1.99
- 咸鱼日常$1.99
- AI Points Products$1.99
- 月亮兔$1.99
- Paid Notebook$2.99
- Lifetime Access$19.99
Freenotes®
- Freenotes Weekly Plus Member$1.997 Days
- Freenotes Weekly Pro Member$6.997 Days
- Premium Freenotes AI Weekly7 Days trial$6.997 Days
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- Freenotes Yearly Plus Member$9.991 Year
- Freenotes Yearly Plus Member1 Year trial2 variants$9.991 Year
- Monthly Pro Member Promotion1 Month trial$19.991 Month
- Freenotes Monthly Pro Member$19.991 Month
- Premium Freenotes AI Monthly1 Month trial$19.991 Month
- Freenotes Yearly Pro Member1 Year trial2 variants$39.991 Year
- Freenotes Yearly Pro Member$39.991 Year
- Marketplace Content$1.99
- Marketplace Content$2.99
- Marketplace Content$3.99
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- Marketplace Content$9.99
- Marketplace Content$10.99
- Freenotes Remove Ads$29.99
- Freenotes Plus Member Lifetime$29.99





