MarginNote 5 vs ReadOS
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MarginNote 5
This app helps you deeply engage with reading materials by linking highlights to mind maps and flashcards for review. It offers task-based templates for various study needs, including question practice and vocabulary building, with AI assistance for tasks like creating outlines and extracting questions. Syncing and organization features ensure your study data is secure and accessible.
- Task-based reading templates
- AI-powered question extraction
- Mind map and flashcard integration
- Offline dictionary for vocabulary
- Secure sync with sync center
- PDF and EPUB import
- Handwriting and annotation tools
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MarginNote is a PDF tool for in-depth reading and study. Keep PDF highlights linked to mind-map cards, then add those cards to review. MarginNote 5 introduces task-based templates for reading, question practice, and vocabulary. MarginNote has evolved since 2013. The upgrade from MarginNote 4 is free. Your study sets, notes, and purchases remain intact. MARGINNOTE 5: ONE TASK, ONE SETUP • Templates — a template sets the bottom tools, menus, pens, and excerpt colors. The "Standard" template has four modes: Excerpt, Handwrite, Organize, and Recall. Each mode groups tools for that task. • Template Gallery — install official templates in one tap. Some templates include examples to help you get started: – Card Practice: write answers by hand on question cards, check your answers, and focus your next review on questions you haven't mastered yet. AI can split a whole workbook into cards. – Reading Vocabulary: collect words while reading English; an offline dictionary provides base forms, pronunciation, and definitions, and finished cards join review when automatic review is enabled. • Make it yours — the corresponding controls are highlighted as you edit. Find features and settings with Feature Search, and export or share your templates. • Traditional Interface — open the template menu and choose "Traditional Interface" (except on iPhone Duo). SYNC YOU CAN SEE The home screen shows where sync stands. The Sync Center lists notes and original documents separately and tells you when a document is still downloading. Manual sync reports results and offers a protective snapshot. Applying cloud changes also protects local study data. THE CARD AT THE CENTER • Organize excerpts by chapter; for books without a table of contents, AI can build one. • Title Links — notes on concepts you've studied resurface as you read new documents. • Extend — open writing space anywhere on a PDF: inline, in the margin, or folded away. AI AS AN ASSISTANT, NOT A SUBSTITUTE AI Breakdown · Question Extraction · AI TOC · AI OCR card templates · translation · chat. Save any answer as a card, or turn its outline into mind-map branches. Online AI sends task text or images to the service provider used for the request. REVIEW: THINK FIRST, THEN LOOK Use Recall mode to hide and reveal answers in the mind map. Add cards to a review deck for FSRS spaced repetition. Write directly on card snapshots while you review. On iOS/iPadOS/macOS 26+, when Apple Intelligence is enabled and its model is available on a supported device and in a supported region, on-device recall hints work offline without MarginNote credits. THE FULL WORKFLOW PDF, EPUB, Office-to-PDF import (online), video and audio · Zotero, cloud drives and external folders · side-by-side documents · handwriting layers and mind-map backgrounds · mind-map PDF export (structure or card flow) · read aloud · fast OCR WHO IT IS FOR Anyone who rereads material and needs to remember it: medical and law students, exam takers, researchers, language learners, serious readers. ACROSS YOUR DEVICES iPhone, iPad and Mac with one Apple Account; iCloud syncs study sets, notes and review progress. Native Apple Pencil handwriting on iPad. Also adapted for iPhone Duo. ABOUT PURCHASES Free to download. Some features require Pro (one-time unlock) or Max (subscription or one-time unlock). MarginNote Agent requires Max and uses MarginNote credits. Some online AI uses MarginNote credits; external AI is billed by its provider. A Max subscription includes 500 credits/month while active. Questions: service@marginnote.com Terms of Use: https://dist.marginnote.cn/MarginNote_Terms_and_Conditions.pdf Privacy Policy: https://dist.marginnote.cn/MarginNote_Privacy_Policy.pdf
ReadOS
This app is an AI-powered workspace for iPad that helps you read, research, and create. It connects your source materials and project context, allowing you to move seamlessly from understanding to creation. Features include AI summarization, knowledge mapping, and document analysis.
- AI-powered research agent
- Contextual reading and note-taking
- Knowledge mapping and visualization
- Document, spreadsheet, and presentation creation
- Web browsing and data analysis
- Audio and video transcription
- Multi-step task automation
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ReadOS is an all-in-one, desktop-class AI agent workspace for iPad, built around the place serious work often begins: reading. Open a PDF, collect research, inspect evidence, create a report, analyze data, build office files, and continue the task without rebuilding context across separate apps. ReadOS keeps source materials, reading position, selections, files, and project context connected so you can move from understanding to creating. READ WITH CONTEXT • Open PDFs, EPUBs, Markdown, images, local audio and video files, and common office files. • Navigate document structure and page references when the source provides them. • Annotate PDFs, take notes, organize tabs, and export annotated documents. • Build knowledge maps and visual explanations connected to source material. RESEARCH WITH READEX Readex is the AI agent inside ReadOS. When you choose to share content with it, Readex can work with the current document, selected passages, attachments, webpage context, and files in your workspace. Use Readex to: • Summarize and compare source material. • Develop study guides, research plans, and structured notes. • Trace an answer back to relevant pages and context. • Work across multiple files while keeping the research question visible. CREATE, AUTOMATE, AND DELIVER With ReadOS Pro, Readex can help: • Create and edit documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. • Analyze data with Python and JavaScript. • Build charts, tables, interactive visualizations, and knowledge maps. • Browse the web, inspect pages, collect relevant context, and carry out browser tasks. • Transcribe and analyze local audio and video files, extract useful frames, and continue from a playback position. • Carry out multi-step and long-running tasks across available files and tools, with progress you can review and stop. FREE AND PRO ReadOS Free includes library management, local file opening and playback, PDF annotation, notes, navigation, tabs, workspaces, and annotated-PDF export. ReadOS Pro unlocks Readex and advanced AI-assisted work, including browser automation, creation and editing tools, code and data analysis, document and media understanding, and multi-step or long-running tasks. ReadOS Pro is available through Apple In-App Purchase as an auto-renewing annual subscription or a one-time lifetime purchase. ReadOS Pro also requires a supported AI provider account or compatible API connection. Provider subscriptions, usage quotas, and model or API fees are separate and are not included with ReadOS Pro. Availability and results can vary by source format, selected provider or model, network access, and permissions. Start with what you are reading. Keep the context. Build what comes next. TERMS OF USE ReadOS uses Apple's Standard Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ReadOS at 100% against MarginNote 5's 58%. ReadOS also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.5). MarginNote 5's advantage is ratings volume (741 vs 8) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, update cadence, ads 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. MarginNote 5 sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 3 months and ReadOS sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
ReadOS holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MarginNote 5 has 741 ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of MarginNote 5's written reviews are positive against 100% of ReadOS's.
MarginNote 5 ships an update every 3 weeks, ReadOS monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MarginNote 5 | ReadOS |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (741 ratings) | 5.0 (8 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 58.5% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 741 — better | 8 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 372 MB | 993 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Beijing Yunsi Software Technology Co., Ltd | 秀芳 王 |
Customer experience
MarginNote 5
ReadOS
Bugs and requests
MarginNote 5
Reported bugs
3 issues- Disappearing annotations when using extend function
- Inability to restore accidentally deleted mind maps
- Inconsistent behavior with PDF file management
Requested features
4 requests- Improved iCloud/cloud sync reliability
- More intuitive and user-friendly interface
- Better support for external document libraries
- Ability to disable auto-excerpt selection
ReadOS
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
MarginNote 5
- Subscription to MAX (3 months)7 Days trial$4.993 Months
- Subscription to MAX (Annually)1 Month trial$12.991 Year
- MarginNote Max Annual1 Month trial$16.991 Year
- 14 days Free Trial2 variantsFree
- Upgrade to PRO from MN3(iOS)$4.99
- Unlock PRO Forever (New)$12.99
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- Upgrade to MAX from MN3(macOS)$19.99
- Unlock MAX based on PRO (New)$40.00
- Unlock MAX Forever (New)$51.99
ReadOS
- ReadOS Pro Annual7 Days trial$19.991 Year
- ReadOS Pro Lifetime$69.99









