Comparison

MarginNote 5 vs TextMeter

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

Head to head
About

MarginNote 5

This app enhances reading and study with integrated note-taking and flashcard creation. It offers task-based templates for focused learning, AI assistance for content breakdown, and spaced repetition for effective review. Organize your research and master material efficiently.

Highlights
  • Task-based reading templates
  • AI-powered content breakdown and question extraction
  • Integrated flashcard creation and spaced repetition
  • Mind-map organization of notes
  • PDF and EPUB import
  • Handwriting and annotation tools
  • Sync across devices
Features
Read full description

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

About

TextMeter

This app analyzes text to provide insights into sentence length, vocabulary difficulty, and frequently used words and phrases. It visualizes this data through interactive graphs and a word cloud generator, all processed offline on your device.

Highlights
  • Offline text analysis
  • Word cloud creation
  • Sentence length analysis
  • Vocabulary difficulty assessment
  • Interactive graphs
  • Batch importing and exporting (paid)
Features
Read full description

TextMeter is a fast, offline text analysis and word cloud creation tool built for readers, writers, editors, and anyone who loves the written word. What TextMeter does best is count. But as it turns out, counting, combined with visualizing, can be quite a powerful thing. TextMeter will help you find the longest sentences, the toughest vocabulary, the words and phrases a document leans on the most, and will visualize that information for you via interactive graphs with powerful filtering options, and a totally "what you see is what you get" word cloud tool that lets you turn your documents into highly personal creations. Analysis runs entirely on your device: no account, no advertising, and no tracking. A full-length novel takes seconds to analyze. Native on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. All analysis features are free. A one-time purchase — no subscription — adds history for more than one analysis, iCloud sync, batch importing, and exporting. Find some text and press a button. Then, it's off to the races.

Screenshots

MarginNote 54 screens
TextMeter4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: TextMeter at 100% against MarginNote 5's 58%. TextMeter also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.5) and update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks). MarginNote 5's advantage is ratings volume (739 vs 4) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.5). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. MarginNote 5 sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and TextMeter 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

TextMeter holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: MarginNote 5 has 739 ratings behind it against 4, 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 TextMeter's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MarginNote 5 ships an update every 3 weeks, TextMeter weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
MarginNote 5 versus TextMeter: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMarginNote 5TextMeter
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (739 ratings)5.0 (4 ratings) — better
Positive reviews58.5% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings739 — better4
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.5
Further details — not scored
Size372 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBeijing Yunsi Software Technology Co., LtdAndreas Beyer-Bowden

Customer experience

MarginNote 5

All ratings739 ratings
Positive86.5%
Neutral3.4%
Negative10.1%
Written reviews568 reviews
Positive58.5%
Neutral15.5%
Negative26.1%

TextMeter

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

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

TextMeter

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

12 purchases

MarginNote 5

Subscriptions5
  • Subscription to MAX (Monthly)7 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Subscription to MAX (3 months)7 Days trial$4.993 Months
  • Subscription to MAX (6 months)7 Days trial$7.996 Months
Show 2 more
  • Subscription to MAX (Annually)1 Month trial$12.991 Year
  • MarginNote Max Annual1 Month trial$16.991 Year
One-time7
  • 14 days Free Trial2 variantsFree
  • Upgrade to PRO from MN3(iOS)$4.99
  • Unlock PRO Forever (New)$12.99
Show 4 more
  • Upgrade to MAX from MN3(macOS)$19.99
  • Unlock MAX based on PRO$39.99
  • Unlock MAX based on PRO (New)$40.00
  • Unlock MAX Forever (New)$51.99
1 purchases

TextMeter

One-time1
  • TextMeter Pro$0.99

Questions

Is MarginNote 5 free?
MarginNote 5 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is TextMeter free?
TextMeter is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, MarginNote 5 or TextMeter?
TextMeter is rated higher. MarginNote 5 averages 4.5 out of 5 from 739 ratings, while TextMeter averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.
Do MarginNote 5 or TextMeter have ads?
Neither MarginNote 5 nor TextMeter shows ads.
Which is updated more often, MarginNote 5 or TextMeter?
MarginNote 5 ships an update every 3 weeks, and TextMeter weekly. Most recently, MarginNote 5 was updated on November 3, 2026 and TextMeter on October 31, 2026.

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