# Home Screen Widget Notes vs Smooth Note (with Folders)

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Home Screen Widget Notes at none against Smooth Note (with Folders)'s 1. Smooth Note (with Folders)'s advantage is update cadence (every 6 days vs monthly) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Smooth Note (with Folders) sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Home Screen Widget Notes asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Home Screen Widget Notes against 4.9 for Smooth Note (with Folders). Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 22 and 29 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 78% of Home Screen Widget Notes's written reviews are positive against 80% of Smooth Note (with Folders)'s.

Home Screen Widget Notes ships an update monthly, Smooth Note (with Folders) every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Home Screen Widget Notes | Smooth Note (with Folders) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.8 (22 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/home-screen-widget-notes/id1542308446/reviews) | **[4.9 (29 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smooth-note-with-folders/id1586502581/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 22 | **29** |
| Positive reviews | 78.3% of reviews | **80.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| Update frequency | Monthly | **Every 6 days** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 20 MB | 16 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **14.4** |
| Devices | iPhone | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [App Palette LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/711326934) | [Syncly Applications](https://appshunter.io/developer/1437712077) |

## What reviewers say

### Home Screen Widget Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/home-screen-widget-notes/id1542308446)

Organize your thoughts and ideas into customizable tabs for easy management.  Add images, count characters, and secure your notes with a password lock. Export your data as a text file.

**Highlights:** Home screen widget, Unlimited tabs and memos, Character count, Attach up to four images per note, Change background color, Password lock, Export note data as text file

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Smooth Note (with Folders)

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/smooth-note-with-folders/id1586502581)

This app offers a simple and fast way to take notes, organize them into folders, and customize your writing experience. It supports dark mode, voice input, and easy sharing to various platforms.

**Highlights:** Folder in folder organization, Dark mode support, Fast app launch, Customizable font and size, Convenient copy and paste, Voice input, Sharing to SNS and email

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| No ads etc | $3.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Home Screen Widget Notes free?

Home Screen Widget Notes is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Smooth Note (with Folders) free?

Smooth Note (with Folders) is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Home Screen Widget Notes or Smooth Note (with Folders)?

Smooth Note (with Folders) is rated higher. Home Screen Widget Notes averages 4.8 out of 5 from 22 ratings, while Smooth Note (with Folders) averages 4.9 from 29 ratings.

### Do Home Screen Widget Notes or Smooth Note (with Folders) have ads?

Both Home Screen Widget Notes and Smooth Note (with Folders) show ads.

### Which is updated more often, Home Screen Widget Notes or Smooth Note (with Folders)?

Home Screen Widget Notes ships an update monthly, and Smooth Note (with Folders) every 6 days. Most recently, Home Screen Widget Notes was updated on September 23, 2026 and Smooth Note (with Folders) on September 5, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*