Comparison

Motes vs Hi Sticky

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

Head to head
About

Motes

A modern digital notebook for quick note-taking with easy styling and organization. Features include to-do lists, OCR text capture, and import/export options. Synchronize your notes across multiple devices using cloud storage.

Highlights
  • Quick note-taking with styles
  • Organize with labels
  • To-do lists and task tracking
  • OCR text capture
  • Import from OneNote/Evernote
  • Export to PDF
  • Cloud synchronization
Features
Read full description

Motes is a modern way of taking notes. Quickly jot down anything and make it look great with easy to use styles. Organize with labels and use highlighter for the important bits. Create to-do lists and keep track of your tasks. Capture text with OCR. Import notes from OneNote and Evernote. Export to PDF. Use your Google Drive, iCloud Drive, Microsoft OneDrive or Dropbox account to synchronize your notebook on multiple devices.

About

Hi Sticky

Capture ideas instantly with a fast, visual sticky notes app. Organize thoughts with customizable fonts, backgrounds, and interactive checklists. Sync seamlessly across all your Apple devices with iCloud.

Highlights
  • Fast, distraction-free note editor
  • Visual note previews
  • Interactive checklists
  • iCloud sync across Apple devices
  • Widgets for home screen
  • Customizable fonts and backgrounds
Features
Read full description

Hi Sticky is a fast, visual sticky notes app for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple Vision Pro. Capture an idea instantly, create a checklist, and keep every note synced with iCloud. Open Hi Sticky and start writing. Give each note its own font and background, recognize it at a glance in the visual note list, and keep Favorites above every sort order. Search across all notes or find matching text inside the note you are reading. On Mac, open notes in separate windows and keep important notes above other apps. On iPhone and iPad, use the controls above the keyboard to format text, manage lists, move the cursor, and copy or paste faster. Key Features - Fast, distraction-free note editor - Bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough formatting - Bulleted and numbered lists - Interactive checklists - Visual note previews with each note's font and background - Search across notes and Find in Note - Favorites that stay at the top - iCloud sync across Apple devices - Single-note and note-list widgets - Actions for Shortcuts and Siri - Link management - Multiple note windows with an always-on-top option on Mac - Support for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple Vision Pro Hi Sticky+ Unlock more ways to personalize Hi Sticky across your devices with a single one-time purchase. - Additional fonts and background colors - Adjustable font sizes - Custom app accent colors - More app icons - Customizable buttons above the iPhone and iPad keyboard - Advanced widget settings - Family Sharing support Hi Sticky was previously known as Notes SE.

Screenshots

Motes4 screens
Hi Sticky4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Hi Sticky at 4.6 against Motes's 3.0. Hi Sticky also leads on ratings volume (44 vs 1) and update cadence (weekly vs monthly). Motes's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). 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. Motes sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $0.99 per year and Hi Sticky 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

Hi Sticky holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hi Sticky has 44 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of Motes's written reviews are positive against 79% of Hi Sticky's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Motes ships an update monthly, Hi Sticky weekly. Both last shipped on November 3, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Motes versus Hi Sticky: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMotesHi Sticky
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (1 ratings)4.6 (44 ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews78.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings144 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, MaciPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size33 MB34 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTomasz Guciohaha Interactive

Customer experience

Motes

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral16.7%
Negative16.7%

Hi Sticky

All ratings44 ratings
Positive88.6%
Neutral2.3%
Negative9.1%
Written reviews66 reviews
Positive78.8%
Neutral7.6%
Negative13.6%

Bugs and requests

Motes

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Hi Sticky

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • Widgets are blank on iOS 26
  • Viewing notes on watch is unreliable
  • iCloud sync is buggy and often fails
  • App crashes when deleting notes
  • Mac shows 'No account' for iCloud, iPhone shows 'undefined'
Show 3 more
  • No search functionality (Cmd+F does nothing)
  • Keyboard layout covers the bottom of the note on iPhone
  • iCloud account not connected on macOS

Requested features

8 requests
  • Support for Monospace font
  • Ability to choose own colors for notes
  • Ability to change background color
  • Mac widget for quicker access
  • Ability to have multiple notes open on Mac at the same time
Show 3 more
  • Improve overview of saved notes
  • Increase font size of notes
  • Add a menu app

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Motes

Subscriptions1
  • Full version$0.991 Year
1 purchases

Hi Sticky

One-time1
  • Hi Sticky+$9.99

Questions

Is Motes free?
Motes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hi Sticky free?
Hi Sticky is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Motes or Hi Sticky?
Hi Sticky is rated higher. Motes averages 3.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while Hi Sticky averages 4.6 from 44 ratings.
Do Motes or Hi Sticky have ads?
Neither Motes nor Hi Sticky shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Motes or Hi Sticky?
Motes ships an update monthly, and Hi Sticky weekly. Most recently, Motes was updated on November 3, 2026 and Hi Sticky on November 3, 2026.

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