# Notesnook vs Open Scanner

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Open Scanner at none against Notesnook's 20. Notesnook's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and ratings volume (672 vs 192). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Notesnook sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Open Scanner asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Notesnook against 4.7 for Open Scanner. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 672 and 192 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 79% of Notesnook's written reviews are positive against 83% of Open Scanner's.

Notesnook ships an update every 8 days, Open Scanner every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notesnook | Open Scanner |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (672 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notesnook-private-notepad/id1544027013/reviews) | [4.7 (192 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/open-scanner-pdf-scanning/id6578414558/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **672** | 192 |
| Positive reviews | 78.7% of reviews | **83.3% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 8 days** | Every 10 days |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 96 MB | 1 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.6** | 16.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Streetwriters LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1536533660) | [Pencil Research](https://appshunter.io/developer/1473063859) |

## What reviewers say

### Notesnook

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notesnook-private-notepad/id1544027013)

This open-source app offers secure, encrypted note-taking and organization across all your devices. It features a robust editor, to-do lists, and a private journal with advanced security to protect your personal information.

**Highlights:** Military-grade encryption, Cross-platform synchronization, To-do lists and task management, Private journal with media support, Rich text and Markdown editor, Notebook organization, App lock with fingerprint support

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (17)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Notesnook Pro | $0.99 | per month |
| Notesnook Essential Plan | $1.99 | per month |
| Notesnook Pro | $2.49 | per month |
| Notesnook Pro Plan | $2.99 | per month |
| Notesnook Pro | $4.49 | per month |
| Notesnook Pro | $4.49 | per month |
| Notesnook Pro Plan | $6.99 | per month |
| Notesnook Believer Plan | $8.99 | per month |
| Notesnook Pro | $9.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Essential Plan | $19.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Pro | $24.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Pro Plan | $29.90 | per year |
| Notesnook Pro Yearly | $49.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Pro | $49.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Pro | $49.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Pro Plan | $69.99 | per year |
| Notesnook Believer Plan | $89.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and efficient
- 🔒 Secure and private
- 👍 Clean and intuitive UI
- 👍 Cross-platform compatibility
- 👍 Generous free tier

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync and login issues
- 🐛 Buggy and crashes
- 💰 Expensive premium tier
- 🔒 Lack of free encryption features

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes on launch on older iOS devices
- Sync issues leading to data loss
- Unreliable login and verification process

**Requested features**

- Improved search functionality
- Reminders and calendar integration
- Handwriting and drawing support
- Multilingual support
- Improved table and spreadsheet features


### Open Scanner

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/open-scanner-pdf-scanning/id6578414558)

Transform your device into a powerful document scanner. Quickly capture papers, automatically recognize text, and organize your scans with AI-powered features. Seamlessly share and edit your documents in various formats.

**Highlights:** Automatic text recognition (OCR), Automatic document naming, Location-based tagging, Add saved signatures, Organize and re-order pages, iCloud sync, Annotate and edit scans, Export as PDF

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notesnook free?

Notesnook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Open Scanner free?

Open Scanner is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Notesnook or Open Scanner?

Notesnook and Open Scanner are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 672 and 192 ratings respectively.

### Do Notesnook or Open Scanner have ads?

Neither Notesnook nor Open Scanner shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Notesnook or Open Scanner?

Notesnook ships an update every 8 days, and Open Scanner every 10 days. Most recently, Notesnook was updated on October 15, 2026 and Open Scanner on October 14, 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.*