Evernote vs abcNotes
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Evernote
Capture ideas, organize notes, and manage tasks across all your devices. This app helps you tame distractions and accomplish more by bringing your to-dos, schedule, and important information together in one searchable place.
- Capture ideas as searchable notes
- Create to-do lists with reminders
- Organize with notebooks and tags
- Scan and digitize paper documents
- Sync across all devices
- Integrate with Google Calendar
- Web clipping for articles
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Evernote is your second brain — the place to keep everything that matters and find it again the moment you need it. "…an invaluable tool for organizing a messy digital life." — The New York Times Capture a thought, a to-do, a photo, or a whole project, then let Evernote help you organize it, make sense of it, transcribe a meeting or tidy up a rough draft, and bring it back exactly when it counts. From the first spark of an idea to the finished plan, it all lives in one calm, searchable place — at work, at home, and everywhere in between. CAPTURE ANYTHING Jot a quick note, build a checklist, save a photo, an email or a PDF, or clip an article from the web before it disappears. Type it out, write by hand, snap a picture, or record a voice memo — whatever's fastest in the moment. Your ideas land in one place, ready when you are, so nothing gets lost on a sticky note or buried in your inbox. STAY ORGANIZED, EFFORTLESSLY Sort notes into notebooks and add tags, or just start writing and let structure follow. Group related notes together, pin the ones you reach for most, and keep work, school, and life neatly apart — without spending your day tidying up. Evernote keeps things in order so you can stay focused on the thinking. FIND WHAT YOU NEED, FAST Search across everything you've saved — including the text inside your images and PDFs. Ask in plain language and Semantic Search surfaces the right note, even when you can't remember the exact words or where you put it. The more you save, the more useful it becomes. MEET YOUR AI ASSISTANT Your AI Assistant clears away the busywork so you can stay in the thinking, working quietly alongside you. Record a conversation and Evernote AI transcribes and summarizes it for you; AI Transcription turns audio, images, and video into text; and AI Edit cleans up a rough draft, shortens it, or changes the tone while keeping it in your own voice. PLAN YOUR DAY Add due dates, reminders, and to-dos right inside your notes, so the next step is always clear and nothing slips through the cracks. Check things off as you go and keep momentum without switching apps. WORK EVERYWHERE Your notes sync automatically across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows, and the web — start on one device and pick up right where you left off on another. Evernote works offline too, so you're never locked out of your own ideas, even when you're far from a signal. FOR WORK, SCHOOL, AND LIFE - Plan projects, prep meetings, and keep every detail in one place. - Take lecture notes, organize research, and study smarter for exams. - Save recipes, plan trips, track goals, and remember the little things that matter. - Keep a journal, draft your next big idea, and capture inspiration whenever it strikes. "Its magic lies in its flexibility." — PCMag However you think, and whatever you're working on, Evernote helps you remember everything and get it done. Capture today's idea — and find it the moment you need it.
abcNotes
Create realistic, customizable sticky notes and to-do lists on your iOS device. Organize shopping lists, class notes, and projects with a variety of backgrounds and skins. Share and sync your notes across devices.
- Realistic sticky note appearance
- Customizable skins and backgrounds
- Virtual desktops for organization
- Scale, rotate, and drag notes
- Email and sync notes
- Save notes as images
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abcNotes - Simply the most realistic & user friendly notes in the world! abcNotes - is a freeware, feature limited version. The limitations are: • Only one desktop (paid version supports up to 15 virtual desktops) • Only 10 note skins (45 in paid version) • Only 32 desktop backgrounds (88 in paid version) • Synchronization is NOT supported • A bit of advertisements. abc Notes Lite - Checklist & Sticky Note Application for iPhone and iPad (share, email and synch your lists, memos, projects and school notebooks) free version Bellow is the description of the abcNotes full version: ----------------------------------------- abcNotes was designed to become your stylish and highly customizable, functional and easy to use assistant in taking notes and managing To Do lists. abcNotes is an awesome note taking application! It takes advantage of unique iOS devices touchscreen preserving realistic look & feel of paper sticky notes. BEAUTIFUL APPEARANCE: • 88 backgrounds to choose from • 45 note skins • 27 badge designs & 115 icons EXTREMELY FUNCTIONAL: • 15 virtual desktops • Scale, rotate and drag notes • Easy to edit, duplicate, move between desktops • Supports any iPad orientation SHARE YOUR NOTES: • Email notes and desktops • Copy note image to any application • Synchronize notes between iOS devices • Save notes as image and place to lock or home screen No more boring note lists – abcNotes brings you the ability to make REAL notes on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch. Put everything you need to remember into abcNotes! View you notes the way you want! Rotate your abcNotes to any angle you wish! abcNotes is great for shopping lists, student class notebook, to record lecture and interview notes or to track projects, recordings and more tasks at home, school and university (class or homework). Please feel free to contact us at abcnotes@alsedi.com if you have suggestions, feature requests, or bug reports. Give it a try!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Evernote at none against abcNotes's shown. Evernote also leads on ratings volume (78K vs 2.9K) and chart position (#26 vs unranked). abcNotes's advantage is review sentiment (77% vs 51%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.1). On price, rating, update cadence 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. Evernote sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $13.95 per month and abcNotes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
abcNotes holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Evernote has 78K ratings behind it against 2.9K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 51% of Evernote's written reviews are positive against 77% of abcNotes's.
Evernote ships an update weekly, abcNotes every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Evernote | abcNotes |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (78K ratings) | 4.6 (2.9K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 51.1% of reviews | 77.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 78K — better | 2.9K |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Best chart rank | #26 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 329 MB | 41 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Evernote Corporation | ALSEDI Group |
Customer experience
Evernote
abcNotes
User reviews
Evernote
From 78K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 High quality notes app
- 🔒 Secure and reliable
- 👍 Useful features and integrations
- 👍 Powerful search and organization
- 👍 Seamless cross-device sync
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable on mobile
- 🔒 Security and privacy concerns
- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 👎 Declining quality and customer support
- 👎 Aggressive upselling and limitations on free version
abcNotes
From 2.9K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Visually appealing
- 💡 Customizable notes
- 🚀 Convenient for quick notes
- 👍 Helpful for organization
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes
- 💸 Expensive for full version
- 🔍 Difficult to search/find notes
- 🔍 Limited note editing options
- 📢 Intrusive ads in free version
Bugs and requests
Evernote
Reported bugs
5 issues- Notes not saving properly
- Sync issues between devices
- Frequent crashes and freezes
- Search functionality not working as expected
- Inability to access notes after subscription changes
Requested features
5 requests- Improved mobile app performance and stability
- Enhanced security features like encryption and two-factor authentication
- More flexible and affordable subscription options
- Better customer support and communication
- Expanded formatting and customization options
abcNotes
Reported bugs
3 issues- Notes randomly deleted
- Checklist feature not working
- Sync issues between iOS devices
Requested features
5 requests- Add date/time stamp to notes
- Ability to write notes with Apple Pencil
- Option to set reminders/alarms for notes
- Improved search and organization tools
- More customization options for note styles
In-app purchases
Evernote
- Evernote Plus$13.951 Month
- Evernote Plus2 variants$15.001 Month
- Evernote Premium2 variants$17.491 Month
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- Evernote Personal$17.491 Month
- Evernote Personal7 Days trial$17.491 Month
- Monthly Personal Plan7 Days trial$17.491 Month
- Evernote Personal Monthly$17.491 Month
- Evernote Personal Monthly$22.001 Month
- Evernote Premium$169.001 Year
abcNotes
- Unlock all features$2.99








