# Notability vs QuickNotes X

The clearest difference is rating: Notability at 4.8 against QuickNotes X's 4.3. Notability also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 5 weeks) and ratings volume (457K vs 3.8K). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Notability sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and QuickNotes X sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 3 months. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Notability holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notability has 457K ratings behind it against 3.8K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 37% of Notability's written reviews are positive against 38% of QuickNotes X's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Notability ships an update weekly, QuickNotes X every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notability | QuickNotes X |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (457K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-planner/id360593530/reviews)** | [4.3 (3.8K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/quicknotes-x-notes-ai-and-pdf/id1021085778/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **457K** | 3.8K |
| Positive reviews | 36.5% of reviews | **38.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 5 weeks |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#77** | — |
| Size | 411 MB | 354 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.5 | **16.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Ginger Labs](https://appshunter.io/developer/318126112) | [Alessandro Sassi](https://appshunter.io/developer/1493314059) |

## What reviewers say

### Notability

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-planner/id360593530)

**Currently charting:** #77 Top Grossing · Productivity, #126 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

Capture, organize, and enhance your thoughts with a versatile digital notebook. Seamlessly blend handwriting, typing, and multimedia to annotate documents, record lectures, and generate summaries. Ideal for students and professionals seeking to boost productivity and learning.

**Highlights:** Handwritten and typed notes, PDF and document annotation, Audio recording and transcription, AI-powered summaries and quizzes, Customizable organization, Cross-device sync

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Notability Lite | $5.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $7.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $12.99 | per 3 months |
| Notability Lite | $14.99 | per year |
| Notability Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $19.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $29.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $99.99 | per year |
| Notability Classic | $49.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great app for note-taking
- 👍 Smooth handwriting experience
- 📝 Excellent organization and file management
- 🎙️ Useful audio recording feature
- 🔍 Handwriting recognition and search

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync issues with iCloud
- 🔍 Limited search and organization options
- 🖍️ Frustrating highlighter behavior
- 🔒 Concerns about subscription model
- 🔧 Buggy after recent updates

**Reported bugs**

- Notes disappearing or getting corrupted
- Frequent crashes and performance issues
- Palm rejection problems after updates
- Inconsistent behavior when importing files

**Requested features**

- Improved folder/hierarchy organization
- More shape recognition and drawing tools
- Side-by-side viewing of multiple notes
- Ability to edit/rename audio recordings
- Better integration with other apps and services


### QuickNotes X

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/quicknotes-x-notes-ai-and-pdf/id1021085778)

This app offers a fluid and precise note-taking experience with a custom vector ink engine, voice recording synced to writing, and ML-powered shape recognition. Organize notes with notebooks and folders, protect them with passwords and biometrics, and sync seamlessly across devices via iCloud. Mark up PDFs and presentations, and customize your notes with various tools and templates.

**Highlights:** Vector ink engine for fluid writing, Voice recording synced to notes, ML-powered shape recognition, Notebook and folder organization, Password and biometric protection, PDF and presentation annotation, iCloud sync across devices

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (11)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cloud & ML Pack | $0.99 | per 3 months |
| Covers Pack | $0.99 | one-time |
| Templates Pack | $0.99 | one-time |
| QuickNotes X AI: 50000 Tokens | $0.99 | one-time |
| QuickNotes X AI: 100000 Tokens | $1.99 | one-time |
| Notebooks & Folders Pack | $2.99 | one-time |
| Tools Pack | $2.99 | one-time |
| QuickNotes X AI: 300000 Tokens | $3.99 | one-time |
| QuickNotes X Pro | $4.99 | one-time |
| Pro Pack | $5.99 | one-time |
| QuickNotes X AI: 500000 Tokens | $5.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 💻 Intuitive and easy to use
- 📚 Helpful for organizing notes
- 🎨 Variety of paper templates and pens
- 🔊 Voice recording feature
- ⚡️ Smooth writing experience with Apple Pencil

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Limited functionality without paying for pro version
- 🐛 Glitches, crashes, and data loss issues
- 💭 Handwriting can appear blurry or distorted
- 🖋️ Lack of palm rejection when writing
- 📁 Inability to reorder or move pages

**Reported bugs**

- Notes randomly disappearing or becoming corrupted
- Pen input not registering correctly or lagging
- Unexpected page flipping or navigation issues
- Syncing problems between devices

**Requested features**

- Add text typing option for those with poor handwriting
- Implement cloud sync and cross-device access
- Include more customization options like templates and colors
- Improve shape recognition and drawing tools
- Allow rearranging and organizing of pages/notebooks


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notability free?

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

### Is QuickNotes X free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Notability or QuickNotes X?

Notability is rated higher. Notability averages 4.8 out of 5 from 457K ratings, while QuickNotes X averages 4.3 from 3.8K ratings.

### Do Notability or QuickNotes X have ads?

Neither Notability nor QuickNotes X shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Notability or QuickNotes X?

Notability ships an update weekly, and QuickNotes X every 5 weeks. Most recently, Notability was updated on September 25, 2026 and QuickNotes X on September 23, 2026.

---

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