# Notability vs CollaNote

Notability and CollaNote both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 74% of CollaNote's written reviews are positive against 36% of Notability's. CollaNote also leads on monetization model (free vs freemium). Notability's advantage is ratings volume (459K vs 15K) and chart position (#101 vs unranked). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Notability sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and CollaNote sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Notability against 4.7 for CollaNote. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notability has 459K ratings behind it against 15K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 36% of Notability's written reviews are positive against 74% of CollaNote's.

Notability ships an update weekly, CollaNote every 6 days. Both last shipped on November 3, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notability | CollaNote |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (459K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-study/id360593530/reviews)** | [4.7 (15K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/collanote-notes-and-pdf-markup/id1540956268/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **459K** | 15K |
| Positive reviews | 36.1% of reviews | **73.6% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Weekly | **Every 6 days** |
| Monetization | Freemium | **Free** |
| Best chart rank | **#101** | — |
| Size | 455 MB | 225 MB |
| Requires iOS | **18.0** | 18.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Ginger Labs](https://appshunter.io/developer/318126112) | [Zauberberg Lab Company Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/1693142923) |

## What reviewers say

### Notability

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

**Currently charting:** #101 Top Grossing · Productivity, #149 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, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases (9)**

| 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 Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $19.99 | per month |
| Notability Pro | $99.99 | per year |

**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


### CollaNote

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/collanote-notes-and-pdf-markup/id1540956268)

This powerful app combines note-taking, PDF markup, and digital planning with advanced AI features. It offers a rich writing experience with numerous pens and brushes, supports real-time collaboration, and includes tools like translation and flashcard creation.

**Highlights:** 25+ pens and brushes, Handwriting stabilizer, PDF, PPT, DOC import and markup, Built-in scanner, Translation tool (90+ languages), Flashcard creation with audio/images, Real-time collaboration

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

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Lifetime Premium Loyal Users | $6.95 | one-time |
| Premium: Time Limited Sale | $6.95 | one-time |
| Lifetime Premium Welcome Offer | $9.69 | one-time |
| Lifetime Premium | $13.90 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Very good writing app
- 🚀 Great app and easy to navigate
- 🚀 Excellent note taking app
- 👍 Amazing free note taking app
- 👍 Fantastic for teaching

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Glitching, crashing, and issues with writing tools
- 🐛 Inconsistent performance and bugs
- 🐛 Issues with PDF annotations and exports
- 🐛 Problems with organization and navigation
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and data loss

**Reported bugs**

- Pen and eraser issues after updates
- Freezing and crashing when deleting or moving notes
- Inconsistent behavior of favorite pen settings
- Incompatibility with older devices
- Login screen freezes

**Requested features**

- Add landscape mode support
- Improve text editing and formatting
- Enhance organization with nested folders
- Implement better backup and sync options
- Add more pen/pencil customization


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notability free?

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

### Is CollaNote free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Notability or CollaNote?

Notability is rated higher. Notability averages 4.8 out of 5 from 459K ratings, while CollaNote averages 4.7 from 15K ratings.

### Do Notability or CollaNote have ads?

Neither Notability nor CollaNote shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Notability or CollaNote?

Notability ships an update weekly, and CollaNote every 6 days. Most recently, Notability was updated on November 3, 2026 and CollaNote on November 3, 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.*