Comparison

Mental Note for iPad ๛ vs Notesy

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

Head to head
About

Mental Note for iPad ๛

This app transforms your iPad into a versatile digital notepad. Seamlessly combine text, drawings, pictures, and voice recordings on a single page. Capture ideas in any format and share them easily.

Highlights
  • Combine text, pictures, audio, and drawings
  • Freehand sketching with multiple colors
  • Organize notes with tags
  • Password protect private notes
  • Export notes in PDF, text, and other formats
  • Share notes via email and cloud services
Read full description

"...a true notepad experience that may help you make a clean break from the pencil-and-paper era." -New York Times. Users describe Mental Note as "the only notepad app... that's actually better than, and as simple as, a pen and paper." It's "the future of note taking", and "a big sketchpad... [to] free-associate and put stuff down in any format". Mental Note for iPad brings the future closer with an even bigger sketchpad for you to capture your ideas on. Turn your iPad into a digital notepad.  Combine pictures, voice recordings, drawings and text - all on the same page, in any order you choose. An idea... a flash - a moment of genius.  When a thought hits, and you have to remember it, why limit how you record it?  The more context and sensory details you can capture, the clearer the idea can be put down. Use pictures, audio, sketching and text together on the same page... a digital page that can be shared with anyone. Mental Note allows you to capture ideas as they happen: use pictures, dictate, add text, sketch on anything.  Ideas clarified. Creativity captured. FEATURES - Draw with your finger using multiple colours and widths on top of pictures, text, or anywhere else on the page. Zoom in to sketch fine details. - Choose a picture from your album and add it to the page. - Add audio to the page by recording with the built-in microphone. Continue to edit your note while recording. - Organize your notes using tags. - Password protect your private notes and flag your important ones. - Attach Calendar events to your notes. - Undo, redo anything in the note by shaking the device. - Delete note sections using the toolbar button or by swiping any note section. - Move a note section by swiping and then dragging it to its new location. - Length of a note is limited only by device memory. - Export in a variety of formats including PDF, text, Mental Note format, and more. Send using email, iCloud, Dropbox, and more. * Send a note in Mental Note format so the note may be imported into another person's Mental Note app. * Using email, export a complete note directly from Mental Note as either a PDF document or a picture (each audio recording is attached to the email as a separate file). You can also email just the text from your note. - Export your notes and backups to your iCloud and/or Dropbox account. - Share a note with your friends using most installed apps. - Map the location a note was created at (if location services are enabled). - Change the size and font of the text in your notes. - Change the color and background of your notes. - Numerous other configuration options. THIS VERSION IS OPTIMIZED FOR iPad. FOR iPhone, PLEASE SEE Mental Note - the digital notepad. Read more: www.zymbiotic.com X @zymbiotic facebook.com/zymbiotic

About

Notesy

Capture thoughts instantly with this fast, private note-taking app. It opens immediately without sign-up or internet, keeping your notes securely on your device. Enjoy colorful, easily searchable notes with smart timestamps.

Highlights
  • Instant opening without login
  • Offline functionality
  • Private, device-stored notes
  • Six customizable note colors
  • Smart date timestamps
  • Minimalist and fast interface
Features
Read full description

Notesy is the fastest way to capture a thought. No sign-up. No cloud. No ads. Just open the app and start writing. Your notes stay on your device — always private, always available, even offline. • Opens instantly with no login screens • Tap to create a note, tap to save • Choose from six beautiful colors for your notes • Smart timestamps: "Today", "Yesterday", or the date • Works without internet — fully offline Most note apps want your email, push you to subscribe, or bury simple features behind menus. Notesy does one thing well: fast, colorful notes you can find at a glance. Your notes are stored locally. Nothing is uploaded. Nothing is shared. No account required. Perfect for quick reminders, shopping lists, meeting notes, ideas, and anything you need to jot down before you forget. Beautiful, minimal, and fast. That's Notesy.

Screenshots

Notesy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Notesy at 100% against Mental Note for iPad ๛'s 52%. Notesy also leads on price (Free vs $4.99) and rating (4.9 vs 2.7). On ads and device support 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

Notesy is free to download; Mental Note for iPad ๛ costs $4.99 up front. Mental Note for iPad ๛ sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Notesy asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Notesy holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 2.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 29 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 52% of Mental Note for iPad ๛'s written reviews are positive against 100% of Notesy's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Mental Note for iPad ๛ ships an update every 5 months, Notesy every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
Mental Note for iPad ๛ versus Notesy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMental Note for iPad ๛Notesy
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating2.7 (6 ratings)4.9 (29 ratings) — better
Positive reviews51.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings629 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS26.016.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size17 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperZymbiotic TechnologiesJoseph Ranft

Customer experience

Mental Note for iPad ๛

All ratings6 ratings
Positive33.3%
Neutral16.7%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews149 reviews
Positive51.7%
Neutral22.8%
Negative25.5%

Notesy

All ratings29 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Mental Note for iPad ๛

One-time3
  • Paper Customization feature$2.99
  • Straight Line Drawing feature$3.99
  • Dark Mode Override feature$3.99
None

Notesy

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Mental Note for iPad ๛ free?
Mental Note for iPad ๛ costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Notesy free?
Notesy is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Mental Note for iPad ๛ or Notesy?
Notesy is rated higher. Mental Note for iPad ๛ averages 2.7 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while Notesy averages 4.9 from 29 ratings.
Do Mental Note for iPad ๛ or Notesy have ads?
Neither Mental Note for iPad ๛ nor Notesy shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Mental Note for iPad ๛ or Notesy?
Mental Note for iPad ๛ ships an update every 5 months, and Notesy every 3 weeks. Most recently, Mental Note for iPad ๛ was updated on November 1, 2026 and Notesy on October 30, 2026.

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