# Microsoft OneNote vs My Notes

The clearest difference is review sentiment: My Notes at 80% against Microsoft OneNote's 45%. My Notes also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.0). Microsoft OneNote's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (1.1M vs 3). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Microsoft OneNote sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and My Notes sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

My Notes holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Microsoft OneNote has 1.1M ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 45% of Microsoft OneNote's written reviews are positive against 80% of My Notes's.

Microsoft OneNote ships an update weekly, My Notes every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Microsoft OneNote | My Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (1.1M ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/microsoft-onenote/id410395246/reviews) | **[5.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/my-notes-notebook-notepad/id6450179185/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **1.1M** | 3 |
| Positive reviews | 44.7% of reviews | **80.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 11 days |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#74** | — |
| Size | 406 MB | 129 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **14.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Vision Pro** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Microsoft Corporation](https://appshunter.io/developer/298856275) | [MARKO NIKOLIC PR RACUNARSKO PROGRAMIRANJE ASCENDIK NIS](https://appshunter.io/developer/1613735268) |

## What reviewers say

### Microsoft OneNote

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/microsoft-onenote/id410395246)

**Currently charting:** #74 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

Capture thoughts, ideas, and plans in a digital notepad. Organize, search, and secure your notes, memos, and sketches. Sync across devices for access anywhere, anytime. Collaborate with others on shared notepads.

**Highlights:** Capture thoughts and ideas, Digital sketchbook, Organize and search notes, Sync notes via OneDrive, Collaborate on shared notepads, Handwritten notes and drawings

**Features:** Apple Watch app

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Microsoft 365 Personal | $9.99 | per month |
| Microsoft 365 Personal | $11.99 | per month |
| Microsoft 365 Family | $12.99 | per month |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Simple, works well
- 👍 Great for planning
- 👍 Powerful note-taking app
- 👍 Invaluable tool for note taking
- 👍 Used for years, couldn't be without this app

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔨 Could be better
- 🔨 Formatting issues on mobile app
- 🔨 Buggy widget, no dark app icon
- 🐛 Glitchy, crashes often
- 🐛 Terrible sync speeds

**Reported bugs**

- Cursor positioning is erratic
- Search function does not work well
- Ink to text conversion missing on iPad
- Syncing issues, notes not syncing properly across devices
- Crashing, freezing, and performance issues

**Requested features**

- Native Markdown support and merged cell support
- Ruler, ability to choose or create notebook covers
- Ability to password protect app or individual notebooks
- Option to open on last opened page instead of Home
- Ability to turn note into task that appears on To Do and Planner


### My Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/my-notes-notebook-notepad/id6450179185)

Capture ideas, manage tasks, and organize information with this versatile note-taking app. Create separate notebooks, use checklists, draw, record audio, and customize with themes. Secure your notes with a codelock and back them up to the cloud.

**Highlights:** Separate notebooks for organization, Daily checklists and to-do lists, Text formatting, drawing, and audio notes, Customizable backgrounds and themes, Home screen widget for quick access, Codelock for enhanced security, Cloud backup and restore

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| My Notes Premium (monthly) | $3.99 | per month |
| Limited offer Premium (yearly) | $14.99 | per year |
| My Notes Premium (yearly) | $18.99 | per year |
| My Notes Premium (yearly) | $18.99 | per year |
| My Notes Premium user (yearly) | $39.99 | per year |
| Limited offer Pro (lifetime) | $29.99 | one-time |
| My Notes Premium (lifetime) | $34.99 | one-time |
| My Notes Premium (lifetime) | $69.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Microsoft OneNote free?

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

### Is My Notes free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Microsoft OneNote or My Notes?

My Notes is rated higher. Microsoft OneNote averages 4.7 out of 5 from 1.1M ratings, while My Notes averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.

### Do Microsoft OneNote or My Notes have ads?

My Notes shows ads; Microsoft OneNote does not.

### Which is updated more often, Microsoft OneNote or My Notes?

Microsoft OneNote ships an update weekly, and My Notes every 11 days. Most recently, Microsoft OneNote was updated on October 2, 2026 and My Notes on October 1, 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.*