Comparison

Sticky Notes vs Freenotes®

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

Head to head
About

Sticky Notes

Capture ideas, create to-do lists, and set reminders with this versatile note-taking app. Supports handwritten notes, audio recordings, photos, and text. Organize notes with folders and share them easily.

Highlights
  • Handwritten notes
  • Audio recordings
  • Photo attachments
  • Text notes
  • Widgets for home/lock screen
  • Customizable folders
  • Reminders with alarms
Features
Read full description

*Over 1.5 million downloads* Featured in 'What's Hot' & 'New & Noteworthy' Organize your to do list, task list, and reminders with StickMe Notes - the most awesome sticky note & task manager app with built in alarm for iPhone. Use StickMe Notes to upgrade the boring old paper note with HANDWRITTEN or TEXT or notes on your iPhone. If you are too tired to draw or type, you can simply ATTACH A PHOTO or RECORD YOUR AUDIO NOTES. You can stick these notes with attachments such as text, drawing, record/audio or photo notes to your personalized notice board, set them as your lock screen image or share with friends using email or whatsapp. Use StickMe Note as your notebook & create grocery and shopping lists on the go. StickMe Notes is a notepad & memo app which makes note taking easy. Use memo notes to capture ideas on the fly, create to-do lists & tasks list, checklist & set up personal daily reminders. It’s a digital note pad that helps you get things done. Download the best notes maker app now & become notefuly efficient. Keep google urls or pages in sticky notes & revisit them later. MAKE QUICK NOTES *Create unlimited sticky notes in any color. Use the note color to organize the stickies better. *Use the app as task manager & create a todo check list, shopping lists or grocery lists. *Write in digital ink with your finger. Create quick daily notes or a memo. *Record voice notes. StickMe Notes can be your audio note pad. *Take a photo or choose one from your camera roll to create a photo note. Make StickMe Notes your picture notebook. *Google things & keep important links in sticky notes to revisit later. WIDGET, SPOTLIGHT & SIRI (For iOS 15 and above) *Instantly create notes to access your sticky notes on your home screen and lock screen (iPhone only) using widgets. ORGANIZE *Drag & move a note to any custom folder. *Mark notes as ‘Important’. *Use ‘Secret’ folder for to hide your daily personal notes. *Make good notes & keep in Folders. SYNC ACROSS DEVICES *Access notes on your iPhone, iPad & Mac SET REMINDERS & USE AS WALLPAPER *Set alarm for your notes & stickies to remind you about your check list. *Use note as wallpaper or lock screen image to easily remind yourself about your todo tasks with colorful stickies. PERSONALIZE & SHARE *Be creative with Stickies *Set default sticky note color, font size & name *Personalise the notice board background *Use the fully loaded text & draw toolbar with multiple font styles, sizes, thickness plus colors. Get the most awesome sticky notes app for iPhone. Create grocery & shopping lists or any other checklist using the notepad, set alarms, & enjoy note making on the go. Use the app as a personal notebook, a meeting note pad or a daily planner to make good memo/notes. PRICING StickMe Notes offers a 7 day free trial that comes with the subscription pack(s). There is a monthly & yearly pack. The user needs to subscribe to one of the packs to continue making daily notes & setting task reminders. TERMS OF USE: • There's a 7-day free trial that comes along with the subscription packs. • StickMe Notes offers 2 subscription packages - Annual @ $19.99 & Monthly @ $1.99. • All subscriptions are valid for at least 30 days. • Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase • Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period • Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal • Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase • Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication. Terms of Use - http://epiphanylabs.in/termsofuse/ Privacy Policy - http://epiphanylabs.in/privacy/ Sound effects obtained from https://www.zapsplat.com

About

Freenotes®

This AI-powered digital notepad transforms your device into an intelligent workspace. It offers handwriting recognition, PDF annotation, and AI assistance for summarizing documents, answering questions, and aiding in study. Organize notes, sketch ideas, and sync across devices for a seamless paperless experience.

Highlights
  • AI Summaries and Chat with PDFs
  • AI Homework and Study Helper
  • Handwritten Note Organization
  • OCR Search and PDF Annotation
  • Infinite Canvas and Shape Recognition
  • Active Recall Tape and Flashcards
  • Picture-in-Picture Video Note-Taking
Features
Read full description

Freenotes: Freedom to write, organize, and shine Transform your iPad into a powerful AI-driven digital notepad. Freenotes is an all-in-one workspace designed for students and professionals who want the natural feel of handwriting with the power of artificial intelligence. Whether you are annotating a complex PDF, planning your week, or recording a lecture, Freenotes helps you stay organized with seamless, free-form experience. AI Summary Quickly find key points and action items from long recordings or documents. AI Chat with PDF Ask questions directly to your imported files to get instant answers. AI Homework Helper Take a screenshot or upload a document (PDF or photo) to instantly get answers. AI Study Companion Clarify concepts, define terms, and check your handwritten notes for accuracy, turning passive review into active recall. Organize Notes Categorize and organize your notes by projects, courses, or topics, automating the organization of your note library. Quick Search via OCR Search through your handwritten scripts easily using accurate text recognition. PDF Annotation Highlight, underline, and add comments to documents with custom pen styles. Infinite Canvas Sketch ideas or mind map on a whiteboard that expands as you work. Apple Pencil Pro Support Experience low-latency writing that feels like real paper. Shape Recognition Turn rough drawings into clean, perfect geometric shapes for diagrams. Hyperlink Support Navigate through digital planners using clickable internal and external links. Active Recall Tape Hide specific parts of your notes to test your memory and study better. Paper Templates Access various backgrounds including grid, Cornell, and dotted paper. Flashcards Build study sets directly from your pages to help with exam prep. Seamless Video Learning Use Picture-in-Picture (PiP) to take notes while watching online videos (YouTube, lecture recordings), and instantly capture relevant screenshots directly into your notes. iCloud & Google Drive Sync Securely back up your digital notebook to access your data anywhere. Who is Freenotes For? Students: Create study guides, annotate lecture slides, and use the "Active Recall" tape tool for exam prep. Professionals: Record meetings, organize projects into folders, and sign PDF documents on the go. Creatives: Sketch ideas on an infinite whiteboard and export high-quality files to share with your team. Join over 1 million happy users transitioning to a smarter, paperless future. Try Freenotes today and experience the next era of AI note-taking. Privacy Policy: https://www.freenotetech.com/policy/ Terms of Service: https://www.freenotetech.com/terms/

Screenshots

Sticky Notes4 screens
Freenotes®4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Freenotes® at free with in-app purchases against Sticky Notes's subscription. Freenotes® also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 5 weeks) and rating (4.7 vs 4.4). Sticky Notes's advantage is review sentiment (72% vs 60%). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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

Both are free to download. Sticky Notes sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Freenotes® sells 18 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Freenotes® holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Freenotes® has 61K ratings behind it against 6K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 72% of Sticky Notes's written reviews are positive against 60% of Freenotes®'s, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sticky Notes ships an update every 5 weeks, Freenotes® weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 28, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Sticky Notes versus Freenotes®: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSticky NotesFreenotes®
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (6K ratings)4.7 (61K ratings) — better
Positive reviews71.8% of reviews — better59.6% of reviews
Number of ratings6K61K — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS14.0 — better15.5
Further details — not scored
Size166 MB704 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEpiphany LabsFree Notes AI Note Taker LTD

Customer experience

Sticky Notes

All ratings5,952 ratings
Positive84.0%
Neutral3.0%
Negative13.0%
Written reviews379 reviews
Positive71.8%
Neutral2.9%
Negative25.3%

Freenotes®

All ratings60,756 ratings
Positive92.0%
Neutral2.9%
Negative5.1%
Written reviews2,361 reviews
Positive59.6%
Neutral5.5%
Negative34.9%

User reviews

Sticky Notes

From 6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great app
  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 👍 Helpful reminders
  • 👍 Useful for organization
  • 👍 Customizable notes

Room to improve

  • 💰 Requires subscription
  • 🐛 Bugs and crashes
  • 🔒 Privacy concerns
  • 💰 Expensive
  • 🤔 Limited free version

Freenotes®

From 61K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Completely free app with no ads or in-app purchases
  • 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
  • 📚 Comprehensive note-taking features (layers, templates, stickers, etc.)
  • 🎨 Highly customizable (colors, fonts, covers, etc.)
  • 🗂️ Excellent organization tools (folders, notebooks, etc.)

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional issues with syncing and iCloud backup
  • 🖌️ Limited customization options for pen/pencil settings
  • 🔍 Lack of handwriting recognition and search
  • 🔗 No support for external links or clickable content
  • 🔀 Difficulty in rearranging or splitting notebooks

Bugs and requests

Sticky Notes

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Notes disappearing
  • Freezing and crashing
  • Formatting issues
  • Sync problems

Requested features

5 requests
  • More customization options
  • Improved sync and backup
  • Better widget functionality
  • Ability to rearrange notes
  • Longer note length

Freenotes®

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Occasional freezing or lagging when writing/drawing
  • Issues with the shape recognition tool not working as expected
  • Problems with the eraser tool not functioning properly

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add handwriting recognition and search functionality
  • Improve iCloud sync and backup capabilities
  • Expand pen/pencil customization options
  • Implement support for external links and clickable content
  • Introduce features for easier notebook organization and splitting

In-app purchases

12 purchases

Sticky Notes

Subscriptions7
  • One month subscription$1.991 Month
  • Monthly Pack with 7 Day Trial7 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Weekly Pack with 7 Day Trial7 Days trial$1.997 Days
Show 4 more
  • Three months subscription$4.993 Months
  • Half-Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$10.996 Months
  • One year subscription$15.991 Year
  • Annual Pack with 7 Day Trial7 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time5
  • Lifetime PlanFree
  • Unlimited Notes$0.99
  • Task Paper Notes$0.99
Show 2 more
  • Folder Pack$0.99
  • Bonanza Pack$3.99
18 purchases

Freenotes®

Subscriptions11
  • Freenotes Weekly Plus Member$1.997 Days
  • Freenotes Weekly Pro Member$6.997 Days
  • Premium Freenotes AI Weekly7 Days trial$6.997 Days
Show 8 more
  • Freenotes Yearly Plus Member$9.991 Year
  • Freenotes Yearly Plus Member1 Year trial2 variants$9.991 Year
  • Monthly Pro Member Promotion1 Month trial$19.991 Month
  • Freenotes Monthly Pro Member$19.991 Month
  • Premium Freenotes AI Monthly1 Month trial$19.991 Month
  • Freenotes Yearly Pro Member1 Year trial$39.991 Year
  • Yearly Pro Member Discount1 Year trial$39.991 Year
  • Freenotes Yearly Pro Member$39.991 Year
One-time7
  • Marketplace Content$1.99
  • Marketplace Content$2.99
  • Marketplace Content$3.99
Show 4 more
  • Marketplace Content$9.99
  • Marketplace Content$10.99
  • Freenotes Remove Ads$29.99
  • Freenotes Plus Member Lifetime$29.99

Questions

Is Sticky Notes free?
Sticky Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Freenotes® free?
Freenotes® is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Sticky Notes or Freenotes®?
Freenotes® is rated higher. Sticky Notes averages 4.4 out of 5 from 6K ratings, while Freenotes® averages 4.7 from 61K ratings.
Do Sticky Notes or Freenotes® have ads?
Neither Sticky Notes nor Freenotes® shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sticky Notes or Freenotes®?
Sticky Notes ships an update every 5 weeks, and Freenotes® weekly. Most recently, Sticky Notes was updated on September 28, 2026 and Freenotes® on September 30, 2026.

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