Element Note vs Noteshelf 3
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Element Note
This app offers a distraction-free digital notebook experience with advanced handwriting, PDF annotation, and sketching capabilities. It features unique brushes, a powerful rendering engine, and smart organization tools. Sync your notes across devices and collaborate with others seamlessly.
- Unique handwriting brushes
- Smooth drawing engine
- PDF annotation
- Text, shape, and image attachments
- On-device OCR search
- Smart dark mode
- iCloud sync and collaboration
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Element Note is the next-gen note taking, PDF annotation, and light sketching app. We stripped down the unnecessaries and carefully polished the elemental functions for a digital notebook. With a modern look and powerful features, Element Note strives to provide an elegant writing space free of distractions. Features: Unique brushes - Pencil (HB Pencil, Mechanical Pencil) - Pen (Pen, Line Pen, Fountain Pen) - Brush (Art Brush, Round Brush) - Marker (Marker, Round Marker) Best-in-class note rendering engine - Smooth and fluid drawing powered by Metal technology - Support gradient ink for more expressive notes Powerful attachments - Text - Shape - Sticker - Image Universal Search - Search through your PDF & Handwritting using on device OCR Smart Darkmode - Smartly adapts all of your notes to the system darkmode without changing the paper or stroke colors. iCloud Sync & Collaboration - Sync via your personal iCloud (No data is passed to our server) - Collaborate through iCloud collaboration for up to 100 users. Desktop class organization - Intuitive multi-select drag and drop gesture to organize your notes or pages Element Note is free to try for up to 3 notes. Unlock the full app with an in app purchase to create unlimited notes. Terms and Conditions https://elementnote.app/terms Privacy Policy https://elementnote.app/privacy
Noteshelf 3
Create handwritten notes, annotate PDFs, and record audio with this app. It offers extensive customization for notebooks, a variety of writing tools, and AI-powered features for summarization and translation. Organize your thoughts and documents seamlessly.
- Handwritten note creation
- PDF annotation and markup
- Audio recording with notes
- AI-powered summarization and translation
- Customizable notebooks and templates
- Handwriting to text conversion
- Document scanning and import
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Transform your note-taking with Noteshelf! Create stunning handwritten notes, markup PDFs, and record audio, all powered by AI. Noteshelf is designed for students, teachers, and anyone who loves to take notes. Organize your thoughts and ideas like never before. Why You'll Love It - Craft beautiful handwritten notes with realistic pens and highlighters. - Personalize notebooks with custom covers and a customizable toolbar. - Choose from 200+ exclusive templates for planners, journals, and more. Write, Type, Draw, or Record - Convert handwriting to text in 65 languages. - Add fun emojis and stickers to personalize your pages. - Record audio as you take notes, perfect for lectures and meetings. - Use advanced image editing features. Paperless Organization - Organize notebooks into folders and subfolders. - Bookmark important pages and create a table of contents. - Use tags to quickly categorize and find your notes. - Create links between notebooks to connect ideas. Annotate Like a Pro - Import and annotate PDFs, DOCs, PPTs, and images. - Use the built-in document scanner to digitize physical documents. - Export and share your notes as images and PDFs. Noteshelf AI - Generate handwritten notes on any topic. - Summarize pages, translate text, and explain complex terms. Keep Your Notes Safe - Secure your notes with passwords, Face ID, or Touch ID. - Access your notes across iPad, iPhone, and Mac with iCloud sync. - Auto-backup to Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, and WebDAV. Share Ideas with Presentation Mode - Project your notes via external display. - Use the Laser Pointer to highlight key points. Go Premium for unlimited notebooks, handwriting recognition, auto-backup, and 100 monthly AI credits. Download Noteshelf today and take your note-taking to the next level! Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Noteshelf 3 at every 5 days against Element Note's fortnightly. Element Note's advantage is review sentiment (68% vs 55%). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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
Both are free to download. Element Note sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $3.49 per year and Noteshelf 3 sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Element Note against 4.6 for Noteshelf 3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2.6K and 6.7K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 68% of Element Note's written reviews are positive against 55% of Noteshelf 3's.
Element Note ships an update fortnightly, Noteshelf 3 every 5 days. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.
| Parameter | Element Note | Noteshelf 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (2.6K ratings) | 4.6 (6.7K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 68.1% of reviews — better | 55.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2.6K | 6.7K — better |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Every 5 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 129 MB | 462 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Soysauce Lab | Fluid Touch Pte. Ltd. |
Customer experience
Element Note
Noteshelf 3
User reviews
Element Note
From 2.6K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Smooth handwriting experience
- 💡 Customizable pens and colors
- 👍 Clean and intuitive interface
- 🎨 Gradient and gradient brush tools
- 📚 Great for journaling and note-taking
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
- 🔍 Search function not working
- 🖼️ Issues with image handling and export
- 🔀 Difficulty switching between pen and eraser
- 🔑 Lack of password/locking feature for notes
Noteshelf 3
From 6.7K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Smooth handwriting experience
- 📚 Versatile note-taking features
- 🎨 Customizable templates and covers
- 🔍 Accurate handwriting recognition
- 💻 Seamless integration across devices
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
- 🔄 Sync issues between devices
- 🔒 Concerns about privacy and data security
- 🔍 Unreliable search functionality
- 🔧 Buggy or missing features from previous versions
Bugs and requests
Element Note
Reported bugs
4 issues- Notes and files randomly disappearing
- Inconsistent behavior when using the floating keyboard
- Handwriting recognition not working as expected
- Exported PDFs losing formatting and background colors
Requested features
6 requests- Ruler tool
- Ability to resize/rotate selections
- Improved text editing and formatting
- Presentation mode for connecting to displays
- Ability to import/export multiple files at once
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- Seasonal or custom sticker packs
Noteshelf 3
Reported bugs
5 issues- Notebooks failing to open or sync correctly
- Handwriting recognition not working as expected
- Imported PDFs losing formatting or functionality
- Unexpected loss of data or notes
- Compatibility issues with older devices or operating systems
Requested features
6 requests- Add ability to create folders within notebooks
- Improve page organization and navigation
- Implement a more intuitive color picker and pen customization
- Introduce a history/undo feature for linked pages
- Add support for custom stickers and templates
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- Optimize performance and reduce loading times
In-app purchases
Element Note
- Element Note Yearly$3.491 Year
- Element Note Yearly$4.991 Year
- Lifetime Launch Special$4.99
- Lifetime$9.99
- Lifetime$14.99
Noteshelf 3
- Noteshelf 3 Weekly Premium$4.997 Days
- Noteshelf 3 Weekly Premium3 Days trial$4.997 Days
- Noteshelf 3 Weekly Premium$7.997 Days
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- Noteshelf3 Weekly Premium3 Days trial$7.997 Days
- Noteshelf3 Monthly Premium$9.991 Month
- Noteshelf3 Monthly Premium$19.991 Month
- Noteshelf 3 Yearly Premium3 Days trial$19.991 Year
- Noteshelf3 Yearly Premium3 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Noteshelf3 Yearly Premium$39.991 Year
- Noteshelf 3 Yearly Premium3 Days trial$39.991 Year
- Noteshelf Premium Yearly$49.991 Year
- Noteshelf3 Yearly Premium3 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Noteshelf 3 Yearly Premium1 Month trial$69.991 Year
- Noteshelf3 Yearly Premium$79.991 Year
- Premium3 Days trial$99.991 Year
- Premium for Noteshelf 2 users$9.99
- Noteshelf 3 Premium - Lifetime$14.99








