Element Note vs Notes for iPad
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
Notes for iPad
Transform your iPad into a digital notebook with a natural writing experience using Apple Pencil. Organize your life with over 60 templates, add stickers, and sync across devices. Perfect for students, professionals, and creatives.
- Natural handwriting with Apple Pencil
- 60+ professionally designed templates
- Extensive sticker library and import options
- Unlimited notebooks with custom covers
- iCloud sync across devices
- Export notes as PDF
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Your perfect digital notebook. Notes for iPad Pencil Planner is a beautifully designed note-taking app that transforms your iPad into an endless paper canvas. Write naturally with Apple Pencil, plan your life with stunning templates, and organize everything in one place. Whether you're a student capturing lectures, a professional planning projects, or a creative sketching ideas — Notes for iPad is the essential tool to capture, organize, and bring your thoughts to life. YOUR ALL-IN-ONE DIGITAL NOTEBOOK • Write, sketch, and draw with realistic Apple Pencil support • Choose from multiple pen styles, colors, and thicknesses • Add typed text with customizable fonts and formatting • Mix handwriting with images and stickers seamlessly 60+ PROFESSIONALLY DESIGNED TEMPLATES • Daily planners and to-do lists to organize your day • Weekly and monthly calendars for long-term planning • Habit trackers to build better routines • Meal planners and grocery lists for healthy eating • Workout logs and fitness trackers to reach your goals • Budget sheets and expense trackers for financial control • Meeting notes and project planning templates • And many more — new templates added regularly STICKERS & PERSONALIZATION • 1000+ beautiful stickers to decorate your notes • Categories: productivity, wellness, celebrations, seasons • Import your own photos and custom stickers • Resize, rotate, and layer elements freely STAY ORGANIZED YOUR WAY • Create unlimited notebooks for different areas of life • Convenient sidebar for quick page navigation • Custom covers and colors for each notebook • Archive completed notebooks to keep things tidy SYNC & SHARE • iCloud sync keeps your notes updated across devices • Export any page or entire notebook as PDF • Share your notes via email, AirDrop, or any app DESIGNED FOR COMFORT • Beautiful dark mode for nighttime note-taking • Clean, distraction-free interface • Optimized specifically for iPad's large display • Smooth, lag-free performance Your ideas deserve a beautiful home. Notes for iPad combines the freedom of paper with the power of digital — giving you the perfect space to plan, create, and organize your life. Support: hello@britetodo.com Terms: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ A subscription or one-time purchase is required to access premium templates and features. Weekly, Yearly, and Lifetime Access options are available.
Screenshots
Verdict
Element Note and Notes for iPad both sit at 4.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 68% of Element Note's written reviews are positive against 40% of Notes for iPad's. Element Note also leads on ratings volume (2.6K vs 99) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, rating, update cadence 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 Notes for iPad sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 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 Notes for iPad. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Element Note has 2.6K ratings behind it against 99, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 68% of Element Note's written reviews are positive against 40% of Notes for iPad's.
Element Note ships an update fortnightly, Notes for iPad every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Element Note | Notes for iPad |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (2.6K ratings) — better | 4.6 (99 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 68.1% of reviews — better | 40.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2.6K — better | 99 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better | iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 129 MB | 14 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Soysauce Lab | Brite Technologies |
Customer experience
Element Note
Notes for iPad
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
Notes for iPad
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
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
Notes for iPad
- Notes for iPad - weekly$5.997 Days
- Weekly Plus$7.997 Days
- Monthly3 Days trial$17.991 Month
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- Notes for iPad for a year3 Days trial$19.991 Year
- Yearly3 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Lifetime Premium$39.99









