Comparison

Zealous Notes vs SpendQ Buddy

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

Head to head
About

Zealous Notes

Organize your thoughts with a versatile note-taking application. Link related notes, embed various media files directly, and enhance your text with markup tools. Features include searchable PDFs, video playback, and audio transcription.

Highlights
  • Stackable and linked notes
  • Inline PDF, video, and audio embedding
  • Searchable and mark-upable PDFs
  • Audio transcription
  • Hashtag organization
  • Marker mode with zoom
  • Calendar event linking
Features
Read full description

A lot like the Notes app you're used to, plus some added features: • Open several notes as a stack. - related notes can be linked together. • Subdivide your notes into Sections • PDFs, Video & Audio files attach inline, alongside your notes' other contents. - PDFs can be zoomed, scrolled, searched & marked-up. - Videos can play picture-in-picture or full-screen - Voice Notes audio files can be transcribed (with your permission) • Keep related notes together: - embed related notes as attachments - assign relatable #hashtags to your notes • Marker Mode - mark anywhere inside or outside of your notes - link markup with your highlighted or underlined text. - zoom-in for more precise drawings. • Link notes to your Calendar events (with your permission) • Case sensitive Find/Replace/Replace-All • Multiple Line-Spacing options See the included `Getting Started` guide for more, including several additional features available from within the app's Settings.

About

SpendQ Buddy

Features
Read full description

SpendQ Buddy is your all-in-one expense tracking companion that turns receipts into clear, actionable insights. Snap a photo or import PDF, or even record a quick voice receipt - our AI engine (powered by Google Vision, Vertex AI, and OpenAI API) extracts, itemises, and categorises every purchase so you don't have to. You can also have your receipts automatically tagged, with SpendQ Buddy applying only the tags it's confident about - while still letting you adjust or add tags manually anytime for better organisation and faster searches later. Key features * Anonymous login - Just tap once to start; no email, phone number, or password required. * Privacy first - Your images, PDFs, and audio uploads are processed securely and never stored. We don't log or retain sensitive information. * Flexible receipt input - Capture receipts with images, import PDFs, or audio recordings. Prefer manual? You can add receipts by hand too. * AI-powered categorisation - Automatically classify items into categories you define, with easy edits when you need them. * Smart receipt tagging - Automatically applies tags with high confidence, while giving you full control to edit or add your own for easier filtering and organisation. * Trends - Dive deeper into your data with detailed analysis for receipts and items to see exactly where your money goes. * Smart dashboards - See spending patterns, item breakdowns, and category totals enhanced with live budget progress and awards. * Themes & appearance - Choose light or dark mode and pick from multiple theme palettes to match your style. Simplify your finances with SpendQ Buddy and enjoy effortless, AI-driven expense management. SpendQ Buddy is free to use. An optional Premium upgrade is available for unlimited receipt capturing (via images, PDFs, or audio) and an ad-free experience. For details on how we protect your data, see our Privacy Policy.

Screenshots

Zealous Notes2 screens
SpendQ Buddy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: SpendQ Buddy at Free against Zealous Notes's $4.99. SpendQ Buddy also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 26.0). Zealous Notes's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and ads (none vs shown). On update cadence 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

SpendQ Buddy is free to download; Zealous Notes costs $4.99 up front. SpendQ Buddy sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Zealous Notes asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Zealous Notes ships an update every 8 days, SpendQ Buddy every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 5 level
Zealous Notes versus SpendQ Buddy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterZealous NotesSpendQ Buddy
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating4.3 (3 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 8 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaid—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS26.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size265 MB69 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJason BrowningNemanja Mihajlovic

In-app purchases

None

Zealous Notes

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

SpendQ Buddy

Subscriptions3
  • No Ads$0.991 Month
  • Premium Monthly Access$3.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly Access$44.991 Year
One-time1
  • Unlock 15 Extra Categories$1.99

Questions

Is Zealous Notes free?
Zealous Notes costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is SpendQ Buddy free?
SpendQ Buddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Zealous Notes or SpendQ Buddy have ads?
SpendQ Buddy shows ads; Zealous Notes does not.
Which is updated more often, Zealous Notes or SpendQ Buddy?
Zealous Notes ships an update every 8 days, and SpendQ Buddy every 2 weeks. Most recently, Zealous Notes was updated on November 3, 2026 and SpendQ Buddy on October 30, 2026.

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