# OrigNotes vs OpenNotes

The clearest difference is rating: OrigNotes at 4.7 against OpenNotes's 4.3. OrigNotes also leads on review sentiment (85% vs 60%) and ratings volume (371 vs 35). OpenNotes's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

OrigNotes holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: OrigNotes has 371 ratings behind it against 35, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of OrigNotes's written reviews are positive against 60% of OpenNotes's.

OrigNotes ships an update every 2 weeks, OpenNotes every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | OrigNotes | OpenNotes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (371 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/orignotes/id6446162922/reviews)** | [4.3 (35 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/opennotes-notes-and-pdf-markup/id6771224004/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **371** | 35 |
| Positive reviews | **84.7% of reviews** | 60.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 97 MB | 44 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 15.1 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Hangzhou Future Writing Technology Co.,LTD.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1676398498) | [Mark Miller](https://appshunter.io/developer/1836539324) |

## What reviewers say

### OrigNotes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/orignotes/id6446162922)

Capture, organize, and develop your thoughts with a free digital note-taking app. It offers handwritten notes, PDF annotation, mind mapping, and multimedia integration, all optimized for a natural writing experience.

**Highlights:** Handwriting & Drawing with Apple Pencil, PDF Reading & Annotation, Mind Map creation, Handwriting to Text conversion, Powerful Search, Multimedia integration (images, audio, video), Customizable workspace

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### OpenNotes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/opennotes-notes-and-pdf-markup/id6771224004)

Create handwritten notes, import and annotate PDFs, and organize your thoughts with folders. This free, open-source app prioritizes privacy by keeping all your data local and on your device.

**Highlights:** Handwritten notes with Apple Pencil, PDF import and annotation, Folder-based organization, Add images and text, Local-first data storage, Export and share notes

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is OrigNotes free?

OrigNotes is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is OpenNotes free?

OpenNotes is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, OrigNotes or OpenNotes?

OrigNotes is rated higher. OrigNotes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 371 ratings, while OpenNotes averages 4.3 from 35 ratings.

### Do OrigNotes or OpenNotes have ads?

Neither OrigNotes nor OpenNotes shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, OrigNotes or OpenNotes?

OrigNotes ships an update every 2 weeks, and OpenNotes every 4 days. Most recently, OrigNotes was updated on October 30, 2026 and OpenNotes on October 31, 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.*