# Whisper Notes vs Private Notes

The clearest difference is price: Private Notes at Free against Whisper Notes's $7.99. Private Notes also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 66%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). Whisper Notes's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ratings volume (618 vs 11). On update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Private Notes is free to download; Whisper Notes costs $7.99 up front. Private Notes sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whisper Notes asks for nothing beyond the download.

Private Notes holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Whisper Notes has 618 ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of Whisper Notes's written reviews are positive against 100% of Private Notes's.

Whisper Notes ships an update every 2 weeks, Private Notes every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Whisper Notes | Private Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $7.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.7 (618 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/whisper-notes-speech-to-text/id6447090616/reviews) | **[5.0 (11 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/private-notes-ai-note-taker/id6752633041/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **618** | 11 |
| Positive reviews | 66.3% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Best chart rank | **#14** | — |
| Size | 508 MB | 13 MB |
| Requires iOS | **18.0** | 26.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [SmashMelon LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1895995887) | [App Incubator Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1527929929) |

## What reviewers say

### Whisper Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/whisper-notes-speech-to-text/id6447090616)

**Currently charting:** #14 Top Paid · Productivity, #140 Top Paid (US App Store)

This app provides accurate, on-device transcription of audio and video files in over 100 languages. It offers a secure, offline experience with no subscriptions or cloud uploads. Easily record or import files and export transcripts with timestamps.

**Highlights:** 100% offline transcription, Record voice or import audio/video, Supports 100+ languages, Export transcripts with timestamps, Lock screen widget for quick capture, Secure, on-device data storage

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and accurate transcription
- 🔒 Offline, private processing
- 👍 Simple and intuitive interface
- 💡 Affordable one-time purchase
- 🚀 Impressive speech recognition accuracy

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes or freezes with longer recordings
- 🐛 Inconsistent performance on older devices
- 🐛 Transcription errors or missing punctuation
- 🐛 Inability to edit transcribed text
- 🐛 Lack of batch export/import functionality

**Reported bugs**

- Recordings disappearing after transcription
- Transcription process getting stuck at 1%
- Crashes on certain iOS/iPadOS versions
- Inability to import audio files consistently

**Requested features**

- Add support for speaker diarization
- Implement real-time transcription mode
- Allow customization of hotkey/shortcut
- Improve integration with Apple Shortcuts
- Provide option to choose transcription model size


### Private Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/private-notes-ai-note-taker/id6752633041)

This app transcribes and summarizes audio recordings entirely on your device, ensuring complete privacy. It offers real-time transcription, AI-generated summaries of key points and action items, and supports multiple languages, all without requiring an internet connection or account.

**Highlights:** 100% on-device processing, Real-time transcription, AI-powered summaries, Multilingual support (10 languages), Offline functionality, Export in Markdown

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weekly Plan | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Monthly Plan | $4.99 | per month |
| Yearly Plan | $24.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Whisper Notes free?

Whisper Notes costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Private Notes free?

Private Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Whisper Notes or Private Notes?

Private Notes is rated higher. Whisper Notes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 618 ratings, while Private Notes averages 5.0 from 11 ratings.

### Do Whisper Notes or Private Notes have ads?

Neither Whisper Notes nor Private Notes shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Whisper Notes or Private Notes?

Whisper Notes ships an update every 2 weeks, and Private Notes every 3 weeks. Most recently, Whisper Notes was updated on October 19, 2026 and Private Notes on September 29, 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.*