# Plaud vs Coolists

The clearest difference is ads: Plaud at none against Coolists's shown. Plaud also leads on chart position (#24 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 26.2). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Plaud sells 16 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month and Coolists sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Plaud ships an update weekly, Coolists every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and September 18, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Plaud | Coolists |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (22K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plaud-ai-note-taker/id6450364080/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **22K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 72.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 2 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Best chart rank | **#24** | — |
| Size | 220 MB | 8 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.0** | 26.2 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [PLAUD LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1826931562) | [Alberto del Rio](https://appshunter.io/developer/933629120) |

## What reviewers say

### Plaud

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plaud-ai-note-taker/id6450364080)

**Currently charting:** #24 Top Grossing · Productivity, #118 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

This app acts as an AI work companion, transforming spoken words into actionable notes and summaries. It supports various input methods, including audio, text, and images, and offers advanced AI processing for transcription, summarization, and insight generation. Seamlessly integrate captured information into your workflow across multiple platforms.

**Highlights:** Multimodal AI note capture, AI transcription in 112 languages, Customizable AI summaries, Ask Plaud for insights, Automated workflow integration, Cross-platform sync and storage

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (16)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pro Plan(Monthly) | $14.99 | per month |
| Pro Plan(Monthly) | $17.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Plan(Monthly) | $23.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Plan(Monthly) | $29.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Plan(Monthly) | $29.99 | per month |
| Pro Plan(Annually) | $99.99 | per year |
| Pro Plan(Annually) | $99.99 | per year |
| Pro Plan(Annually) | $99.99 | per year |
| Unlimited Plan(Annually) | $239.99 | per year |
| Unlimited Plan(Annually) | $239.99 | per year |
| Annual Unlimited | $239.99 | per year |
| Unlimited Plan(Annually) | $239.99 | per year |
| 120 Minutes Package | $2.99 | one-time |
| 600 Minutes Package | $12.99 | one-time |
| 3000 Minutes Package | $59.99 | one-time |
| 6000 Minutes Package | $99.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Accurate transcription and summarization
- 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly app
- 🔒 Secure and reliable device
- 💡 Innovative features like voice differentiation
- 🚀 Seamless integration with phone

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 App crashes and freezes
- 🔧 Buggy and unreliable software
- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 🔧 Inconsistent UI and language issues
- 🔋 Battery life concerns

**Reported bugs**

- Transcription errors, especially for non-English languages
- Exporting issues with audio and text files
- Inconsistent performance and app crashes
- Connectivity problems between device and app

**Requested features**

- Dark mode option
- Ability to pause and resume recordings
- Improved summary quality and customization
- Better organization and folder structure for notes
- Integration with other productivity tools


### Coolists

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/coolists/id6761004191)

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

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| No limits + No Ads | $2.99 | per month |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Plaud free?

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

### Is Coolists free?

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

### Do Plaud or Coolists have ads?

Coolists shows ads; Plaud does not.

### Which is updated more often, Plaud or Coolists?

Plaud ships an update weekly, and Coolists every 2 weeks. Most recently, Plaud was updated on October 2, 2026 and Coolists on September 18, 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.*