Social Brain Contacts vs HelixNotes
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Social Brain Contacts
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'Social Brain Contacts' is a react-native expo app that utilizes research in social brain theory to provide tools to users to group their phone contacts into bins. This app aims to help users manage and understand their social relationships better. Social Brain Theory suggests that human social networks have a layered structure where each individual has around 5 intimate relationships (e.g. romantic partners), 15 best friends, 50 good friends, 150 friends, and so on. These layers, sometimes referred to as 'Dunbar's Numbers', are thought to be cognitively constrained by the size of our brains. 'Social Brain Contacts' takes this research into account to provide users with tools to sort their contacts, helping them manage and reflect upon their social relationships.
HelixNotes
A private, open-source Markdown note-taking app that keeps your data on your device. Organize notes with notebooks, tags, and wiki links, and utilize advanced features like mathematical notation and diagrams.
- Local Markdown storage
- Visual and source code editor
- Notebooks, tags, and wiki links
- Task management and calendar views
- KaTeX and Mermaid diagram support
- Version history and backups
- Optional WebDAV sync
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HelixNotes is a private, open-source Markdown notes app. Your notes remain standard Markdown files under your control. No account is required, and HelixNotes has no company-operated cloud. Write with a clean visual editor or switch to source mode when you want direct access to the Markdown. Organize your work with notebooks, tags, wiki links and full-text search. Features include: • Tasks collected from checklists across your notes • List and calendar views with priorities and due dates • Wiki links and an interactive graph view • Daily notes with a built-in calendar • Markdown tables, code blocks and syntax highlighting • KaTeX mathematical notation and Mermaid diagrams • Outline navigation and tag autocomplete • Version history and automatic backups • Light, dark and customizable themes • Optional WebDAV sync with your own server • Optional AI tools using your own provider Nothing leaves your device unless you enable a feature that connects to an external service. Your notes stay readable outside HelixNotes, without a proprietary format or platform lock-in. HelixNotes is free software released under the GNU AGPLv3. Its source code is publicly available on GitLab.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Social Brain Contacts at every 2 weeks against HelixNotes's monthly. On price, ads, in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Social Brain Contacts ships an update every 2 weeks, HelixNotes monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Social Brain Contacts | HelixNotes |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better |
| Number of ratings | — | 3 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | — | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 14.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 25 MB | 20 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Eric Swanson | Yuri Karamian |
In-app purchases
Social Brain Contacts
No in-app purchases
HelixNotes
No in-app purchases









