Comparison

Study Circle vs ClassNotes

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

Head to head
About

Study Circle

This app helps users boost motivation and make studying enjoyable by connecting them with friends. It offers a focus timer, progress visualization, and a community feature for mutual support and encouragement during study sessions.

Highlights
  • Virtual study circles with friends
  • Intuitive study timer
  • Send encouragement and support messages
  • Visualize study progress with charts
  • Track daily, weekly, and monthly progress
Features
Read full description

Searching for a study app? Look no further! Study Circle is the perfect app to boost your motivation and make studying enjoyable. Whether you're prepping for exams, learning new skills, or just need a productivity boost, Study Circle helps you stay focused and connected with your friends on the same journey. Unlock Your Study Potential: (1) Power of Community: Connect with your friends in real life and create your own virtual study circle! Share your study progress together, and cheer each other on. Motivation is contagious, and Study Circle makes it easy to stay inspired and accountable. (2) Intuitive Timer & Focus Mode: Beat procrastination with our easy-to-use study timer. Simply choose your subject, start the timer, and dive into focused study sessions. Break down your study time into manageable chunks for maximum efficiency. (3) Support & Encouragement: A little encouragement goes a long way. Easily send cheers and messages of support to your friends within the app. Celebrate milestones together and stay positive throughout your learning journey. (4) Visualize Your Progress: See your hard work pay off! Study Circle tracks your study records and displays them in colorful, easy-to-understand charts. Track your daily, weekly, and monthly progress to stay motivated and on track. Study Circle is perfect for: * Students preparing for exams. * Individuals working towards qualifications or skill development. * Anyone believe in the power of shared goals and positive reinforcement. Download Study Circle today and transform your study habits! Find your focus, achieve your goals, and enjoy the journey with your friends.

About

ClassNotes

Read full description

ClassNotes is a handwriting-first notebook for iPad, built so what you write is exactly what stays on the page. WRITE, DON'T FIGHT YOUR APP Your Apple Pencil ink is recorded exactly as you draw it — no smoothing, no reshaping, nothing "cleaned up" behind your back. Turn on live beautification only if you want your handwriting typeset as you go. SMART TOOLS, ON YOUR TERMS • Hold a shape steady and watch it snap into a clean line, circle, rectangle, or triangle — still adjustable until you lift the pencil • A real two-finger ruler for straight edges • Paint bucket fill that flows under your ink, not over it • Scribble to erase • Sticky tape, text boxes, and photo/file drops • Full undo/redo history, per page NOVA, YOUR AI STUDY PARTNER Circle anything — a diagram, an equation, a paragraph — and ask NOVA about it. It sees exactly what you circled, not just the text, so it can actually explain a graph or work through the diagram you drew. MADE FOR NOTEBOOKS 28 cover designs, 14 paper templates, custom paper and line colors, multiple page sizes and orientations, and a dedicated whiteboard page for freeform sketching. FIND ANYTHING Search across typed text and your own handwriting — even pages you never touched with a keyboard. STAYS IN SYNC Sign in with a free ClassNotes account (optional) and your notebooks, pages, and attachments sync automatically, or keep everything on your device without one. READ ANYWHERE The iPhone companion app is a fast, read-only viewer for your whole library — perfect for a quick look between classes. NOVA PLUS AND NOVA PRO (OPTIONAL) NOVA is free. NOVA Plus ($3.99 a month or $34.99 a year) gives you 30 answers a day from Anthropic's Claude, and NOVA Pro ($5.99 a month or $54.99 a year) gives you 50. After the day's Claude answers, NOVA carries on with the free model. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the period, and you can manage or cancel them in your App Store account settings. Free to use. No paywall on the notebook: every tool is free. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://tony11-dot.github.io/classmate-legal/privacy.html

Screenshots

Study Circle4 screens
ClassNotes3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Study Circle at none against ClassNotes's 4. Study Circle also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.0). ClassNotes's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 4 days vs fortnightly). On price 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

Both are free to download. ClassNotes sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Study Circle asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Study Circle ships an update fortnightly, ClassNotes every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Study Circle versus ClassNotes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStudy CircleClassNotes
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (50 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews90.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings50 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 4 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size188 MB19 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHikaru HanadaTony Aboud

In-app purchases

None

Study Circle

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

ClassNotes

Subscriptions4
  • NOVA Plus$3.991 Month
  • NOVA Pro$5.991 Month
  • NOVA Plus$34.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • NOVA Pro$54.991 Year

Questions

Is Study Circle free?
Study Circle is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ClassNotes free?
ClassNotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Study Circle or ClassNotes have ads?
Study Circle shows ads; ClassNotes does not.
Which is updated more often, Study Circle or ClassNotes?
Study Circle ships an update fortnightly, and ClassNotes every 4 days. Most recently, Study Circle was updated on October 27, 2026 and ClassNotes on October 29, 2026.

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