Comparison

Noteshelf vs ThumbDo

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

Head to head
About

Noteshelf

Create handwritten notes, annotate PDFs, and record audio with this app. It offers extensive customization for notebooks, a variety of writing tools, and AI-powered features for summarization and translation. Organize your thoughts and documents seamlessly.

Highlights
  • Handwritten note creation
  • PDF annotation and markup
  • Audio recording with notes
  • AI-powered summarization and translation
  • Customizable notebooks and templates
  • Handwriting to text conversion
  • Document scanning and import
Features
Read full description

Write. Plan. Study. Work. Create. Noteshelf 3 brings natural handwriting, powerful AI, PDF annotation, audio recording and planning together in one beautiful app for iPad, iPhone and Mac. Free to start. FOR STUDENTS • Take lecture and class notes with lifelike pens, pencils and highlighters • Annotate textbooks, worksheets, slides and PDFs • Record audio while you write, so you never miss a word • Use Noteshelf AI to summarize and explain what you've learned FOR PROFESSIONALS • Capture meeting notes and record important discussions • Mark up contracts, reports and presentations • Present your notes on an external display with a laser pointer • Export and share notes as PDFs or images in one tap FOR PLANNERS & JOURNALERS • 200+ templates for digital planners, journals, diaries and trackers • Plan your days, track goals and keep a personal journal • Decorate pages with stickers, photos and custom covers WRITE NATURALLY • A smooth, natural handwriting experience built for Apple Pencil • Write, type, draw and sketch on the same page • Turn handwriting into text and search your notes in 65 languages • Choose lined, dotted or grid paper in any color WORK WITH PDFs & DOCUMENTS • Import and annotate PDFs, Word documents, PowerPoint files and images • Highlight, mark up, write and draw directly on your documents • Scan paper documents with the built-in scanner NOTESHELF AI • Summarize handwritten pages in seconds • Explain difficult terms and concepts • Translate text into other languages • Generate notes on any topic RECORD & REMEMBER • Record lectures, meetings and ideas alongside your handwritten notes STAY ORGANIZED & SECURE • Folders, subfolders, tags, bookmarks and a table of contents • Link notebooks together to connect ideas • Lock notes with a password, Face ID or Touch ID • Sync across iPad, iPhone and Mac with iCloud • Automatic backup to Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox or WebDAV YOUR NOTES, YOUR WAY • Custom notebook covers and a toolbar you can rearrange • Presentation mode, dark mode and flexible page layouts FREE TO START Create up to 3 notebooks with core pens and paper for free. Upgrade to Noteshelf Premium for unlimited notebooks, all templates, handwriting recognition, auto-backup and 100 monthly AI credits. Write beautifully. Work smarter. Stay organized. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula

About

ThumbDo

Features
Read full description

概要 ThumbDo(サムドゥ)は、片手操作に特化した革新的なToDoアプリです。 通勤中の電車内や、荷物を持っている時でも、親指一本と直感的なジェスチャーで タスクをサクサク管理できます。 【主な機能】 - 片手で完結: 全ての操作が画面下部とジェスチャーで行えます。 - シェイクで切替: 端末を振るだけで、仕事・プライベート・買い物などのリストを瞬時に切り替え。 - ツイストで全削除: 完了したタスクを一括削除したい時は、端末を「ひねる」だけ。 - 直感的な入力: プラスボタンをタップして、すぐにタスクを追加。 - アラーム設定: タスクを長押しして、直感的なホイール操作でリマインダーを設定。 【こだわり】 - 美しいデザイン: ダークモードを基調とした、目に優しく洗練されたインターフェース。 - 触覚フィードバック: 操作するたびに心地よい振動が指先に伝わります。 - プライバシー重視: データは端末内に保存され、外部サーバーには送信されません。

Screenshots

Noteshelf4 screens
ThumbDo4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Noteshelf at Free against ThumbDo's $0.49. Noteshelf also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 weeks). ThumbDo's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 17). On iOS requirement 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

Noteshelf is free to download; ThumbDo costs $0.49 up front. Noteshelf sells 17 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. ThumbDo asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Noteshelf ships an update weekly, ThumbDo every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Noteshelf versus ThumbDo: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNoteshelfThumbDo
PriceFree — better$0.49
Rating4.6 (7K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews57.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings7K — better—
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size558 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFluid Touch Pte. Ltd.株式会社FF

Bugs and requests

Noteshelf

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Notebooks failing to open or sync correctly
  • Handwriting recognition not working as expected
  • Imported PDFs losing formatting or functionality
  • Unexpected loss of data or notes
  • Compatibility issues with older devices or operating systems

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add ability to create folders within notebooks
  • Improve page organization and navigation
  • Implement a more intuitive color picker and pen customization
  • Introduce a history/undo feature for linked pages
  • Add support for custom stickers and templates
Show 1 more
  • Optimize performance and reduce loading times

ThumbDo

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

17 purchases

Noteshelf

Subscriptions15
  • Noteshelf 3 Weekly Premium$4.997 Days
  • Noteshelf 3 Weekly Premium3 Days trial$4.997 Days
  • Noteshelf 3 Weekly Premium$7.997 Days
Show 12 more
  • Noteshelf3 Weekly Premium3 Days trial$7.997 Days
  • Noteshelf3 Monthly Premium$9.991 Month
  • Noteshelf3 Monthly Premium$19.991 Month
  • Noteshelf 3 Yearly Premium3 Days trial$19.991 Year
  • Noteshelf3 Yearly Premium3 Days trial$29.991 Year
  • Noteshelf3 Yearly Premium$39.991 Year
  • Noteshelf 3 Yearly Premium3 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Noteshelf Premium Yearly$49.991 Year
  • Noteshelf3 Yearly Premium3 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Noteshelf 3 Yearly Premium1 Month trial$69.991 Year
  • Noteshelf3 Yearly Premium$79.991 Year
  • Premium3 Days trial$99.991 Year
One-time2
  • Premium for Noteshelf 2 users$9.99
  • Noteshelf 3 Premium - Lifetime$14.99
None

ThumbDo

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Noteshelf free?
Noteshelf is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ThumbDo free?
ThumbDo costs $0.49, with no in-app purchases.
Do Noteshelf or ThumbDo have ads?
ThumbDo shows ads; Noteshelf does not.
Which is updated more often, Noteshelf or ThumbDo?
Noteshelf ships an update weekly, and ThumbDo every 2 weeks. Most recently, Noteshelf was updated on October 20, 2026 and ThumbDo on October 12, 2026.

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