Comparison

Citer vs Noteback

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

Head to head
About

Citer

Write academic papers in sections on the go, manage references, and auto-generate citations and reference lists. Supports APA and MLA formats, with PDF and RTF export options.

Highlights
  • Section-based paper writing
  • Online reference search and import
  • Auto-generated citations and reference lists
  • APA and MLA format support
  • PDF and RTF export
  • Reference library for sharing
  • Image insertion
Read full description

Citer is a scholarly academic writing app for students & professionals that lets you write an academic paper in sections on the go with ease. A concise & precise reference management system that lets you search & add references and auto-generates citations & reference lists. LOOSE LEAF PAPER - Write one section at a time with each section as big and small as you like e.g. title page, abstract, author note, heading levels, etc. - Figure section lets you add an image such as a chart, graph, photo, drawing, or other illustration itself from the photo library. - You can also rearrange sections simply by drag & drop so that e.g. section 4 becomes section 1. SEARCH REFERENCE & ADD - Search for references online & add it to a paper and it auto-generates the reference entries and citations for you. CONCISE REFERENCE & PRECISE CITATION MACHINE - A concise reference entry which includes the four elements of author, date, title and source and answers the elemental question about a work of Who, When, What & Where. - Contributor element appears only where applicable e.g. for edited book chapters & TV Episode. - You can add a reference manually too and tweak it further and it auto-generates precise citation for you in a specific citation style. AUTOMATIC IN-TEXT CITATION - Auto-generates parenthetical and narrative in-text citation of single or multiple works with further choice of first or subsequent mention. - For APA, you can cite not just pages, but paragraphs, sections, tables, chapters, section names, slide numbers, etc. REFERENCE LIBRARY - A common reference library that lets you share references across papers and automatically adds a reference list section to your paper. REFERENCE TYPES - Comprehensive coverage of all reference types which includes textual works such as periodicals, books, edited book chapters, reports, conference session & presentations, and dissertations & theses. - Data sets, software, and tests. - Audiovisuals such as films or videos, tv series, tv episode and webinar; audio works such as songs and podcast episodes; visual works such as infographic, map and photo. - Online media such as social media and web pages. PDF MAKER - Automatically removes widow & orphan lines and generates PDF for you with reference list in a specific paper format. POWERFUL PAPER FORMATTING - Powerful paper formatting features such as paragraph indentation & alignment, heading levels, cases, superscript, etc. along with basic formatting features such as style, bullet, etc. - A choice of all of Apple's system fonts to choose from, e.g. Arial, Times New Roman, etc. EXPORT TO RTF - Export paper to RTF which retains all the formatting and includes the reference list which you can import & edit in Microsoft Word or Apple Pages app. - Export to MS DOC format only on the Mac. PAPER FORMAT - Citer covers APA & MLA format right now and other paper formats will be added soon. AUTOMATIC iCLOUD SYNC & STORE - Automatically stores all your papers and app data safely on iCloud and syncs across all your devices. ADAPTIVE SPLIT-VIEW USER INTERFACE - Citer is a universal app available on iOS, iPadOS & macOS and adapts its split-view design on the fly so that user gets best & native experience on that platform. Monthly & yearly subscription with free trial period of 3 days for monthly and 7 days for yearly with full access to all features of the app. Requires an active subscription without which you can only read & not edit. Citer's powerful loose-Leaf paper makes writing on the go on a mobile device such as an iPhone, iPad or MacBook a breeze. Whether you are a student writing an essay or a professional writing a manuscript for publication, Citer is the app for writing an academic paper on the go with ease and its concise & precise reference management system will help you understand the work better, provide appropriate credit and avoid plagiarism. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Noteback

Features
Read full description

Noteback is a private journal for everything worth keeping: quotes from books, lines you hear, ideas on the go. Capture something in seconds, and Noteback sends it back to you later, at a time you choose or at a surprise moment. A morning spark, an evening reflection: your inspiration returns when you need it. FEATURES • Scan text from a book page or a screen: take a photo, highlight the exact passage you want, and save it as a quote. The text is read on your phone, nothing is uploaded. • Write in seconds, no folders, no friction. Add an author and a source if you like. • Import the quotes you already have: Kindle highlights, CSV files or plain text, with a preview before anything is saved. • Reminders: your entries come back as notifications, every day or only the days you pick. • Share any entry as a clean square image. • Search your whole Collection by word, author or tag. • Light and dark mode, in English and French. FREE AND UNLIMITED • Free: your first 20 entries, with one scheduled reminder and the text scanner. • Unlimited: a single one-time purchase, no subscription. Unlimited entries, unlimited reminders, and import. Your notes stay private. Sign in with email, Google or Apple. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy: https://api.thawtback.app/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://thawtback-production.up.railway.app/terms

Screenshots

Citer4 screens
Noteback4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Noteback at every 6 days against Citer's every 2 weeks. Citer's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and 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

Both are free to download. Citer sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and Noteback sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Citer ships an update every 2 weeks, Noteback every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Citer versus Noteback: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCiterNoteback
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.016.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB45 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBetyl Pty LtdROMAIN PIGNOUX - BERTANDEA

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Citer

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Subscription3 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Yearly Subscription7 Days trial$24.991 Year
1 purchases

Noteback

One-time1
  • Unlimited$4.99

Questions

Is Citer free?
Citer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Noteback free?
Noteback is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Citer or Noteback have ads?
Neither Citer nor Noteback shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Citer or Noteback?
Citer ships an update every 2 weeks, and Noteback every 6 days. Most recently, Citer was updated on October 26, 2026 and Noteback on October 25, 2026.

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