Comparison

Note vs HillNote

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

Head to head
About

Note

Capture and organize your thoughts with a powerful note-taking app. It offers advanced AI-powered search, offline access, and flexible formatting options. Your data is stored locally and synced via iCloud, ensuring privacy and easy management.

Highlights
  • AI semantic search
  • Offline-first functionality
  • Local file storage and iCloud sync
  • Comprehensive formatting options
  • Flexible image attachments
  • Customizable tables
  • Recoverable deleted files
Features
Read full description

ConniePad is a native macOS, iOS app to help user take & store note, journal, paper, or story. The main pros is it’s powerful searching, privacy, offline & native. Using AI semantic search, it help user search note not only by keywords (which user likely forget) but also by describing the context of the note. Your files & folders is stored on your machine only and will be sync by your iCloud. It stored just as files & folders so it is easier for user to handle, backup and share them without lock-in to the app. The app is designed to be offline-first, on both MacOS, iOS & iPadOS, which allow user use it anywhere, anytime and the responsive is instantly. The editor and tools is much easier to use and support more formatting, comprehensive editing that not only help user feel comfortable to write but able to express the idea. Moreover, it is highly compatible with content on the web so help user easier to copy paste from web to note than Apple Note. There are many features that we would like to highlight below: - Comprehensive formatting including highlight text - Flexible image attachments - Highly customisable table - Keyboard shortcuts for every command and action - Organize folders and subfolders - Sorted files - Recoverable deleted files - Quick search and creation - Handoff And more… Term & Condition: https://conniepad.com/term

About

HillNote

Features
Read full description

Hillnote is where you think. A local-first, markdown-native workspace that captures your work in AI-native formats - notes, plans, drafts, ideas, decisions. Built on plain markdown, stored on your device, paired with your desktop, and ready for the AI tools you already use. Built for builders, makers, writers, and small teams who think on the move and want their workspace to come with them. Write as you think, the way you think. A clean markdown editor designed for capture, not arrangement. A floating toolbar above the keyboard handles formatting; standard markdown shortcuts work out of the box. Quicknotes for everything in between. Tap + to capture an idea the moment it lands. Save and it's in your workspace; keep typing if you want to expand it. No friction between a thought and a file. Your thinking stays on your device. Every file lives locally as plain markdown. No rented database, no required account, no lock-in. Your work is yours from day one, and yours if you cancel. Free sync across iPhone, iPad, and desktop. The first 100MB syncs free -more than enough for years of notes. Capture on your phone, expand on your desktop, review anywhere. Talk to your knowledge base. Built-in chat reads your own files, edits them, creates new ones, and pulls context from your workspace. Upload images and have them read aloud. Auto mode picks the right model; switch manually when you want to. Supercharge your writing with Apple Intelligence. Native integration with Apple Intelligence writing tools - proofread, rewrite, reformat -via the AI button or text selection. Workspaces with all the context AI models need. Hillnote automatically generates context files (AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, document registries) so any AI tool you connect can navigate your workspace immediately - no setup, no plugins. Pairs with the agents you already work with. Claude, ChatGPT, Codex, Cursor, Cowork, Claude Code - connect via local or cloud MCP, or point them at the workspace folder directly. Plain markdown means no exports, no conversions. They read and edit the same files you do. Carry your tools, not just your notes. Build small HTML tools - pomodoro timers, day counters, focus checklists, anything else - that travel inside your workspace. Pin them as widgets. Your tools live next to the work they support. A different model. We separate what's a service from what's yours. You subscribe to the workspace and pay for cloud features (expanded sync, frontier AI, publishing, routines, BYO key) only when you need them. Free accounts include limited premium model usage. Your data stays on your device as plain markdown, always canonical, always portable. Start free. Sync free. Stay local. Add cloud when you outgrow it. Download Hillnote and bring your thinking with you.

Screenshots

Note4 screens
HillNote4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: HillNote at none against Note's 3. On price, update cadence, ads 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. Note sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. HillNote asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Note ships an update every 9 days, HillNote every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Note versus HillNote: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNoteHillNote
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 9 days — betterEvery 10 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.016.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size31 MB149 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperHuy LeRajath Bail

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Note

Subscriptions3
  • AI - Weekly plan3 Days trial$1.997 Days
  • AI - Monthly plan3 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • AI - Yearly plan3 Days trial$19.991 Year
None

HillNote

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Note free?
Note is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is HillNote free?
HillNote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Note or HillNote have ads?
Neither Note nor HillNote shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Note or HillNote?
Note ships an update every 9 days, and HillNote every 10 days. Most recently, Note was updated on October 1, 2026 and HillNote on October 16, 2026.

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