Ideas Down Quickly vs Cortex
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Ideas Down Quickly
Capture thoughts instantly with this frictionless note-taking app. Organize ideas into categories and find them quickly. Prioritizes privacy with offline functionality and on-device storage.
- Zero-friction capture
- Simple organization
- Easy browsing
- Offline functionality
- On-device storage
- Open source
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Ideas slipping away? Ideas Down Quickly is built for speed. Capture thoughts the moment they appear—no setup, no friction. Organize effortlessly, find ideas fast, and come back to them whenever inspiration strikes. Fast by Design - Zero-friction capture: Create or select a category and start recording instantly. - Simple organization: Keep ideas neatly categorized with minimal effort. - Easy browsing: Quickly scan and revisit past thoughts. Privacy First - Works offline: No internet required. - Optional iCloud backup and restore: Disabled by default. - On-device storage: Your ideas never leave your device. - Full data control: Backup and restore anytime from within the app. - Open source: Fully transparent—see exactly how everything works.
Cortex
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Cortex is a private, local-first Markdown workspace for iPhone and iPad. Your notes are real files you control, with fast editing, links, search, and on-device intelligence. CORE FEATURES - Create and organize plain Markdown notes - Daily notes, tasks, templates, links, and backlinks - Keyword search, Smart Search, knowledge graph, and canvas - Save text and links from other apps with the Share Extension - Create, search, and summarize notes with App Shortcuts and Siri - Import, backup, and export your vault - Use Apple Speech for dictation in supported languages FREE - A complete local Markdown vault - Smart Search and knowledge graph - Encrypted notes - Basic dictation - Local attachments up to 5 MB - Import, backup, and export CORTEX PLUS - End-to-end encrypted sync across devices - Ask, Recall, Insights, and semantic Connections - Advanced dictation commands - On-device OCR and audio transcription - Attachments larger than 5 MB Cortex requires no account and contains no ads or tracking. AI inference and embeddings run on your device. If you enable sync, Cortex encrypts your notes before sending authenticated ciphertext to the managed relay or a relay you configure; the relay cannot read note contents. Terms of Use: https://cortex.jtrlabs.com/legal/terms.html Privacy Policy: https://cortex.jtrlabs.com/legal/privacy.html
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Ideas Down Quickly at none against Cortex's 3. Cortex's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 11 days). On price, ads, device support 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
Both are free to download. Cortex sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Ideas Down Quickly asks for nothing beyond the download.
Ideas Down Quickly ships an update every 11 days, Cortex every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Ideas Down Quickly | Cortex |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 2 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 11 days | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 23 MB | 132 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Travis Bumgarner | JTR Labs LLC |
In-app purchases
Ideas Down Quickly
No in-app purchases
Cortex
- Cortex Plus (Monthly)$4.991 Month
- Cortex Plus (Yearly)$39.991 Year
- Cortex Believer$99.99
Questions
Is Ideas Down Quickly free?
Is Cortex free?
Do Ideas Down Quickly or Cortex have ads?
Which is updated more often, Ideas Down Quickly or Cortex?
Other comparisons
