Comparison

PinNotes vs Spiel

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

Head to head
About

PinNotes

Features
Read full description

PinNotes is the smart, simple, and beautiful way to capture your thoughts—with powerful location tagging, smart categorization, and seamless note organization. Whether it’s a café you want to remember, a travel idea, or a spontaneous thought that popped into your head while walking, PinNotes lets you anchor your notes to where and when they matter most. With just a few taps, your thoughts become easy to find, sort, and revisit—visually and intuitively. Why PinNotes? PinNotes combines the simplicity of traditional notes with the power of spatial and visual memory. It’s perfect for travelers, creators, students, professionals—anyone who wants their ideas to live beyond just words. It’s not just about remembering what you thought—but where and why you thought it. PinNotes brings context back to your thoughts. Features You’ll Love: Rich Note Taking - Capture ideas quickly with clean, distraction-free text notes. - Add location pins to remember where you had that brilliant thought. - Organize notes with customizable tags and categories. View Notes on the Map - Instantly see where your notes were pinned. - Navigate your memories visually, exploring places tied to your thoughts. - Filter by tags to find exactly what you’re looking for. List or Map—You Choose - Prefer a classic list? We’ve got you. - Want to browse by location? Switch to map view anytime. - Sort and search to find what you need, fast. Share Notes From Anywhere - Found something interesting in another app? - Share it straight into PinNotes with our quick share extension. Widgets for Your Home Screen - Stay inspired by pinning your favorite notes directly on your home screen. - Just one tap to revisit or edit a note—right from the widget. Pin your life. Remember more. Stay organized with PinNotes.

About

Spiel

Features
Read full description

Just talk. Spiel turns it into a clean note - a title, a short summary, the main points, and a to-do list you can tick off. It all happens on your phone. Nothing is uploaded. No account. No subscription. WHO SAID WHAT Record a meeting, or bring in one you already have, and Spiel marks who said what - right on your phone. Rename "Speaker 1" to a real name and the summary uses it. No other iPhone app does this without sending your audio away. ASK YOUR NOTES "What did Tomas say about the rent?" Spiel answers from your own notes and tells you which one. Works with no signal too. WHAT ELSE IT DOES - Record as long as you need - even hour-long meetings get a full summary (Pro) - Open audio you already have - voice memos, interviews, lectures (Pro) - Understands 40+ languages, writes summaries in 15+ - Note styles for how you work - meeting notes, standup, 1:1, session notes, journal, ideas, to-do lists. Make your own too (Pro) - Long recording? A timeline breaks it into short chunks so it's easy to read (Pro) - Deleted by mistake? You have 30 days to get it back (Pro) - To-dos with dates can go to Reminders or Calendar - Search everything you've ever said - Heard a word wrong? Fix it, and the note sorts itself again - Start from the Lock Screen, Control Center, or the Action Button - Share a note as text, a PDF, or a nice card - or send them all at once Spiel writes down and sorts what was said. It's not medical, legal, or professional advice, and not a stand-in for your own judgment - check anything important against the transcript. If you're a clinician or a lawyer, your records are still yours. NOTHING LEAVES YOUR PHONE The transcription and the AI run on your iPhone's own chip. The audio is thrown away unless you keep it - and then it stays on the phone. No account. No servers. No tracking. PAY ONCE Spiel is free to try. Pro is a single purchase - no subscription, nothing to cancel. WHAT YOU NEED iPhone 15 Pro or newer, iOS 26, Apple Intelligence on. Bought Spiel 1.0? Pro is yours free - thanks for being early.

Screenshots

PinNotes4 screens
Spiel4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: PinNotes at every 4 days against Spiel's monthly. PinNotes also leads on iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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. PinNotes sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Spiel sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PinNotes ships an update every 4 days, Spiel monthly. Both last shipped on October 25, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 4 level
PinNotes versus Spiel: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPinNotesSpiel
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size33 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSih Han ChenKarolis Valatka

In-app purchases

2 purchases

PinNotes

Subscriptions2
  • Plus Access Monthly$0.991 Month
  • Plus Access Annual$9.991 Year
1 purchases

Spiel

One-time1
  • Spiel Pro$19.99

Questions

Is PinNotes free?
PinNotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Spiel free?
Spiel is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do PinNotes or Spiel have ads?
Neither PinNotes nor Spiel shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PinNotes or Spiel?
PinNotes ships an update every 4 days, and Spiel monthly. Most recently, PinNotes was updated on October 25, 2026 and Spiel on October 25, 2026.

Other comparisons