Comparison

#Sparks vs openote

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

Head to head
About

#Sparks

Features
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Transform your thoughts into organized conversations with Sparks - the note-taking app that thinks like you do. Sparks revolutionizes how you capture and organize ideas by combining the familiar chat interface you love with powerful hashtag organization. Simply talk to your hashtags and get your chaotic sparks of inspiration automatically organised into usable notes! HASHTAG MAGIC Add #tags anywhere in your notes Talk to your tags. Notes automatically organize by topics Multiple tags per note for flexible organization No rigid folder structures - just natural tagging CONVERSATION-STYLE INTERFACE Notes appear as chat bubbles - familiar and intuitive Capture thoughts as quickly as sending a message Chronological timeline keeps your thinking process clear Add images just like in your favorite messaging apps SMART SEARCH & DISCOVERY Search both content and hashtags instantly Related tag suggestions help you discover connections Filter by multiple tags to find exactly what you need Quick access to all your organized conversations MOBILE-FIRST DESIGN Optimized for quick note capture on-the-go Swipe actions for easy editing and deletion Long-press to select multiple notes Responsive design that works on any device EFFORTLESS ORGANIZATION No manual filing or complex folder structures Tags automatically create topic-based conversations View all notes in #all or filter by specific interests Recent and frequently used tags for quick access Perfect for: Students organizing study notes by subject Professionals capturing meeting insights Creatives collecting inspiration and ideas Anyone who wants structured notes without the hassle Why Sparks? Traditional note apps force you to think about organization before you capture your thoughts. Sparks lets you focus on your ideas first - the organization happens naturally through hashtags. It's like having a personal assistant who knows exactly where everything belongs. Download Sparks today and experience note-taking that adapts to how you actually think.

About

openote

Features
Read full description

openote โ€” Markdown notes with free sync. No account. No subscription. Other note apps charge a yearly fee just to sync your own devices. openote syncs iPhone, iPad and Mac through your iCloud Drive โ€” free, with no account to create. Your notes stay plain .md files. Open them in the Files app or any Markdown editor, and take them anywhere. No proprietary format, no lock-in. --- WHY OPENOTE Free iCloud sync Notes sync through iCloud Drive on your own Apple account. No sign-up, no subscription. Plain Markdown files Every note is a standard .md file. Front matter, checklists and [[wiki links]] are kept exactly as you wrote them. Safe across devices If a note changes on another device while you're editing, openote keeps both versions instead of silently overwriting one. Your last words are saved even if you switch apps or quit right away. Mermaid diagrams Flowcharts, sequence diagrams and more render live from Markdown. Start from a template, pinch to zoom, tap to edit the code. Rendering works offline. On-device AI On devices with Apple Intelligence, summarize a note, get tag suggestions, or turn a sentence into a diagram. It runs entirely on your device โ€” nothing is sent to a server. --- FEATURES Editor - Rich Markdown editing, with a source mode when you want the raw text - Checklists, tables and code blocks - Auto-save - Word and character count Organize - Folders and #tags with autocomplete - [[Wiki links]] between notes - Full-text search in English, Korean and Japanese Sync & files - iPhone, iPad and Mac via iCloud Drive - Browse your notes in the Files app - Export a note as PDF Shortcuts & Siri - Create, open and search notes from Shortcuts and Siri - Notes appear in Spotlight search --- PRIVACY - No account, no email - No tracking - Your notes stay in your iCloud and on your devices - AI runs on your device Everything is free. openote has no in-app purchases. openote โ€” Your notes, your files.

Screenshots

#Sparks2 screens
openote4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: #Sparks at every 3 days against openote's every 5 weeks. #Sparks also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

#Sparks ships an update every 3 days, openote every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences ยท 4 level
#Sparks versus openote: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameter#Sparksopenote
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 3 days โ€” betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 โ€” better17.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size51 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJAKUB ZAJฤ„C DORADCA PODATKOWYWooyoung Kim

In-app purchases

None

#Sparks

No in-app purchases

None

openote

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is #Sparks free?
#Sparks is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is openote free?
openote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do #Sparks or openote have ads?
Neither #Sparks nor openote shows ads.
Which is updated more often, #Sparks or openote?
#Sparks ships an update every 3 days, and openote every 5 weeks. Most recently, #Sparks was updated on October 7, 2026 and openote on October 14, 2026.

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