Comparison

TakeNote vs Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor

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

Head to head
About

TakeNote

Capture ideas effortlessly with a distraction-free, minimalist note-taking app. It supports Markdown, organizes notes with folders and tags, and syncs across Apple devices. Optional local AI features enhance formatting and search.

Highlights
  • Distraction-free minimalist design
  • Full Markdown support with live rendering
  • Organize with Folders, Tags, and Inbox
  • iCloud sync across Apple devices
  • Private by design, no data collection
  • Optional local AI for formatting and search
Read full description

TakeNote is a fast, elegant, and distraction-free way to capture your ideas. Built exclusively for Apple platforms with SwiftUI and SwiftData, it feels right at home on macOS and iOS. Why TakeNote? • Beautifully simple: A clean, minimal design that lets your words take center stage. • Markdown first: Write naturally in plain text with full Markdown support and live rendering. • Stay organized: Quickly sort notes into Folders, Tags, or your Inbox. Star, move, and search with ease. • Syncs with iCloud: Your notes are instantly available across all your Apple devices. • Private by design: TakeNote collects nothing and tracks nothing. Your notes are yours alone. • Power features: Use AI-powered formatting and smart search (macOS) when you want a boost—always optional, always local first. Perfect for Writers, thinkers, students, developers, or anyone who wants a fast, modern, and private note-taking app that just works. TakeNote is the notebook you’ll actually want to use every day.

About

Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor

Features
Read full description

Quirely is two full editors in one native app: real Markdown and real LaTeX. Neither is a bolt-on. If you only ever write Markdown, you get a complete, beautiful Markdown app — nothing hidden behind TeX. If you live in LaTeX, you get a genuine editor that compiles your projects — not a Markdown app with math sprinkled in. A CALMER READER Open a file and just read. Quirely renders clean, typographic Markdown — never forcing a split screen or a cramped editor when all you want is the page. Switch to Code, Edit, or Split only when you choose. Quick Look previews .md and .tex straight from Finder. MARKDOWN, RENDERED RIGHT - Mermaid diagrams: flowcharts, sequence diagrams, and more — live, and styled to your theme. - LaTeX math: inline and block equations, typeset beautifully. - Code blocks with syntax highlighting for dozens of languages. - Tables, task lists, footnotes, callouts, full GitHub-flavored Markdown. EDIT LIKE A PRO - Four modes: View, Code, Edit (block editor), and Split. - Word-processor formatting: bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, highlight, links, super/subscript — with theme-aware colors. - Drag-and-drop block editing: reorder paragraphs, lists, tables, and diagrams by hand. - Visual Mermaid editing: drag nodes, add edges, recolor — no syntax required. - Spreadsheet functions in tables: =SUM(A1:A3), =AVERAGE, =IF and more, with a full function keypad on Mac. - Collaborate over bonjour. Share a workspace or document and each collaborator can edit with their own cursor and view. Entirely private; no external servers A REAL LATEX EDITOR - Open and compile .tex — single files or full projects with a root document, chapters, and BibTeX. - The same four modes: read the typeset PDF, edit raw source with themed syntax highlighting, or use structured Edit mode — rendered paragraphs, equations, and tables you double-click to edit. - Chapters open inline in the root document and save back to their own files. - Tabular grid editor with the same spreadsheet formulas as Markdown tables. - SyncTeX jump between source and PDF; rendered diffs between versions (latexdiff). - Export LaTeX to PDF, HTML, or clean Markdown — cite/ref/figure numbering intact. - LaTeX stays classic black-and-white by default; apply your theme with one toggle. FEYNMAN DIAGRAMS Build QED/QCD diagrams visually — vertices, propagators, gauge bosons, loops — or paste tikz-feynman. Quirely renders them natively and derives the amplitude iℳ from the Feynman rules; edit the equation and get the diagram back. Free on every tier. MAKE IT YOURS Ten hand-tuned themes recolor every token — headings, code, links, tables, diagrams. Duplicate any theme and edit every color, font, and size. Switch live. A REAL WORKSPACE - Open a folder with file navigation, backlinks, and tabs. - Semantic search and exact full-text search. - Version history with rendered diffs. - Mark positions to insert text across documents. ON-DEVICE AI (Pro) Draft, rewrite, and synthesize across your notes with Apple Intelligence — on-device, no API fees, no account. EXPORT & SHARE Polished HTML or paginated PDF with your theme, math, and diagrams intact. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Everything runs on your device. Your files stay plain Markdown and LaTeX you own — no account, no lock-in. ONE APP, EVERY DEVICE Universal for Mac, iPad, and iPhone. One-time purchases — never a subscription. Write in Markdown or LaTeX. Read either beautifully.

Screenshots

TakeNote4 screens
Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: TakeNote at none against Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor's 2. Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs every 5 weeks). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. TakeNote asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

TakeNote ships an update every 5 weeks, Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
TakeNote versus Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTakeNoteQuirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (4 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings4 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS26.0 — better26.2
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB98 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAdam DrewReggie Fisher

In-app purchases

None

TakeNote

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor

One-time2
  • Quirely Markdowns Vault$3.99
  • Quirely Markdowns Editor$14.99

Questions

Is TakeNote free?
TakeNote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor free?
Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do TakeNote or Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor have ads?
Neither TakeNote nor Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor shows ads.
Which is updated more often, TakeNote or Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor?
TakeNote ships an update every 5 weeks, and Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor every 5 days. Most recently, TakeNote was updated on October 16, 2026 and Quirely Markdown+LaTeX Editor on October 24, 2026.

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