Notes for iPad vs Acto|Handwritten Planner
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Notes for iPad
Transform your iPad into a digital notebook with a natural writing experience using Apple Pencil. Organize your life with over 60 templates, add stickers, and sync across devices. Perfect for students, professionals, and creatives.
- Natural handwriting with Apple Pencil
- 60+ professionally designed templates
- Extensive sticker library and import options
- Unlimited notebooks with custom covers
- iCloud sync across devices
- Export notes as PDF
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Your perfect digital notebook. Notes for iPad Pencil Planner is a beautifully designed note-taking app that transforms your iPad into an endless paper canvas. Write naturally with Apple Pencil, plan your life with stunning templates, and organize everything in one place. Whether you're a student capturing lectures, a professional planning projects, or a creative sketching ideas — Notes for iPad is the essential tool to capture, organize, and bring your thoughts to life. YOUR ALL-IN-ONE DIGITAL NOTEBOOK • Write, sketch, and draw with realistic Apple Pencil support • Choose from multiple pen styles, colors, and thicknesses • Add typed text with customizable fonts and formatting • Mix handwriting with images and stickers seamlessly 60+ PROFESSIONALLY DESIGNED TEMPLATES • Daily planners and to-do lists to organize your day • Weekly and monthly calendars for long-term planning • Habit trackers to build better routines • Meal planners and grocery lists for healthy eating • Workout logs and fitness trackers to reach your goals • Budget sheets and expense trackers for financial control • Meeting notes and project planning templates • And many more — new templates added regularly STICKERS & PERSONALIZATION • 1000+ beautiful stickers to decorate your notes • Categories: productivity, wellness, celebrations, seasons • Import your own photos and custom stickers • Resize, rotate, and layer elements freely STAY ORGANIZED YOUR WAY • Create unlimited notebooks for different areas of life • Convenient sidebar for quick page navigation • Custom covers and colors for each notebook • Archive completed notebooks to keep things tidy SYNC & SHARE • iCloud sync keeps your notes updated across devices • Export any page or entire notebook as PDF • Share your notes via email, AirDrop, or any app DESIGNED FOR COMFORT • Beautiful dark mode for nighttime note-taking • Clean, distraction-free interface • Optimized specifically for iPad's large display • Smooth, lag-free performance Your ideas deserve a beautiful home. Notes for iPad combines the freedom of paper with the power of digital — giving you the perfect space to plan, create, and organize your life. Support: hello@britetodo.com Terms: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ A subscription or one-time purchase is required to access premium templates and features. Weekly, Yearly, and Lifetime Access options are available.
Acto|Handwritten Planner
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Acto is a handwritten planner built for iPad. Open it like a paper notebook, write your goals, plan your week by hand, and find what you wrote later — across every page(premium). WHAT IS ACTO? A digital planner where every page is yours to draw on. Five sections work together: a Cover you sign yourself, a Projects index, one Detail page per project, a weekly two-page spread that updates with your calendar, and free Notes pages you can add anywhere. DESIGNED FOR APPLE PENCIL ・Pressure, tilt, and hover support ・Markup tool picker appears the moment your Pencil touches the page ・Palm rejection follows your iPadOS system setting ・Pencil 2 double-tap and Pencil Pro squeeze respect your system shortcut ・Undo, redo, lasso select, and clear page from the toolbar YOUR PLANNER, FOR YEARS The Cover and weekly spreads read your device's date, so the same planner carries from 2026 into 2027 and beyond. No yearly re-purchase, no migration, no "2026 edition" expiring on you. SEARCH YOUR HANDWRITING (PREMIUM) On-device OCR reads Japanese and English handwriting after you leave a page, then lets you search by word, date range, or section. Even rough notes become findable. Recognition runs locally with Apple's Vision framework — your handwriting never leaves your device. ICLOUD SYNC Sign in to iCloud and your planner appears on every iPad with the same Apple ID. Your data stays in your own iCloud — only you can see it. FOUR LIQUID GLASS THEMES (PREMIUM) Sand, Fog, Graphite, and Linen. Free users start with one theme; Premium unlocks all four to match your week or your room. EXPORT WHEN YOU NEED TO PDF export collects every page in order. Single pages export as PNG. Share via Files, Mail, AirDrop, or any Share Sheet target. PLANS ・Free: 3 projects, 10 pages, one theme, PDF / PNG export, every handwriting tool. ・Premium (¥600/month or ¥4,800/year): unlimited pages, all themes, Monthly View, OCR search, every sticker. ・Content Store: stickers WHO IS ACTO FOR? ・People who plan and journal by hand and want their iPad to feel like paper ・Founders, freelancers, and students tracking several projects in parallel ・Apple Pencil users who want a structured planner alongside the note-taking apps they already use ・Bullet journal practitioners who want digital search and sync on top of paper-style layouts PRIVACY Handwriting recognition runs on-device. iCloud sync uses your own iCloud account — only you can access your notes. Acto does not collect, sell, or analyze your notes. REQUIREMENTS iPad running iPadOS 18 or later. Apple Pencil recommended (1st generation, 2nd generation, USB-C, or Pencil Pro). LANGUAGES Japanese, English. TERMS OF USE (EULA) https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Acto|Handwritten Planner at every 4 days against Notes for iPad's every 2 weeks. Notes for iPad's advantage is iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). 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
Both are free to download. Notes for iPad sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per 7 days and Acto|Handwritten Planner sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Notes for iPad ships an update every 2 weeks, Acto|Handwritten Planner every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Notes for iPad | Acto|Handwritten Planner |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (367 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 40.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 367 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPad | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 14 MB | 5 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Brite Technologies | Matsu LLC. |
In-app purchases
Notes for iPad
- Notes for iPad - weekly$5.997 Days
- Weekly Plus$7.997 Days
- Monthly3 Days trial$17.991 Month
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- Notes for iPad for a year3 Days trial$19.991 Year
- Yearly3 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Lifetime Premium$39.99
Acto|Handwritten Planner
- Acto Premium - monthly$3.991 Month
- Acto Premium - yearly$29.991 Year
- Basic Stickers$1.99
- Monthly View$1.99
Questions
Is Notes for iPad free?
Is Acto|Handwritten Planner free?
Do Notes for iPad or Acto|Handwritten Planner have ads?
Which is updated more often, Notes for iPad or Acto|Handwritten Planner?
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