Comparison

Mastery vs BeNotes

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

Head to head
About

Mastery

Features
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Mastery β€” Stop feeding distractions. Start building power. Most people don’t have a time problem. They have a standards problem. You say you want discipline, then hand your day to social apps, random scrolling, and mood-based decisions. Mastery is built to end that cycle. Mastery turns your habits and skills into a score-driven progression system with real consequences, real momentum, and real proof that you’re changing. The killer feature: Non-Negotiable Mode This is where Mastery separates itself from soft productivity apps. Set a habit as non-negotiable, choose distracting apps, and those apps stay locked until you complete the habit. No fake β€œnudges.” No gentle reminders. If the work isn’t done, the distractions stay closed. You can configure it your way: β€’ Set global blocked apps for your full discipline system β€’ Add extra blocked apps to specific habits β€’ Choose active weekdays β€’ Run all-day locks or custom time windows If you keep breaking promises to yourself, this is the feature that stops the bleed. Free vs Premium The free version of Mastery allows tracking up to 3 habits or skills. With a Mastery subscription, you can unlock unlimited habit and skill tracking, allowing you to build a complete discipline system around everything that matters to you. What you get with Mastery β€’ Habit + skill tracking in one clean system β€’ Daily completions with clear limits and progress states β€’ Mastery Points for actions that move your life forward β€’ Leveling system and chapter progression (100 completions per chapter) β€’ Mission system that rewards consistency and challenge milestones β€’ Daily check-ins for momentum β€’ Journaling for reflection and self-accountability β€’ Full journey timeline of completions, check-ins, missions, and level-ups β€’ Reminder system with scheduling options β€’ Home screen widget support β€’ Deep links for fast access to specific habits How it works 1. Create your habits and skills. 2. Mark the most important ones as non-negotiable. 3. Block your biggest distractions. 4. Execute daily, earn points, level up, repeat. Simple structure. High standards. No excuses. Who Mastery is for β€’ People tired of β€œstarting over on Monday” β€’ Builders, athletes, creators, students, operators β€’ Anyone ready to trade comfort for progress If you want another cute habit tracker, this isn’t it. If you want a system that pushes you to keep promises to yourself, welcome to Mastery. Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

BeNotes

Features
Read full description

BeNotes is a minimal note-taking app that helps you organize thoughts naturally by creating notes within notes. There is no need to create folders or plan a structure in advance. Start with a note on Home, then add child notes whenever you need to break an idea into smaller parts. Intuitively organize travel plans, projects, study notes, daily thoughts, and anything else with multiple levels. Key Features β€’ Add child notes inside any note β€’ Automatically use the first line as the title β€’ Search notes at every level from Home β€’ Automatically continue numbered and bulleted lists β€’ Automatically convert -> and >> into β†’ β€’ Shake your iPhone to undo a deletion β€’ Store notes locally by default β€’ Optional private iCloud sync Creating and searching notes is free. With an annual subscription, you can store your notes in your private iCloud and sync them across iPhones signed in to the same Apple Account. BeNotes does not use advertising, third-party analytics, or tracking. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://nervous-lighter-870.notion.site/BeNote-Privacy-Policy-3f0906ebb029800b8439f914e193cec7

Screenshots

Mastery4 screens
BeNotes3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: BeNotes at every 2 days against Mastery's every 2 weeks. BeNotes also leads on iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Mastery sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and BeNotes sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $11.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Mastery ships an update every 2 weeks, BeNotes every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and November 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Β· 4 level
Mastery versus BeNotes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMasteryBeNotes
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 2 days β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhoneiPhone
Requires iOS26.018.0 β€” better
Further details β€” not scored
Size29 MB2 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperAdam KovacsSeungje Song

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Mastery

Subscriptions2
  • Mastery Pro Monthly$2.991 Month
  • Annual$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Mastery Lifetime$29.99
1 purchases

BeNotes

Subscriptions1
  • BeNote iCloud Sync$11.991 Year

Questions

Is Mastery free?
Mastery is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is BeNotes free?
BeNotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Mastery or BeNotes have ads?
Neither Mastery nor BeNotes shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Mastery or BeNotes?
Mastery ships an update every 2 weeks, and BeNotes every 2 days. Most recently, Mastery was updated on October 31, 2026 and BeNotes on November 13, 2026.

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