Comparison

Dash vs Cortex

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

Head to head
About

Dash

Features
Read full description

Quickly capture your thoughts and tasks so you can focus on what really matters.

About

Cortex

Features
Read full description

Cortex is a private, local-first Markdown workspace for iPhone and iPad. Your notes are real files you control, with fast editing, links, search, and on-device intelligence. CORE FEATURES - Create and organize plain Markdown notes - Daily notes, tasks, templates, links, and backlinks - Keyword search, Smart Search, knowledge graph, and canvas - Save text and links from other apps with the Share Extension - Create, search, and summarize notes with App Shortcuts and Siri - Import, backup, and export your vault - Use Apple Speech for dictation in supported languages FREE - A complete local Markdown vault - Smart Search and knowledge graph - Encrypted notes - Basic dictation - Local attachments up to 5 MB - Import, backup, and export CORTEX PLUS - End-to-end encrypted sync across devices - Ask, Recall, Insights, and semantic Connections - Advanced dictation commands - On-device OCR and audio transcription - Attachments larger than 5 MB Cortex requires no account and contains no ads or tracking. AI inference and embeddings run on your device. If you enable sync, Cortex encrypts your notes before sending authenticated ciphertext to the managed relay or a relay you configure; the relay cannot read note contents. Terms of Use: https://cortex.jtrlabs.com/legal/terms.html Privacy Policy: https://cortex.jtrlabs.com/legal/privacy.html

Screenshots

Dash4 screens
Cortex3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Dash at none against Cortex's 3. Cortex's advantage is device support (4 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price and ads 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. Cortex sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Dash asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 3 level
Dash versus Cortex: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDashCortex
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyโ€”Every 3 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo โ€” betterYes
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac โ€” better
Requires iOS18.015.0 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size9 MB131 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMathew JacobJTR Labs LLC

In-app purchases

None

Dash

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Cortex

Subscriptions2
  • Cortex Plus (Monthly)$4.991 Month
  • Cortex Plus (Yearly)$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Cortex Believer$99.99

Questions

Is Dash free?
Dash is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Cortex free?
Cortex is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Dash or Cortex have ads?
Neither Dash nor Cortex shows ads.

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