Comparison

BindNotes vs ScribblePad

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

Head to head
About

BindNotes

Features
Read full description

Your notes. Linked. Notes shouldn't be limited by the size of a page. But linear pages and infinite canvas aren't the answer — you just get lost. BindNotes takes a different approach: go infinitely deep, not infinitely long. Lasso any handwriting with Apple Pencil, link it to another page, and tap to jump. Pages give you focus. Links give you depth. Your notes become a connected network of ideas — not a stack of dead-end pages. BindNotes is a notebook app built for Apple Pencil. Write, sketch, and draw like any notebook — then connect your pages. Headers & Outline Assign header levels (H1–H5) to any page. Headers build a navigable outline for your notebook — tap to see the full structure, drill into sections, jump to any page. Color-coded by level so you can see hierarchy at a glance. Links let you follow a thought. Headers let you see the shape of your notebook. Together, they turn a stack of pages into a system. Page Overview See every page connection in your notebook as a visual graph. Arrows show which pages link where. Spot structure, find orphaned pages, navigate by tapping. PDF Annotation (Pro) Import any PDF into a notebook. Annotate with pen, highlighter, and lasso. The highlighter lifts actual pixels from the PDF — highlighted content becomes a visual element you can work with. Add headers to organize the PDF. Create links between pages. Turn a static document into something navigable. PDF Export (Pro) Export your notebook as a PDF. Links become clickable cross-references. An outline page is auto-generated. Your handwritten notebook exports like a professional document. Sync with iCloud Drive Notebooks sync across iPhone, iPad, and Mac via iCloud Drive. No account. No server. You control where your data lives. Free — No Limits on Note-Taking Everything you need to write, draw, and link is free: • Unlimited notebooks and pages • All drawing tools — pen, highlighter, eraser, lasso • Page-to-page linking • Headers and outline navigation • Page overview (link graph) • iCloud Drive sync • 5 page templates (blank, ruled, graph, dots) BindNotes Pro — One-Time Purchase Unlock tools for serious workflows. No subscription. Buy once, own forever. • PDF import and annotation • PDF export with clickable links and bookmarks • Tags for notebook organization • Dark page templates • Full link and header color palettes Your notes stay on your device. We collect no data. No analytics. No tracking. No server. Your notebooks are stored locally or in your iCloud Drive — nowhere else. See our privacy policy at bindnotes.com/privacy.

About

ScribblePad

A private, free note-taking and PDF annotation app for Apple devices. It offers natural handwriting, organization tools, and optional cloud backup to your own storage. Enjoy a distraction-free experience with no accounts or tracking.

Highlights
  • Natural handwriting with Apple Pencil
  • PDF annotation and markup
  • Organize notes with subjects and notebooks
  • On-device handwriting search (OCR)
  • Audio recording synced to notes
  • Optional Google Drive/iCloud backup
  • Offline functionality
Features
Read full description

The free, private note app for iPhone, iPad & Mac. No subscription, no account, no tracking — just fast handwriting, PDF markup, and backup to YOUR own cloud. Write naturally with Apple Pencil, organize notes into colorful subjects, and keep everything synced to your own Google Drive or iCloud. Nothing lives on our servers — your notes stay yours. WRITING & TOOLS • Smooth, low-latency ink (PencilKit) — pen, pencil, highlighter, eraser, lasso • Pinch to zoom, palm rejection, and ruler • Add text boxes, shapes, images, and stickers on top of your ink ORGANIZE • Subjects → notebooks → pages, drag to reorder • Templates: blank, ruled, grid, dotted + your own custom pages • Search your handwriting instantly with on-device OCR PDF & IMPORT/EXPORT • Import and annotate PDFs • Export as PDF, PNG, or the native .scribble format • Share notes with other ScribblePad users AUDIO • Record audio synced to your strokes — replay your notes in time PRIVATE BACKUP & SYNC (OPTIONAL) • Back up to your own Google Drive (the app only sees files it creates) or iCloud • Works fully offline — the cloud is yours, not ours No sign-up. No ads. No data collection. Just a beautiful place to think.

Screenshots

BindNotes4 screens
ScribblePad4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: ScribblePad at none against BindNotes's 1. ScribblePad also leads on iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, update cadence, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. BindNotes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. ScribblePad asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BindNotes ships an update weekly, ScribblePad every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on September 12, 2026 and September 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
BindNotes versus ScribblePad: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBindNotesScribblePad
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS26.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEvgenii EremeevSagar Seth

In-app purchases

1 purchases

BindNotes

One-time1
  • BindNotes Pro$2.99
None

ScribblePad

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is BindNotes free?
BindNotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ScribblePad free?
ScribblePad is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do BindNotes or ScribblePad have ads?
Neither BindNotes nor ScribblePad shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BindNotes or ScribblePad?
BindNotes ships an update weekly, and ScribblePad every 4 days. Most recently, BindNotes was updated on September 12, 2026 and ScribblePad on September 7, 2026.

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