# Notely vs YouNotes

The clearest difference is review sentiment: YouNotes at 100% against Notely's 33%. YouNotes also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.4). Notely's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 10 days). On price, ratings volume, ads and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. YouNotes sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per year. Notely asks for nothing beyond the download.

YouNotes holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 3 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of Notely's written reviews are positive against 100% of YouNotes's.

Notely ships an update every 4 days, YouNotes every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notely | YouNotes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.4 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notely-notes-and-pdf-app/id6760985471/reviews) | **[5.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/younotes-good-notes-and-notepad/id6769743144/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **8** | 3 |
| Positive reviews | 33.3% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 4 days** | Every 10 days |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 23 MB | 26 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [JUSTIN WEI SUN](https://appshunter.io/developer/1874016949) | [Yangjiang AiYue Information Technology Co., LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/1840340425) |

## What reviewers say

### Notely

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notely-notes-and-pdf-app/id6760985471)

This app offers a private and flexible digital notebook for handwriting, typed notes, and PDF annotation. Convert handwriting to editable text, draw with precision tools, and organize your work with folders and backups. Keep ideas accessible without an account or internet connection.

**Highlights:** Handwriting to editable text conversion, Precision drawing tools, PDF annotation and markup, Organized library with folders, On-device search, Portable backups

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### YouNotes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/younotes-good-notes-and-notepad/id6769743144)

This digital note-taking app helps you organize thoughts for learning, work, and creativity. Create personalized notebooks, draw on a freeform canvas, and brainstorm with mind maps. It offers a smooth and reliable experience for all your note-taking needs.

**Highlights:** Personalized notebooks with custom covers, Freeform canvas for writing and drawing, Whiteboard mode with zooming, Mind map creation for idea organization, Insert images, text, and shapes, Flexible editing tools

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Annual Membership | $2.99 | per year |
| Lifetime Membership | $5.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notely free?

Notely is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is YouNotes free?

YouNotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Notely or YouNotes?

YouNotes is rated higher. Notely averages 4.4 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while YouNotes averages 5.0 from 3 ratings.

### Do Notely or YouNotes have ads?

Neither Notely nor YouNotes shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Notely or YouNotes?

Notely ships an update every 4 days, and YouNotes every 10 days. Most recently, Notely was updated on October 13, 2026 and YouNotes on October 9, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*