Comparison

BoringNote vs markdown notes

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

Head to head
About

BoringNote

Capture thoughts effortlessly with a chat-style interface, voice transcription, and AI-powered refinement. Organize ideas with categories and comments, and transform notes into structured outputs like to-do lists or emails.

Highlights
  • Chat-style note interface
  • Voice transcription in over 100 languages
  • AI-powered note refinement
  • Convert notes to tasks, summaries, emails
  • Integrations with OpenAI, Gemini, etc.
  • Menu bar capture
  • iCloud sync across macOS, iOS
Features
Read full description

BoringNote is a fast and simple way to capture your thoughts. Whether you type or speak, it lets you take notes as naturally as chatting, keeping you focused and organised. With built-in voice transcription, AI-powered refinement, and flexible organisation, BoringNote helps you capture ideas instantly and turn them into structured, useful notes — all in one place. SIMPLIFIED NOTE TAKING - Write or speak your thoughts in a chat-style interface that feels natural and frictionless - Capture ideas instantly without interrupting your workflow - Organise notes effortlessly with categories, pins, and comments VOICE AND TRANSCRIPTION - Speak instead of typing with fast and accurate transcription - Supports over 100 languages - Works in the background so you can capture notes anytime - Built-in dictionary improves recognition for names and custom terms AI-POWERED PROCESSING - Automatically refine and polish your notes before saving - Transform notes into structured outputs such as to-do lists, summaries, and emails - Use integrations with OpenAI, Gemini, LM Studio, and Ollama - Trigger AI actions instantly using simple commands - Create and manage custom prompts tailored to your workflow NOTES AND ORGANISATION - Chat-style notes for quick and natural input - Convert notes into task lists for daily tracking - Add comments to expand ideas and provide context - Use calendar view to navigate notes by date - Keep everything organised with flexible categorisation PRODUCTIVITY AND SPEED - Capture notes directly from the menu bar without opening the main window - Designed to minimise interruptions and keep you in flow - Optimised for both quick capture and deeper work sessions SYNC AND AVAILABILITY - Sync your notes across macOS and upcoming iOS devices using iCloud - Access your content anywhere with seamless continuity USE CASES - Daily journaling - Meeting notes - Task management - Brainstorming - Voice-first note taking - Personal productivity workflows BoringNote helps you focus on your ideas, not the process of writing them down. Privacy Policy: https://boringnote.aowlly.com/privacy-policy.html Terms of Service: https://boringnote.aowlly.com/terms-of-service.html

About

markdown notes

A minimalist Markdown editor that stores all your notes as plain text files, accessible across your devices. It offers beautiful writing tools, seamless cloud sync, and powerful organization features without any bloat.

Highlights
  • Plain .md file storage
  • iCloud Drive sync
  • Markdown syntax highlighting
  • Task list checkboxes
  • Folder and instant search organization
  • Menu bar app on Mac
  • Export to PDF, HTML, RTF (Pro)
Features
Read full description

Smolpad is a smol Markdown editor with respect for your files. Every note is a plain .md file you can open with any app, on any device, forever. Your files are your own. No database. No lock-in. No bloat. Just a tiny, fast home for your notes on Mac, iPhone, and iPad. WRITE IN MARKDOWN, BEAUTIFULLY • Syntax dims as you type, or hides away entirely with one tap • Task lists become real checkboxes. Checkboxes that check. • Headings, bold, italic, code, quotes, and tables, styled as you write • A formatting bar for common touches, plus full keyboard shortcuts • Pictures too: drag or paste one in, resize it by its corner, and it lives as a plain file beside the note YOUR FILES, ANYWHERE • Notes sync through your own iCloud Drive, included free • Open your notes folder in Finder or Files any time • Organize with folders, pins, and instant search • A Trash for deleted notes, and a history of every note's earlier versions • Find notes in Spotlight, and open them with Siri or Shortcuts • Your notes never leave your devices except to your own cloud SMOL ON PURPOSE • On the Mac, Smolpad lives in your menu bar, one hotkey away • Tear off a note into its own window when you want to stay a while • On iPhone and iPad, it opens fast and stays out of your way • Eight hand-picked fonts and a clean, quiet interface MAKE IT YOURS WITH SMOLPAD PRO • Unlimited notes (the free tier includes ten) • Dropbox, pCloud, or Google Drive sync, in a folder that belongs to you • Export to PDF, HTML, or rich text, and print • Home Screen widgets on iPhone and iPad, Lock Screen widgets on iPhone, and Smolpad on Apple Watch • Twenty-nine editor themes, from Tokyo Night to Catppuccin • Seventeen app icons and the full menu bar icon set Smolpad Pro is available as a monthly or yearly subscription, or a one-time lifetime purchase. The free tier is a real notes app, not a trial. Made by a smol team that believes plain text outlives everything. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://smolpad.com/privacy

Screenshots

BoringNote4 screens
markdown notes4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: BoringNote at free against markdown notes's freemium. On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. BoringNote sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and markdown notes sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BoringNote ships an update every 5 days, markdown notes every 10 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
BoringNote versus markdown notes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBoringNotemarkdown notes
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 days — betterEvery 10 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS18.618.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size17 MB73 MB
Age rating+44+
DeveloperLiang WangBaconWorks, LLC

Customer experience

BoringNote

Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

markdown notes

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

BoringNote

One-time1
  • BoringNote Pro$29.99
3 purchases

markdown notes

Subscriptions2
  • Smolpad Pro$1.491 Month
  • Smolpad Pro7 Days trial$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Smolpad Pro Lifetime$29.99

Questions

Is BoringNote free?
BoringNote is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is markdown notes free?
markdown notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do BoringNote or markdown notes have ads?
Neither BoringNote nor markdown notes shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BoringNote or markdown notes?
BoringNote ships an update every 5 days, and markdown notes every 10 days. Most recently, BoringNote was updated on October 24, 2026 and markdown notes on October 24, 2026.

Other comparisons