Comparison

GlowNote vs Serious Notebook

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

Head to head
About

GlowNote

Features
Read full description

Welcome to GlowNote - Notes & Notebook, your personal space to write, organize, and save important ideas in one beautiful place. GlowNote is a modern and minimal notes app designed for users who love simple writing, quick note-taking, daily journaling, creative thinking, and organized productivity. Whether you want to save thoughts, write reminders, manage ideas, create journals, or keep personal notes, GlowNote provides a smooth and comfortable writing experience. Built with a clean and aesthetic interface, GlowNote works perfectly on both iPhone and iPad and delivers a lightweight, fast, and distraction-free experience. Main Features • Create unlimited notes easily • Modern and minimal notebook interface • Fast and simple note-taking experience • Organize daily thoughts and ideas • Personal diary and journal writing • Sticky notes style cards • Smooth SwiftUI user interface • Quick access to saved notes • Easy note management • Creative writing support • Lightweight and optimized performance • iPhone and iPad compatibility • User-friendly and clean design • Daily productivity and planning support • Save reminders, thoughts, and important ideas • Comfortable reading and writing experience Perfect For • Daily Notes • Notebook Writing • Quick Memo Notes • Personal Diary • Journal Entries • Study Notes • Creative Thoughts • To-Do Planning • Offline Notes • Simple Note Taking GlowNote is designed for students, creators, writers, professionals, and users who want a reliable and aesthetic note-taking app for daily use. If you enjoy minimal design, smooth writing, organized note management, and beautiful notebook apps, GlowNote is a great choice for you. Performance Improvements The latest version of GlowNote has been updated with a complete SwiftUI experience for improved speed, smoother performance, cleaner interface design, and better overall usability. Privacy Policy Privacy Policy: https://mehndidesign.fun/privacy-policy-notebloom-pro/ Thank you for using GlowNote - Notes & Notebook.

About

Serious Notebook

A private digital notebook for handwriting, typing, and annotating documents. Import PDFs, scan paper, and organize your thoughts with customizable tools. Keep your work securely on your device with no accounts or tracking.

Highlights
  • Handwrite and sketch with Apple Pencil
  • Type notes and highlight on iPhone
  • Import and annotate PDFs
  • Scan paper into notebooks
  • Insert text boxes, sticky notes, photos, and scans
  • Export notebooks as PDF
Read full description

Your handwriting, PDFs, and ideas. A quieter place to think. Write naturally with Apple Pencil on iPad. Type notes and highlight pages on iPhone. Import a PDF planner, annotate a worksheet, or scan paper into a notebook you can keep working in. Serious Notebook keeps your work on your device, with no account, ads, tracking, or subscription. WRITE, STUDY, AND PLAN • Handwrite and sketch on iPad with pen, pencil, highlighter, and eraser tools. Apple Pencil works on compatible iPads. • Type notes and highlight with your finger on iPhone. • Choose blank, ruled, grid, or dot-grid paper in soft white or cream. • Give each notebook its own title and cover. MAKE DOCUMENTS YOUR OWN • Import PDFs as notebooks and annotate their pages. • Scan paper on supported camera-equipped devices, review the pages, then start writing. • Add text boxes and sticky notes. With lifetime access, insert photos, PDF pages, and scans into your notes. • Move, resize, and rotate inserted objects. • Export a notebook or selected pages as PDF to save or share. NEW IN 3.0 Scan several pages straight into your open notebook as movable objects with lifetime access. Take multiple photos, review them, and add them together. On iPad, a clearer top toolbar leaves more room to write. TRY YOUR OWN NOTES The free workspace includes one handwritten notebook plus one separate PDF or scan notebook, up to 10 pages each. Try the included example without using either allowance. ONE LIFETIME PURCHASE Unlock unlimited notebooks, pages, PDF imports, camera scans, and photo insertion with a single non-consumable purchase. No recurring payments. Existing lifetime customers and eligible original paid-app customers keep access. Restore Purchases is available in Settings. PRIVATE, ON YOUR DEVICE Notes, imported documents, photos, and scans stay on the device where you create them. No app account or document upload is required. Notebooks do not automatically sync between devices. Export PDFs regularly to keep a copy of your work. Purchase and restoration use Apple's App Store services. For class notes, project ideas, PDF planners, and everyday thinking on iPhone and iPad.

Screenshots

GlowNote4 screens
Serious Notebook4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: GlowNote at none against Serious Notebook's 1. GlowNote also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 weeks). Serious Notebook's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, device support and iOS requirement 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. Serious Notebook sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. GlowNote asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

GlowNote ships an update every 2 weeks, Serious Notebook every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
GlowNote versus Serious Notebook: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGlowNoteSerious Notebook
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.6 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size25 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAman KumarBILGESU KADAN

In-app purchases

None

GlowNote

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Serious Notebook

One-time1
  • Lifetime Unlock$24.99

Questions

Is GlowNote free?
GlowNote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Serious Notebook free?
Serious Notebook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do GlowNote or Serious Notebook have ads?
GlowNote shows ads; Serious Notebook does not.
Which is updated more often, GlowNote or Serious Notebook?
GlowNote ships an update every 2 weeks, and Serious Notebook every 3 weeks. Most recently, GlowNote was updated on November 5, 2026 and Serious Notebook on October 31, 2026.

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