SteelNote vs Next Time
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
SteelNote
This app stores your notes as plain Markdown files on your device, ensuring you always own your data. It offers seamless syncing across Apple devices, instant search, and robust import options from other note-taking applications.
- Plain Markdown file storage
- iCloud sync across Apple devices
- Local full-text search
- Import from multiple note apps
- Link notes and see backlinks
- Organize with folders and tags
- Mark notes as private
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SteelNote is a notes app built on one promise: your notes are plain Markdown files that you own. Every note is a real .md file on your device, openable in the Files app or in any editor you like, today and years from now. No proprietary database. Nothing locked away. Your notes, truly yours. Because every note is plain text, you are never trapped. Read and edit them in SteelNote, in Files, or in any other Markdown app. If you ever move on, you take your files with you as they are, in an open format that lasts. Native on all your Apple devices. SteelNote is built natively for iPhone, iPad and Mac. Your notes sync across all of them through iCloud, with no third party account and no extra sign in. Start a note on your phone and finish it on your Mac. Find anything, instantly. A local full text index makes search immediate, even in large libraries. Link notes together, see backlinks, organize with folders and tags, and turn any line into a task. Private when you want it. Mark a note as private and it stays out of widgets and AI features. Your most sensitive notes remain yours alone. Bring everything with you. Import from Bear, Notion, Obsidian and Evernote, or from Markdown, TextBundle, Word, RTF, PDF and CSV files. Your folders and structure come along. Apple Notes works too, one note at a time, because Apple offers no bulk export. Everything you expect. Add images, PDFs and tables inline. Use checklists, footnotes and links. Reach your notes from Spotlight, Siri and widgets, and hand off between devices. An open format, now standard. Markdown is a first class type across Apple platforms, and SteelNote is built natively around it. Your files are open, portable and yours. Membership. SteelNote comes with a 14 day free trial, then a yearly plan or a one time lifetime purchase. You can cancel during the trial and pay nothing, or skip the subscription and choose the lifetime purchase instead. Sync is always included and never restricted. Payment is charged to your Apple Account. A yearly plan renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the period. You can manage or cancel anytime in your Account settings. Privacy Policy: https://steelnoteapp.com/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Next Time
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You remembered the perfect question on the drive home. Three hours too late. Again. Next Time is a small notebook for the people in your life. Add notes tied to a person, things to tell them, ask them, bring them, or just remember about them. Next time you see them, it's all there. Five kinds of notes: Tell, Ask, Bring, Remember, and About. About is permanent, a growing list of small facts about someone that never gets marked done. The rest slide into an archive once you're finished with them. Set reminders, if you want them. Add a date and time to any note. Or don't. Some things just need a place to live. Made by someone who still forgets to ask that one thing. But is working on it. Terms: https://thenexttime.app/terms Privacy: https://thenexttime.app/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: SteelNote at every 4 days against Next Time's every 10 days. SteelNote also leads on iOS requirement (17.6 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Both are free to download. SteelNote sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $24.99 per year and Next Time sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
SteelNote ships an update every 4 days, Next Time every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SteelNote | Next Time |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | โ |
| Update frequency | Every 4 days โ better | Every 10 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | โ |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 โ better | 26.0 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 17 MB | 11 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Claude Bezeaud | Verena Ortlieb |
In-app purchases
SteelNote
- Annual14 Days trial$24.991 Year
- Founder$44.99
- Lifetime$79.99
Next Time
- Next Time Pro Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
- Next Time Pro Yearly14 Days trial$44.991 Year
- Next Time Pro Lifetime$99.99









