Comparison

Subnotes vs NexReader

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

Head to head
About

Subnotes

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Subnotes is a plain-text notes and to-do list app for iPhone, iPad & Mac. Any line you write can become a task. β€’ Thoughts and tasks, side by side β€” jot things down like a paper notebook, then switch views to see everything organized by priority, automatically. β€’ Editing a task is just editing text β€’ Recurring tasks and due dates β€’ Link notes together to connect related thinking β€’ Templates for weekly reviews, meeting notes, habit tracking, trip planning, and more. Note-taking and task planning are deeply personal β€” so Subnotes stores everything as plain text, not a proprietary format. Copy, paste, or export anytime. It also syncs privately over your own iCloud account: no signup, no account creation, no servers but Apple's. For iPhone, iPad, and Mac

About

NexReader

Features
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Read Markdown the way it was meant to look. NexReader turns any .md file into a clean, comfortable page. Headings, tables, code, task lists and quotes are rendered natively β€” no web view, no clutter, nothing between you and the words. It is made for the documents you actually receive: notes, READMEs, specs, and the long answers AI tools write for you. BEAUTIFUL RENDERING β€’ Full GitHub-Flavored Markdown: headings, bold and italic, lists, task lists, quotes, tables and links β€’ Code blocks with syntax highlighting for 16 languages, and one-tap copy β€’ Tables that keep their alignment and scroll sideways instead of squashing β€’ Images you can open full screen and pinch to zoom MAKE IT YOURS β€’ Four reading themes: Classic White, Sepia, Midnight and AMOLED Black β€’ Four typefaces, including New York for long reads β€’ Text size, weight, line height, letter spacing and paragraph spacing β€’ Three reading widths, so lines never run too long on a big screen FIND YOUR WAY β€’ An outline of every heading, with your current section marked β€’ Find in document, with every match highlighted β€’ Opens exactly where you left off β€” even after you change the text size A LIBRARY THAT STAYS TIDY β€’ Real folders you can create, rename and rearrange β€’ Favorites, sorting, search, and reading progress on every document β€’ Your documents also appear in the Files app, in the same folders GET FILES IN EASILY β€’ Import from Files, or open .md files straight from other apps β€’ Wi‑Fi Transfer: drop files from any computer's browser onto your iPhone or iPad. No cable, no cloud, no account GREAT ON IPAD β€’ Your library and the page side by side β€’ Keyboard shortcuts for find, the outline, text size and moving between sections ALSO ON MAC β€’ Open any .md file from Finder in its own window β€’ The same library, themes and typography, with a full menu bar NO ACCOUNT NEEDED There is nothing to sign up for, and your documents stay on your device. NexReader collects no data at all: no analytics, no tracking, no ads.

Screenshots

Subnotes4 screens
NexReader4 screens

Verdict

The call

Subnotes and NexReader are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters β€” price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them β€” neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Subnotes versus NexReader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSubnotesNexReader
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyWeeklyβ€”
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac β€” betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.026.0
Further details β€” not scored
Size4 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMartin RamsinPhyo Myanmar Kyaw

In-app purchases

None

Subnotes

No in-app purchases

None

NexReader

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Subnotes free?
Subnotes is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is NexReader free?
NexReader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Subnotes or NexReader have ads?
Neither Subnotes nor NexReader shows ads.

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