Comparison

Private Notes 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

Private Notes

Features
Read full description

Private Notes: Offline NotePad is a private, on-device notes app built to help you capture ideas fast, write the way you think, and actually find things later — with real intelligence that never sends your notes to a server. Perfect for jotting a quick thought, writing in Markdown, recording a voice note that transcribes itself, sketching or scanning a document, and linking your ideas together — all wrapped in search that understands what you meant. Your notes, your data — and yours alone. PRIVATE BY DESIGN • No account, no login, no sign-up — just open the app and start • All your notes are stored locally on your device by default • No analytics, no tracking, no ads, no third-party data collection • Optional iCloud sync runs through your own private iCloud — never our servers • On-device AI: the intelligence runs on your iPhone, your notes never leave it WRITE THE WAY YOU THINK • A fast, focused Markdown editor with a formatting keyboard toolbar • Checklists, headings, an outline view and font choices • Notebooks with your own colors and icons, plus flexible tags • Smart Folders that collect notes by rules, automatically • Wiki-style [[links]] and backlinks to connect your ideas • Pin and star what matters, and restore anything from Trash • Full version history so you can go back to any earlier draft ON-DEVICE INTELLIGENCE • Summarize any note in a tap • Smart auto-tagging that keeps your tags consistent • Automatic titles for notes you never got around to naming • Ask your notes — get answers grounded in what you actually wrote • Turn a voice recording into a clean, structured note • Pull action items straight out of meetings and lectures • Turn a photo into editable Markdown • Semantic search that finds notes by meaning, not just keywords (On-device AI features require a supported iPhone.) CAPTURE ANYTHING • Quick Capture and an Inbox for frictionless jotting • Attach images, and — with Premium — audio, scans, sketches and PDFs • Scan documents with the camera, sketch with Apple Pencil • A Share Extension to send text and links straight into your notes FIND IT INSTANTLY • Fast full-text search across everything • A Quick Switcher to jump to any note in seconds • Spotlight integration so your notes show up in system search • Filter and browse by tag, notebook or Smart Folder BRING YOUR NOTES WITH YOU • Import from Bear archives and Evernote (ENEX) • Keep everything in one private, searchable home ON YOUR HOME SCREEN • Home Screen widgets for Quick Capture, recent notes and your daily streak • Create, open and append to notes with Siri and Shortcuts • Your notes, one tap away A PRIVATE APP LOCK • Lock individual notes behind Face ID or Touch ID • A Privacy Shield hides locked notes from lists, search and the switcher PREMIUM INCLUDES • Unlimited notes and nested notebooks • Audio, scan, sketch, PDF and file attachments • Lecture and meeting transcription with AI summaries and action items • Unlimited on-device AI • Private iCloud sync across all your devices NotesApp stays simple when you just want to jot something down, and powerful when you want your whole second brain — capture in a tap, find anything in a second. SUBSCRIPTIONS • Auto-renewable Premium plans (1 month, 1 year with a 3-day free trial) • A one-time Lifetime unlock is also available • Payment is charged to your Apple ID account • Subscriptions automatically renew unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period • Manage or cancel anytime in your Apple account settings • Restore Purchases is available in-app Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://darianhanci-legal.web.app/datenschutz

About

markdown notes

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, and quotes, 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 • Nothing ever leaves 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 • Seven hand-picked fonts and a clean, quiet interface MAKE IT YOURS WITH SMOLPAD PRO • Unlimited notes (the free tier includes ten) • Dropbox sync, in an app folder that belongs to you • 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

Private Notes4 screens
markdown notes3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: markdown notes at every 10 days against Private Notes's every 2 months. markdown notes also leads on iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

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

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

Both are free to download. Private Notes sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month 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

Private Notes ships an update every 2 months, markdown notes every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on September 19, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Ā· 4 level
Private Notes versus markdown notes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPrivate Notesmarkdown notes
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS26.418.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size15 MB66 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCengiz Darian HanciBaconWorks, LLC

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Private Notes

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly$0.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly3 Days trial$9.991 Year
One-time2
  • Premium Lifetime - Welcome$19.99
  • Premium Lifetime$27.99
3 purchases

markdown notes

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

Questions

Is Private Notes free?
Private Notes 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 Private Notes or markdown notes have ads?
Neither Private Notes nor markdown notes shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Private Notes or markdown notes?
Private Notes ships an update every 2 months, and markdown notes every 10 days. Most recently, Private Notes was updated on September 19, 2026 and markdown notes on September 24, 2026.

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