# Transparent Notes vs CardWeb

The clearest difference is update cadence: CardWeb at every 4 days against Transparent Notes's every 2 months. CardWeb also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7). Transparent Notes's advantage is ratings volume (206 vs 1) and device support (4 vs 2). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Transparent Notes sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days and CardWeb sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

CardWeb holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Transparent Notes has 206 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Transparent Notes ships an update every 2 months, CardWeb every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Transparent Notes | CardWeb |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (206 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/transparent-notes/id974837912/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cardweb/id6737754619/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **206** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 62.3% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 20 MB | 147 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Rozga Wojciech](https://appshunter.io/developer/720086223) | [Yun Zeng](https://appshunter.io/developer/1777755812) |

## What reviewers say

### Transparent Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/transparent-notes/id974837912)

This app allows you to write and read notes with adjustable transparency, enabling you to see through them. It also supports browsing the web simultaneously and synchronizes with its macOS counterpart.

**Highlights:** Adjustable note transparency, Web browsing while taking notes, Syncs with macOS version, Sticky notepad functionality, Todo task management

**In-app purchases (13)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 Week Student | $2.99 | per 7 days |
| 1 Month Student | $3.99 | per month |
| 1 Week | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| 1 Month Student | $4.99 | per month |
| 1 Month | $9.99 | per month |
| 1 Year Student | $14.99 | per year |
| 1 Year Student | $19.99 | per year |
| 1 Year | $35.99 | per year |
| Credits S Pro | $0.99 | one-time |
| Credits M Pro | $1.99 | one-time |
| Credits S Basic | $1.99 | one-time |
| Credits M Basic | $3.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime | $299.00 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple and intuitive user interface
- 🎯 Perfect for presentations and online meetings
- 👀 Transparent overlay stays on top of other windows
- 📚 Excellent for students and educational use
- 🎤 Great for interviews and public speaking

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and stability issues
- 💰 Expensive pricing model ($99 lifetime, $10/month subscription)
- 😤 Intrusive pop-ups and ads in paid version
- 🔄 Notes auto-reorganize by edit time (no pinning)
- ❌ Limited free version (only 1 note allowed)

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when switching themes
- App crashes when clicking premium feature buttons
- Crashes from day 1 of use
- Font color changes to white unexpectedly
- Cannot change font color back to black

**Requested features**

- Text formatting (bold, italic, underline, strikethrough)
- Markdown or Rich Text support
- Headline/heading styles
- Font size and color customization
- Bullet points and numbered lists


### CardWeb

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cardweb/id6737754619)

This AI-powered companion offers personalized research paper recommendations, an academic social network, and AI tutors. Engage in interactive learning with customizable boards and gamified challenges, all while keeping your research organized.

**Highlights:** Personalized paper recommendations, Academic social network, AI tutors and research assistants, Interactive learning tools (whiteboards, corkboards), Gamified learning challenges, Smart PDF organizer and reader

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| CardWeb Monthly Plan | $19.99 | per month |
| CardWeb Yearly Plan | $199.00 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Transparent Notes free?

Transparent Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is CardWeb free?

CardWeb is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Transparent Notes or CardWeb?

CardWeb is rated higher. Transparent Notes averages 4.7 out of 5 from 206 ratings, while CardWeb averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Transparent Notes or CardWeb have ads?

Neither Transparent Notes nor CardWeb shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Transparent Notes or CardWeb?

Transparent Notes ships an update every 2 months, and CardWeb every 4 days. Most recently, Transparent Notes was updated on October 12, 2026 and CardWeb on October 1, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*