Better Notes + Lists and Todos vs Notes and Folders
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Better Notes + Lists and Todos
This app offers a streamlined approach to note-taking and list management. Organize your thoughts and tasks using hashtags, which automatically link related content. It also extracts actionable information like phone numbers and links, and allows for photo attachments.
- Hashtag organization
- Linked notes via hashtags
- Automatic data extraction (phone, email, links)
- Checklist creation
- Photo attachments
- Tap to interact with extracted data
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** As FEATURED by Apple in “New Apps We Love” ** This is a different kind of notes app. Simpler. Smarter. Better. You can type #hashtags into your notes to organize them. #hashtags link all the tagged notes together—tap on any to see them all. We'll find any phone numbers, email addresses, or links in your notes, too, and you can tap on those to call, email, or go to the web. A dash and then a space makes a list—you can tap the dash later to cross things off. Attach #photos of things you’d like to remember—receipts, screenshots of directions, shoes in a shoe store. Whatever makes sense for you. Tap little photos to make ‘em bigger. Swipe down on big photos to make ‘em smaller. We hope this app helps you capture the thoughts that are important to you—thank you so much for giving it a try.
Notes and Folders
Organize your thoughts and memories with this app. Create folders for notes, attach photos, and even keep a dated diary. Secure your entries with password protection and access them easily with widgets and search functionality.
- Organize notes with folders and subfolders
- Attach photos to notes
- Dated diary entries
- Password lock (Passcode, Touch ID, Face ID)
- Widgets for quick access
- Search notes
- Backup to Dropbox, PC, or Mac
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Over 240,000 downloads worldwide! Notes and Folders is a simple notepad that lets you organize notes and photos with folders. You can also lock your notes with a passcode. FOLDERS - Organize your notes with folders - Create folders inside folders NOTES - Attach multiple photos to a note - Character count - Auto-save while editing - Editing buttons: copy & paste, undo, select, and arrow keys - Built-in web browser to add text and screenshots of web pages to your notes DIARY - Write a diary entry for any date - Read a whole month of entries at once OTHERS - Widget - Passcode lock (Face ID and Touch ID supported) - Search notes - Share notes to other apps - Save text and images from other apps (Share Extension) - Theme colors - Adjustable text size - iPad support - Backup with Dropbox - Backup with a computer URL SCHEME notesandfolders:// BACKUP You can back up your notes with Dropbox, or with a computer (Finder on Mac, or the Apple Devices app or iTunes on Windows). For details, see FAQ > "About Backup" in the app's settings. ADS This app shows banner ads, and a full-screen ad only once a day (every 24 hours). Ads are not shown after purchasing ad removal.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Better Notes + Lists and Todos at none against Notes and Folders's 1. Better Notes + Lists and Todos also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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
Both are free to download. Notes and Folders sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Better Notes + Lists and Todos asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for Better Notes + Lists and Todos against 4.5 for Notes and Folders. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 143 and 302 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 83% of Better Notes + Lists and Todos's written reviews are positive against 80% of Notes and Folders's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Better Notes + Lists and Todos | Notes and Folders |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (143 ratings) | 4.5 (302 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 82.8% of reviews — better | 80.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 143 | 302 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 7 MB | 17 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Better Notes, LLC | KinkumaDesign |
Customer experience
Better Notes + Lists and Todos
Notes and Folders
Bugs and requests
Better Notes + Lists and Todos
Reported bugs
12 issues- Notes delete randomly or unexpectedly
- App crashes when deleting notes
- App crashes when resizing sticky notes
- Reminder notifications trigger for deleted notes
- Checkboxes don't stay checked after closing app
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- Pinned notes don't stay pinned
- Archive count shows incorrect number
- PDF export crashes the app
- Hashtags don't fully support Chinese characters
- Feature tour notes cannot be deleted
- Notification doesn't open to the specific note
- Notes lost after iCloud backup issues
Requested features
20 requests- iCloud synchronization across devices
- iPad version with full optimization
- Passcode/fingerprint security lock
- Undo and redo functionality
- Text formatting options (bold, italic, underline)
Show 15 moreShow fewer
- Mac/desktop companion app
- Apple Pencil support
- Widget for quick note creation
- Note color customization
- Organize hashtags into albums/folders
- Dark mode option
- Markdown support
- Web app or browser extension
- Ability to archive notes properly
- Improved reminder functionality
- Swipe-to-delete gesture
- Notification opens specific note
- Checkbox persistence after closing app
- Drag and drop to reorder lines/paragraphs
- Multiple hashtag filtering
Notes and Folders
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Better Notes + Lists and Todos
No in-app purchases
Notes and Folders
- Remove Ads$3.99
Questions
Is Better Notes + Lists and Todos free?
Is Notes and Folders free?
Which has better reviews, Better Notes + Lists and Todos or Notes and Folders?
Do Better Notes + Lists and Todos or Notes and Folders have ads?
Which is updated more often, Better Notes + Lists and Todos or Notes and Folders?
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