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Best Note Taking App For Students

250+ iOS apps curated and reviewed

4.8 avg rating
19 free apps
Updated September 2026

From beginner-friendly picks to power-user tools, our note taking app for students list covers 250+ iPhone apps updated through September 2026. Compare ratings, prices, and screenshots in one place.

Compare top Note Taking App For Students (September 2026)

#AppPriceRatingAdsIn-App PurchasesUpdated
1Notability: AI Notes & PlannerNotability: AI Notes & PlannerFree4.8★ (456K)NoYesSep 2026
2Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDFGoodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDFFree4.7★ (453K)NoYesSep 2026
3Freenotes®: AI Notes TakingFreenotes®: AI Notes TakingFree4.7★ (61K)NoYesSep 2026
4Microsoft OneNoteMicrosoft OneNoteFree4.7★ (1.1M)NoYesSep 2026
5Notify - AI Note TakerNotify - AI Note TakerFree—NoYesAug 2026
6Noteful: Notes & PDF MarkupNoteful: Notes & PDF MarkupFree4.8★ (23K)NoYesSep 2026
7Note Taking QuickNote Taking QuickFree—YesYesMay 2026
8NotakeNotakeFree—NoYesJun 2026

Top Picks for Note Taking App For Students

Notability: AI Notes & Planner#1

Notability: AI Notes & Planner by Ginger Labs

Daily notebook & study journal
Editor's Choice
📊 Productivity
4.8😊(456K ratings)
FreeIn-App Purchases
#76in Productivity
Notability: AI Notes & Planner screenshot 1
Notability: AI Notes & Planner screenshot 2
Notability: AI Notes & Planner screenshot 3
Notability: AI Notes & Planner screenshot 4
Notability: AI Notes & Planner screenshot 5

Capture, organize, and enhance your thoughts with a versatile digital notebook. Seamlessly blend handwriting, typing, and multimedia to annotate documents, record lectures, and generate summaries. Ideal for students and professionals seeking to boost productivity and learning.

What We Love

  • 🚀 Great app for note-taking
  • 👍 Smooth handwriting experience
  • 📝 Excellent organization and file management
  • 🎙️ Useful audio recording feature
  • 🔍 Handwriting recognition and search
  • 🌈 Customizable colors and themes

Room to Improve

  • 🐛 Sync issues with iCloud
  • 🔍 Limited search and organization options
  • 🖍️ Frustrating highlighter behavior
  • 🔒 Concerns about subscription model
  • 🔧 Buggy after recent updates
Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF#2

Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF by Goodnotes Limited

Note taking, Planner & Journal
Strong Contender
📊 Productivity
4.7😊(453K ratings)
FreeIn-App Purchases
#91in Productivity
Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF screenshot 1
Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF screenshot 2
Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF screenshot 3
Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF screenshot 4
Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF screenshot 5
Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF screenshot 6

Capture ideas, enhance productivity, and unlock insights with advanced AI features. This app offers tools for professionals, students, and creatives, including infinite whiteboards, AI-powered transcription and summarization, and customizable digital notebooks.

What We Love

  • 🚀 Excellent note-taking experience
  • 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
  • 🚀 Smooth writing with Apple Pencil
  • 📁 Powerful organization with folders and notebooks
  • 🖼️ Ability to annotate PDFs and documents
  • 🌈 Customizable paper styles and covers

Room to Improve

  • 🐛 Glitches and crashes
  • 🔍 Syncing and iCloud issues
  • 🔍 Lack of flexibility with text input
  • 🔍 Limited eraser and highlighting options
  • 🔍 Subpar performance on Mac app
Freenotes®: AI Notes Taking#3

Freenotes®: AI Notes Taking by Free Notes AI Note Taker LTD

Docs PDF Memo Planner Pencil
Worth Considering
📊 Productivity
4.7😊(61K ratings)
FreeIn-App Purchases
Freenotes®: AI Notes Taking screenshot 1
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Freenotes®: AI Notes Taking screenshot 4
Freenotes®: AI Notes Taking screenshot 5
Freenotes®: AI Notes Taking screenshot 6

This AI-powered digital notepad transforms your device into an intelligent workspace. It offers handwriting recognition, PDF annotation, and AI assistance for summarizing documents, answering questions, and aiding in study. Organize notes, sketch ideas, and sync across devices for a seamless paperless experience.

What We Love

  • 🚀 Completely free app with no ads or in-app purchases
  • 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
  • 📚 Comprehensive note-taking features (layers, templates, stickers, etc.)
  • 🎨 Highly customizable (colors, fonts, covers, etc.)
  • 🗂️ Excellent organization tools (folders, notebooks, etc.)
  • 💻 Seamless integration with iPad and Apple Pencil
  • 🔥 Regularly updated with new features and improvements

Room to Improve

  • 🐛 Occasional issues with syncing and iCloud backup
  • 🖌️ Limited customization options for pen/pencil settings
  • 🔍 Lack of handwriting recognition and search
  • 🔗 No support for external links or clickable content
  • 🔀 Difficulty in rearranging or splitting notebooks

More Note Taking App For Students apps to explore

FAQ about Note Taking App For Students

What is the best note taking app for students for iPhone?
Notability: AI Notes & Planner tops our note taking app for students ranking as of September 2026, with a 4.8-star average from 456K App Store ratings, and it's free to download.
Yes — 19 of the top note taking app for students we rank are free to download, including Notability: AI Notes & Planner and Goodnotes: AI Notes, Docs, PDF.
Notability: AI Notes & Planner has no ads and offers in-app purchases, according to its App Store listing as of September 2026.
We track 250+ note taking app for students on the iOS App Store as of September 2026, ranked by rating, recency, and analysis of real user reviews.
Notability is a digital note-taking application that allows users to write, type, annotate, draw, and record audio. It helps users organize their thoughts, study materials, and work documents in one place. The app supports annotating PDFs, lecture slides, and other documents, and offers AI-powered features for summaries and quizzes.
Key features include the ability to combine handwriting, typed text, images, and sketches on a single page, annotate PDFs and other documents, record audio synced to notes, and generate real-time transcripts and summaries. It also offers AI-powered study tools like quizzes and flashcards, and allows for side-by-side note viewing.