Notion alternatives
Notion users seek alternatives due to frequent bugs, poor mobile performance, and intrusive AI features. Alternatives offer specialized AI assistance, dedicated note-taking features, or improved mobile experiences for specific use cases.
Why users look for alternatives to Notion
- Frequent bugs and performance issues, especially on mobile, make the app unusable for many.R3R4R10R13
- Users are frustrated by the constant, forced updates and the intrusive nature of AI features, which many find unnecessary and disruptive.R1R6R7R21
- Lack of essential features like mind mapping, font size control, password protection for pages, and proper Apple Pencil support are noted by users.R2R12R14R27
- Some users experience issues with customer service regarding billing and account access.R8R39
The alternatives
Google Gemini is an AI tool that helps with generating ideas, executing marketing strategies, and understanding concepts for learning . It can also generate images, though some users report issues with consistency and editing R56.
Better for: Google Gemini suits users who need an AI assistant for creative tasks, marketing, or learning, especially if they are looking for image generation capabilities . It may be less suitable for those who need reliable image editing or consistent results without multiple attempts R56.
Head-to-head: Notion vs Google GeminiMicrosoft 365 Copilot is an AI helper that assists with reviewing correspondence and administrative tasks, often providing citations and references R69. It aims to be dynamic and responsive in understanding user requests .
Better for: Microsoft 365 Copilot is better for users within the Microsoft ecosystem who need AI assistance for administrative tasks, reviewing documents, or generating content with citations R69. It may be less suitable for those expecting deep integration with corporate structures or who find frequent logins cumbersome R65.
Head-to-head: Notion vs Microsoft 365 CopilotMicrosoft OneNote is a note-taking application that allows users to organize notes, folders, and IDs in one place with various tools for drawing and concept mapping . It is often used as an alternative to more feature-heavy word processors .
Better for: Microsoft OneNote is better for users who need a dedicated note-taking app with strong organizational features, especially for segregating folders and IDs . It suits those who appreciate drawing tools and concept mapping for classes . However, users should be aware of potential sync issues, slow performance on some devices, and missing features on iPad R80R81.
Head-to-head: Notion vs Microsoft OneNoteGoodnotes is a note-taking app highly valued for organizing various aspects of life, from journaling to creative writing and editing PDFs . It is praised for its user interface and ability to replace traditional notebooks .
Better for: Goodnotes is ideal for users who prioritize a simplified user interface and robust handwritten note-taking capabilities, particularly students and those who manage a wide range of personal and professional documents . However, users should be aware of its subscription model, which has locked out previous purchasers, and some reported bugs with copying and text entry R93R95R96.
Head-to-head: Notion vs GoodnotesClaude by Anthropic is an AI app known for its high-quality writing, thoughtful responses, and ability to push back when a user is incorrect R108. It provides detailed and accurate information R112.
Better for: Claude by Anthropic is better for users who need an AI assistant for writing, complex problem-solving, or generating detailed, accurate information R108R112. It suits those who value quality over speed, as responses can be slow R112. Users should be mindful of its strict usage limits, even on paid plans, which can interrupt workflows R109R115R119.
Head-to-head: Notion vs Claude by AnthropicYou should stick with Notion if you value its flexibility for planning and building projects, easy workspace sharing, and its ability to function as a 'second brain' for organizing diverse information, and if you are comfortable with its AI features or have found ways to manage them R2.
Evidence note: All alternatives had sufficient reviews to form a judgment.
Frequently asked
Why do users find Notion's AI features problematic?
Does Notion perform well on mobile devices?
Are there any specific features Notion users wish for?
Is Goodnotes a free app?
What reviewers actually said
Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.
- [R3] Notion AI chatbot feature is very buggy: Takes long to load, especially on long threads, to the point where i have to quit the app and download again.
- [R4] Notion Issue Mobile View when Typing: Great software, great usages for all sorts of people, BUT the mobile app just struggles with one critical bug that makes the whole thing unusable. When I’m typing, the screen auto-adjusts the view so that where I’m currently typing is just out of view. When this happens, I cannot see what I am typing, hence why the app becomes unusable. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE FIX THIS!
- [R10] Notion Latest updates are a problem: Notion has always been fantastic until it wasn’t. The last couple of releases it seems like it has gone downhill considerably. The screens seem to have a mind of their own now and it crashes more frequently than it ever has.
- [R13] Notion Long documents don’t work on iPhone 12: I’ve used notion for years and it is a great product on desktop! I use long lists with checkboxes and it doesn’t load correctly on iPhone 12. I get 1/5 of the way down the page and it blacks out, shows a loading spinner, and resets me at the top. 100% broken. There is no value on mobile at least iPhone 12. Even when trying to load it is janky AF. Lookin
- [R1] Notion Are constant updates necessary??: Bug fixes and performance improvements. Bug fixes and performance improvements. Bug fixes and performance improvements. Bug fixes and performance improvements. Bug fixes and performance improvements. You guys are ridiculous and out of control. Please you don’t need to update your app this frequently. It’s obnoxious.
- [R6] Notion I love Notion, Not AI…: I use Notion everyday to help me stick to a schedule and plan my life. I despise AI, and the fact it’s even in the title name is repulsive. It’s painful to love this app due to them feeding into this.
- [R7] Notion Pls cut back use of ai: Love notion, great app. Hate that ai is shoved down your throat at every turn. Can’t click a single thing without “ai can do this for you!!” I don’t want ai to do it for me. I am here because I want to do it. Ai sucks the fun out of everything. The second I find an alternative that does not use ai is the second I drop notion like a hot potato and switch over everything.
- [R21] Notion Fantastic but: I love the app but please stop shoving the AI feature in my mouth!
- [R2] Notion my notion is amazing: this is the best platform for planning and building your projects that you will ever use. it can be so structured but also has incredible flexibility, and sharing workspaces with others is fast and easy. I have been using this tool for years and will continue to do so. the only thing I wish there was is a mind map feature within pages to allow users a visual representation fo
- [R12] Notion Cannot change font size: It's a deal breaker for a note taking app that you cannot even choose a font size (especially in a table, which is very small). The rest of the app is decent though.
- [R14] Notion Feedback: Feature to password-protect a particular page would be very helpful!
- [R27] Notion Terrible pencil support: Great app but I tend to use it on my laptop. But Apple Pencil support is sooooo bad. Try and scroll? It tries to type. Try to write something? It just doesn’t write. Don’t use the iPad app, use the actual website.
- [R8] Notion I love notion but when I’m trying to contact costumer service: I’ve been using Notion for a while, and I really love the app. It’s been an amazing tool for staying organized. However, I’m disappointed with my recent billing experience. My subscription increased from $12 to $26, and I wanted to speak with a customer support representative to understand why. Unfortunately, when I try to submit a sup
- [R39] Notion Love - but I’ve got a bug: I use notion daily , I have a chores tracker and motivation plan and a studying plan . ( much more ) but the other night I accidentally added another account on and it was bugging me so I tried to delete it but instead , I logged both out and I can’t remember the password so I used the forgotten password but I says the link is out of use! Can u please fix this
- [R51] Google Gemini Videos: Why can’t I make a video from a picture? It says I need a subscription. Someone else I know has it and it’s free for them. Why can’t I get the free subscription?
- [R53] Google Gemini ?: I don’t know how to use
- [R54] Google Gemini I stumped Gemini: I asked a question about tennis shorts in denim and it couldn’t answer it, it said error.
- [R56] Google Gemini Needs development: Still cannot edit a picture without changing the face and making it look like another person!
- [R65] Microsoft 365 Copilot Not customized to corporate structure: Still needs to be trained on corporate structure and the lack of database organization by verticals. If you ask it who is the leader of a project, or admin of group, it cannot determine this. If you ask it a simple who is the boss of this vertical it can answer. That is not useful… The ability to search by project, expertise, admin roles, everything not liste
- [R67] Microsoft 365 Copilot A bit behind…: 1. Model seems to be behind on docs. Answers are two-to-three versions ago. 2. When giving solutions, it blasts you with too many solution paths. Needs to be more stepwise.
- [R68] Microsoft 365 Copilot What is this garbage?: This app used to be a one stop shop for all of my documents in OneDrive. It was convenient for use on an iPhone (since I didn’t want all those apps here). Now it’s a disconnected version of their CoPilot app. I.e. None of the existing CoPilot history appears to be accessible here. tl;dr. This is garbage and if allowed, I would rate it a 0.
- [R69] Microsoft 365 Copilot MSFT Copilot: Good product - I use it to review correspondence.
- [R79] Microsoft OneNote Yay another app that needs 2 factor authentication !!: Bring back windows XP and jettison this AI nonsense
- [R80] Microsoft OneNote Onenote: It is very nice app. It is little bit slow and don't update in macbook though
- [R81] Microsoft OneNote No ruler: For some reason there is no ruler on the iPad version, would be 5 stars with a ruler
- [R82] Microsoft OneNote Naver used this app: The first time its was gitchli a lot
- [R93] Goodnotes 1 star: Have to pay to do anything
- [R94] Goodnotes Please add the laser option as a PEN so we can write with that glowy effect: PAWLEASEEEEEEEEEEE
- [R95] Goodnotes Updates: So many updates but the copy via drag and drop still doesn’t work. It takes so much time copying an entire sticker book. If I lasso multiple stickers, I they aren’t individual stickers after pasting to a new document. I hope the feature is fixed.
- [R96] Goodnotes Subscription model SUCKS: I already paid for this app years ago and it was amazing. But now it locked me out of ALL features stating I need to start paying subscription. It was a great app but now it is the literal worst due to being a completely unusable app when I’ve already paid money to download it to begin with. This app is going straight in my virtual trash.
- [R107] Claude by Anthropic Garbage, arbitrary bans: Can't live anymore? Get banned even if you pay, get banned if you don't. Just go out of business already! · translated
- [R108] Claude by Anthropic Useful app: I’ve tried most of the AI apps out there and Claude is the one I keep coming back to. The writing quality is a clear step above, responses feel thoughtful rather than generic, and it actually pushes back when I’m wrong instead of just agreeing with everything.
- [R109] Claude by Anthropic Tokens burn thru super duper quickly lately: On pro plan. Literally after 3 prompts, I have reached my limit. It’s becoming more unusable.
- [R110] Claude by Anthropic It won’t answer my questions: I’ll stick with Google. It literally tells me “it’s 1a.m., I refuse to answer you, even though you work night shift. Get some rest.” and various conversation stoppers. It’s unusable.
- [R24] Notion Cluttered with AI: Once a good app, sadly now bloated with AI through enforced updates
- [R30] Notion Ai is disappointed: Honestly I really love this app, it’s amazing to make notes and study with, but the ai is just a lazy and unnecessary feature. Ai is killing our planet and killing creativity, sad that such a wonderful app like this would go to such degeneracy
- [R15] Notion Great App, Performance Issues: I work at a music studio, and this app is amazing at organizing music, students, and schedules. However, on both my iPhone 13 mini and 8th gen iPad, the app is just so slow that it really impedes my work. If they could release a performance optimization update, this review would be 5 stars.
- [R102] Goodnotes Not What I Purchased: Purchased this app years ago and have only lost features since then. Can no longer access content I've already created unless I purchase a subscription. Dissapointing change to what was previously my most used app.
- [R112] Claude by Anthropic Great AI, slow responses: Claude is great and is my favorite AI model. It has been the most accurate and helpful for me. The one thing that drives me absolutely crazy though is how slow it is in the responses. I’ll ask a question, and it will sit there doing nothing for like 10 seconds before it even starts to respond. A lot of the time, it will respond right away and work perfectly. But at le
- [R115] Claude by Anthropic Good AI: I've been using both ChatGPT and Claude side by side and paying for both. I really like a lot of what Claude offers, the features are genuinely good. But the usage limits kill it for me. I hit the "you've reached your limit, try again in 5 hours" wall constantly, almost always right in the middle of something I'm working on. For a paid subscription, that's frustrating. It makes the featu
- [R119] Claude by Anthropic Pro lasts 5 min then have to wait 5 hrs. Max would last only 1 hr. Context limit is horribly short: Such a waste of money. Stupid, slow, limited, featureless, short context limit, long wait time (5hr). Don’t fall for their commercial!
Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store