Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Notability vs Notes

Notability 4.8★ · Free + IAP 65
Winner Tie
Notes 4.8★ · Free to download 65

Notability offers more advanced features for students and power users, but its recent updates and subscription model have led to significant reliability and user experience issues, while Apple Notes remains a simpler, free option with its own set of performance and sync problems.

Full reviews: Notability · Notes

Notability is favored by students for its robust features like PDF annotation and AI quizzes, but recent updates have caused widespread frustration with crashes, data loss, and forced cloud syncing. Apple Notes, while free and convenient, struggles with performance on larger notes and lacks advanced features, though it's generally reliable for basic note-taking.

Head to head

Features & Functionality edge: NotabilityR2R11R12R15
Notability Notability users appreciate its advanced features for students, such as annotating PDFs, drawing diagrams, and AI-powered quiz generation R2R11. However, some users dislike recent changes to Apple Pencil gestures R12R22 and report issues with text wrapping and custom templates . Typing functionality is described as buggy R15.
Notes Apple Notes is praised for its immediate availability and convenience for quick notes, lists, and reminders . It also has features like scanning documents to PDF . However, users desire more advanced features like a color wheel , integrated handwriting , auto-calculation in tables , and better organization with more subfolders . Some dislike the automatic linking of numbers and the new format .
Reliability & Performance tieR1R3R6R9
Notability Notability has faced significant issues with reliability, including frequent app crashes R3R6, notes disappearing or becoming blank R1R46, and freezing R6. Syncing problems are common, especially with cloud services . Users also report lag and device overheating R6R9 during use.
Notes Apple Notes users also report reliability issues, including notes disappearing , frequent crashes , and slow, laggy performance, particularly with larger notes or many notes R69R75R76R78. Overheating on iPads is also mentioned R69R75.
Ease of Use & Interface tieR2R12R15R22
Notability Notability is generally praised for its intuitive interface and ease of use for handwriting R15. However, recent updates have introduced frustrations, such as the inability to hide the control bar R2, changes to Apple Pencil gestures R12R22, and a more confusing user experience with added layers R42. Some find the printing process unclear .
Notes Apple Notes is valued for its simplicity and immediate availability . However, some users find the interface less customizable, wishing for options like setting a default gallery view or easier formatting . Issues like the undo/redo button disappearing and a broken search function R78 detract from usability.
Price & Value edge: NotesR3R7R13R24
Notability Notability's shift to a subscription model has caused significant user dissatisfaction R3R7R24R35. Users who previously paid a one-time fee feel forced into subscriptions R35R37, and the free tier is seen as very limited, quickly becoming useless without payment R7R24R54. There are also reports of unexpected charges R13.
Notes Apple Notes is free and pre-installed on Apple devices, which is a major advantage R75. Users appreciate that it's a free option, especially compared to paid alternatives R24.
Privacy & Data Management tieR4R19R37R42
Notability Notability users express strong concerns about forced migration to Notability's cloud service, which they believe allows the company access to notes for AI training and prevents the use of iCloud for storage R4R19R37R42. This change is a deal-breaker for many, who prefer local storage or iCloud for privacy and control.
Notes Apple Notes users are concerned about privacy and data harvesting for AI training . Some also report issues with notes being removed when shared or difficulties transferring notes to non-Apple devices .
Pick Notability if

Pick Notability if you are a student or power user who needs advanced features like PDF annotation, AI quiz generation, and robust handwriting tools, and are willing to pay for a subscription despite recent reliability concerns R2R11.

Pick Notes if

Pick Apple Notes if you need a free, readily available app for basic note-taking, lists, and reminders, and prioritize simplicity and integration within the Apple ecosystem over advanced features R75.

Evidence note: Notability's recent negative reviews heavily skew its perception, particularly regarding its subscription model and forced cloud syncing, which are deal-breakers for many long-time users. Apple Notes, while free, also suffers from significant performance and data loss complaints, suggesting that neither app is without its flaws.

Frequently asked

Is Notability still a good app for students?
Notability is still considered a very useful app for students due to features like PDF annotation, AI quiz generation, and good handwriting tools, but recent updates have introduced significant issues with crashing, data loss, and a controversial subscription model that may impact its overall value R2R11.
Does Notability require a subscription?
Yes, Notability has moved to a paid subscription model, and while it offers a free tier, many users find it severely limited, allowing only a few notes before requiring payment, which has led to significant dissatisfaction among users R7R24R35R54.
Do Apple Notes have performance issues with many notes?
Yes, Apple Notes users frequently report that the app becomes very slow, laggy, and can cause devices to overheat, especially when dealing with a large number of notes or longer handwritten notes R69R75R76R78.
Can I use iCloud for backup with Notability?
Notability has recently forced users to switch from iCloud sync to its own cloud service, which has been a major point of contention for many, preventing them from using iCloud for storage and backup R19R37R42R46.

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.

  1. [R2] Notability 4/5 · US Please develop a way to hide the control bar (tools like pencil, scissors, etc.)!!!: I absolutely love Notability, it is very useful for me as a college music student. I take a lot of notes there, and I load music into it as pdfs to read and play off of. So far the experience has been wonderful, EXCEPT that there is no way to hide the controls at the top, which sometimes blocks some of the music.
  2. [R11] Notability 5/5 · US Nursing School: This has been the best thing ever for note taking and lectures
  3. [R12] Notability 3/5 · US bad update: reverse the apple pencil update PLEASE or give a option to change it back. it’s not more convenient it’s actually quite annoying
  4. [R15] Notability 3/5 · US Great for writing notes; but terrible for typing: I love and hate this app at the same time. I love using this app when taking notes with my apple pencil. However, to use it like Microsoft Word, it is absolutely buggy and frustrating. There are just way too many bugs to type with this app. (on the MacBook Pro and on the iPad both have many bugs for typing. If you want the best handwriting app, the
  5. [R1] Notability 1/5 · US Lost all my notes: Literally lost everything and all my notes r blank
  6. [R3] Notability 3/5 · US This app crashes all the time: This app makes annotating very easy and has a great interface but I’ve been using it regularly for over a year and it crashes A LOT, especially when inserting a text box. It happens several times in an hour sometimes and is very frustrating because it is a paid subscription service…
  7. [R6] Notability 3/5 · US App always freezing and M4 iPad overheating: I used to love this app and used it through my masters program with every class. Now, after the update, it is completely nonfunctional on both of my iPads. The app freezes almost instantly and will not let me do anything until I close and reopen it. Even then, it freezes again within seconds. I can’t work on new notes and all my old notes are inaccessib
  8. [R9] Notability 3/5 · US Handwriting leaves something to be desired: Has a lot of great tools for handwriting, but a couple of very painful issues are deal breakers for me. 1. Exporting your handwritten notes as a PDF do NOT retain the OCR data (aka you can't search for words any more). So they try and trap you into keeping your subscription forever. 2. Notability's automatic backups and OCR handwriting recognition is
  9. [R22] Notability 1/5 · US Fix squeeze gesture!: Recent update ruined the squeeze gesture by forcing you to interact with a palette to switch to the eraser tool instead of allowing you to auto-switch to eraser. This makes you do an odd movement with your wrist to reach and select the eraser tool, which SIGNIFICANTLY slows down your work progress. I’m seriously questioning why the palette was introduced as a mandatory featur
  10. [R7] Notability 1/5 · US AWFUL: I used to use this often during school and I decided to get it on my iPad just because I wanted to use it, but I can’t even use the text box. I have to do random stuff you can only make like six or five notes before you have to pay like $15 which I wasted so much time trying to curate notes when I literally didn’t even realize I had to pay so that sucks you guys are literally just money dea
  11. [R13] Notability 1/5 · US Free trial charges $100 immediately- no warning !!!!: Wanted to try the new feature to see if it was worth upgrading - instead of getting to try it I was changed immediately and I have no idea if I can get it refunded. DO NOT TRUST THIS APP!!!!!!!!!
  12. [R24] Notability 3/5 · US It’s alright: It’s nice but only with the paid features. My school uses it with subscriptions but at home I use it without subscription and it’s pretty bad without paying for subscription. With subscriptions it’s pretty good tho. Unless you’re planning to pay for an app, I would just use the basic Apple notes app.
  13. [R4] Notability 1/5 · US DO NOT USE THIS APP: I do not understand why I need a notability account to use this app. If you do care the personal information, not using this app. I just want an app to write the notes and keep my notes only on my device.
  14. [R19] Notability 1/5 · US Stealing our notes for their cloud service: They're now forcing us to move to their garbage cloud service that has carve outs in their privacy policy allowing them access to notes and use for ai training. There's no opt out. Previously you could use encrypted storage on iCloud for cloud storage. Notability didn't like that. Now they're forcing everyone over to their own cloud to steal our document
  15. [R37] Notability 1/5 · US For over a Decade: I have been using Notability forever. I paid for the full version and then I started subscribing. As a subscriber I decided to use Notability Cloud syncing. I was surprised that I could not also use Apple iCloud sync and backup. This is a deal breaker. And now, I cannot revert back to Apple iCloud sync and backup. WHY? Please allow me to do both or at least allow me to go back t
  16. [R42] Notability 3/5 · GB Worse with every update: Too many added layers of confusion impair the usability of what should be a simple process: compose a note, file it, back up to iCloud I don’t want or need 50 laters of confusion and AI “slop” I don’t want to be forced to use Notability cloud, I’m happy with iCloud I’m still furious that previous updates fscked all my legacy notability docs !!!!! ,,
  17. [R35] Notability 4/5 · US Great, but…: I use this app all the time and love it. I bought it back when it was a one-time purchase, and when they moved to a subscription model I was grandfathered in with the ‘classic’ license. That’s excellent. However, the app continually tries to upsell me on the subscription, which I refuse to buy as I’ve already got too many media and storage subscriptions. I wish I could turn off that a
  18. [R54] Notability 3/5 · GB Useless if you don’t pay: Notability is a good app, however, very quickly you cannot make anymore edits to your notes. This app would be a lot better if they allowed unlimited note making for free as otherwise it’s useless very quickly.
  19. [R69] Notes 3/5 · US Good for typed notes, serious performance issues for handwritten notes.: It pretty much does what it says on the tin, and is great for taking down quick notes, lists and reminders from your phone. However for longer notes I prefer to hand write them, and this app causes massive overheating and battery drain on my M4 ipad air. Putting lines on a page should not be this taxing on my tablet, and it s
  20. [R75] Notes 3/5 · US 2 steps away from being the perfect note taking app: So as a student i wanted to try out the notes app for note taking with the Apple Pencil. Its honestly great, i love the layout, the tools, the syncing with iCloud,and, most importantly for me, its free. MY ISSUE: When the note is large enough, the ipad a16 i am using atm starts to struggle for no reason. It heats up and the latency for writing
  21. [R76] Notes 2/5 · US Very slow loading: I am using it for many years and number of notes grew, so it became very slow loading thus poor un scalable implementation. On the Mac the folder structure is always randomly expanded after restarts, without the choice to collapse all.
  22. [R78] Notes 3/5 · US Slow, laggy and search not working: I’ve been using Apple Notes for as long as I can remember and for some reason that app just seems to keep getting worse and worse. It has become so slow and laggy that I can barely use it. By the time it allows me to start typing, I’ve nearly forgotten what I was going to type. Additionally, the search function has become so wonky. If I search a word the notes a
  23. [R46] Notability 1/5 · US They will loose your notes/data!: While I loved the convenience and ease of using this platform to take and store notes, the platform is unreliable and they lose your data! Don’t rely on your important notes to be there from day to day! They involuntarily switched me from iCloud sync to their cloud services. When I contacted them it took me multiple times to get through to a live agent. Most of

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store