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Free Apple Notes alternatives
Every pick starts with a genuine free tier, which makes it the easiest way to test a full workflow for zero dollars. Start free and upgrade only when it earns it.
What is the best free alternative to Apple Notes?
Obsidian is the free Apple Notes alternative we recommend first. Obsidian edges out Apple Notes in our testing, scoring 4.7 to 4.2 overall. It scores 4.7 in our testing, and at $0 it keeps the monthly bill reasonable. See the full ranked list below to compare every pick.
6 free alternatives worth your time
Obsidian
4.7 out of 54.7A local-first knowledge base you fully control.
Obsidian edges out Apple Notes in our testing, scoring 4.7 to 4.2 overall.
Why this swap
Best for: Pick Obsidian if you want bi-directional links, a knowledge graph, and notes stored in plain Markdown on your local drive that you can edit on Windows, Mac, Linux, or mobile.
Watch out: Obsidian lacks the effortless system-level capture of Apple Notes: no lock-screen note taking or instant Apple Pencil handwriting conversion, and multi-device sync requires Obsidian Sync or iCloud drive configuration.
Verdict: Choose Obsidian for a permanent, cross-platform personal knowledge graph. Choose Apple Notes for instant system-wide capture and frictionless Apple Pencil sketches.
- Local-first with plain markdown files, your data is never locked into a proprietary format or cloud vendor
- Plugin ecosystem with thousands of community plugins covering every workflow from journaling to project management
Raycast
4.7 out of 54.7A blazing-fast launcher that replaces a dozen apps.
Raycast edges out Apple Notes in our testing, scoring 4.7 to 4.2 overall.
Why this swap
Best for: Pick Raycast if you want a fast Mac launcher to quickly paste snippets, search past clipboard history, or run quick conversions without opening a full note document.
Watch out: Raycast is a keyboard launcher and productivity utility, not a note-taking app. It has a lightweight floating scratchpad, but cannot organize long-form notes, attachments, or sketches.
Verdict: Choose Raycast for keyboard actions and system navigation on macOS. Choose Apple Notes for keeping long-form notes, receipts, and scanned documents.
- Well established product with an active user base
- Regular updates and clear roadmap
Airtable
4.6 out of 54.6Connected app platform combining relational database power with spreadsheet simplicity.
Airtable edges out Apple Notes in our testing, scoring 4.6 to 4.2 overall.
Why this swap
Best for: Pick Airtable if you need relational databases, structured team spreadsheets, form collection, and automated task assignments.
Watch out: Airtable is an enterprise database tool starting at $20 per seat per month, far too complex and heavy for jotting down a quick idea, shopping list, or meeting summary.
Verdict: Choose Airtable for structured team operations and automated databases. Choose Apple Notes for simple, instant personal note capture.
- Combines the visual simplicity of a spreadsheet with the relational power of SQL.
- Interface Designer creates custom executive dashboards and client portals effortlessly.
Evernote
4.5 out of 54.5The pioneer digital notebook and document scanner for web clipping, OCR search, and multi-device note archiving.
Evernote edges out Apple Notes in our testing, scoring 4.5 to 4.2 overall.
Why this swap
Best for: Pick Evernote if you need multi-platform access across Windows and Android, advanced PDF optical character recognition, and the most capable web clipper in the industry.
Watch out: Evernote charges $14.99 a month for Personal, caps its free tier to 50 notes on a single device, and feels noticeably heavier than Apple's clean native interface.
Verdict: Choose Evernote for cross-platform web clipping and searchable document archives. Choose Apple Notes for clean, free daily notes inside the Apple ecosystem.
- Web Clipper remains superior to all competitors for clean, unformatted web research archiving.
- OCR text recognition accurately searches typed text, scanned PDFs, and messy handwritten notes.
Craft
4.4 out of 54.4Beautiful documents and notes for Apple users.
Craft edges out Apple Notes in our testing, scoring 4.4 to 4.2 overall.
Why this swap
Best for: Pick Craft if you love Apple-native design but need structured visual documents, nested sub-pages, shareable public web links, and clean markdown export.
Watch out: Craft requires a paid subscription ($10 a month) for power features and large storage, whereas Apple Notes is included free with your Apple hardware.
Verdict: Choose Craft when documents need to look client-ready and shareable outside iCloud. Choose Apple Notes for effortless, free personal notebook capture.
- Well established product with an active user base
- Regular updates and clear roadmap
Bear
4.4 out of 54.4An elegant Markdown note app for Apple.
Bear edges out Apple Notes in our testing, scoring 4.4 to 4.2 overall.
Why this swap
Best for: Pick Bear if you write primarily in Markdown and want cleaner typography, custom themes, code syntax highlighting, and nested hashtag organization on Apple devices.
Watch out: Bear still lives exclusively on Apple devices, has no web interface, and multi-device sync requires Bear Pro at $2.99 a month.
Verdict: Choose Bear for dedicated Markdown writing and nested tags. Choose Apple Notes for free rich-text notes, document scanning, and built-in sketch tools.
- Well established product with an active user base
- Regular updates and clear roadmap
Apple Notes vs the free alternatives
| Tool | Our score | From | Free tier | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Notes | 4.2 | Free | Yes | Apple device users who want an instant, zero-friction notes application built directly into iOS and macOS with outstanding Apple Pencil handwriting, document scanning, iCloud sync, and Apple Intelligence features at zero software cost. |
| Obsidian | 4.7 | $0 | Yes | Writers, researchers, and knowledge workers who want a private, extensible, local-first note-taking system built on plain markdown files they fully control. |
| Raycast | 4.7 | Free | Yes | A blazing-fast launcher that replaces a dozen apps. |
| Airtable | 4.6 | $20/seat/mo | Yes | Ops teams, marketers, product managers, and agencies needing relational databases, Interface Designer apps, and automated workflows. |
| Evernote | 4.5 | $14.99/mo | Yes | Researchers, executives, professionals, and archival users wanting premier Web Clipper capture, PDF optical character recognition (OCR), and handwritten note search. |
| Craft | 4.4 | $10/mo | Yes | Beautiful documents and notes for Apple users. |
| Bear | 4.4 | $2.99/mo | Yes | An elegant Markdown note app for Apple. |
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