Evernote 2

  



When note-taking app Evernote launched back in 2004, it was a bold, innovative software product that promised to help us remember… well, everything.

Moleskine Evernote Journal with Smart Stickers, Soft Cover, XL (7.5' x 9.5') Ruled/Lined, Kraft Brown, 176 Pages (Set of 2) 4.5 out of 5 stars 455 $24.22 $ 24. Here, Evernote suggests downloading the version of Google Authenticator you wish to use. Note that anywhere (not just Evernote) that prompts Google Authenticator also supports Authy. So just click on the platform you use. For these purposes, we use iOS. You are now shown a QR code. Go to your device and open the Authy app. Click “Add Account”.

In 2004, Evernote was in the enviable position of being first-to-market. Evernote was among the very first software products to offer native apps for Windows, OS X, Android, and iOS. It was one of the first tools to offer cloud syncing as a baseline feature. The earliest versions of Evernote were incredibly generous in terms of how much storage users were given for free.

Fast-forward to today. Evernote is still around, but it’s a shadow of its former self. It’s much more expensive than it used to be. Some legacy bugs and stability issues still haven’t been fixed. Even Evernote’s Business plan offers very little value for teams.

Now there are dozens of note-taking apps and organizational tools we can use to keep our digital lives in order. But which Evernote alternatives are worth looking at and which should you avoid?

That’s exactly what we’ll be looking at in this post.

Below, we explore three Evernote alternatives and offer a rundown of each. We’ve examined each tool’s strengths and weaknesses relative to Evernote. By the end of this post, you’ll have a much better idea of how these tools stack up and how they can help you organize your digital life.

Evernote Alternative #1: Bear

The first alternative to Evernote we’ll be looking at is Bear by app development studio Shiny Frog. Of the three Evernote alternatives we’ve reviewed, Bear is the “purest” note-taking app of them all.

The first thing you’ll probably notice about Bear is that it looks a lot like a mash-up of Slack and a generic email client. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In fact, the simplicity of Bear’s sleek, minimal UI––and its simplicity as a whole––is one of the app’s major selling points.

One of the biggest problems with Evernote in recent years is bloat. Bear was seemingly designed with this in mind. Bear might not have as many features as Evernote. But it runs a lot faster––so much faster that most long-time Evernote users will probably feel the difference immediately.

This is especially true on mobile. Bear’s mobile app, which is only available for iOS, feels a lot faster than Evernote. Its mobile UI is similarly quick, utilizing familiar slide-and-swipe gestures to sort, delete, and pin notes. The icons used throughout the app are intuitive and the app does a decent job of walking new users through its features.

One of the biggest differences between Bear and Evernote is Bear’s organizational structure. Unlike Evernote, which relies on the Notes/Notebooks schema, Bear favors a Slack-like hashtag system that organizes relevant items by hashtag. One of the most immediate benefits of hashtag organization is that one note can be saved across multiple relevant hashtags. Notes in Bear can also be assigned an unlimited number of tags.

Another of Bear’s handiest features is the ability to link between notes. This might not sound that impressive but it’s amazing how few tools offer this functionality. (Google Docs still doesn’t do this after fourteen years!) Bear’s linking works similarly to adding a hyperlink to a text document. Best of all, there’s no limit on how many links you can add between notes.

In terms of pricing, Bear’s free version is solid. Almost all of Bear’s core functionality is available without purchasing a Pro subscription. The one feature you may be tempted to pay for is the ability to sync Bear across multiple devices. This feature is not available in Bear’s free version, nor are Bear’s custom themes and export options. Generally, though, Bear’s free version will probably be enough for casual users.

Now that we’ve taken a look at Bear, let’s summarize the pros and cons.

Bear: Pros

Bear is a quick, lightweight note-taking app that looks and feels great. Here’s what we really liked about it:

  • Clean, elegant UI
  • Great mobile functionality
  • Flexible hashtag organization
  • Fast, responsive search function
  • Linking between notes

Bear: Cons

No software product is without its faults. Here’s where we thought Bear fell short:

  • Only available for iOS/OS X; no Android or Windows versions available
  • No sharing/collaboration features
  • No password protection/encryption options
  • No notifications or reminders for timely tasks

If you’re an Apple user, Bear is a lightweight, capable note-taking tool that offers much of the functionality of Evernote without the bloat. But it’s a shame that Android and Windows users have been left out in the cold.

Evernote Alternative #2: Notion

Some people might argue that comparing Evernote to Notion isn’t really fair. After all, Evernote is primarily a note-taking app aimed at individuals, whereas Notion is an all-in-one workspace designed for teams.

Although this is true, it’s also fair to say that––for better or worse––Evernote has become much more than a note-taking app since it launched in 2004. It’s also fair to say that Notion has become one of Evernote’s greatest competitors.

Notion is built on the idea of Blocks. Everything in a Notion workspace is a Block. Paragraphs of text, images, embedded spreadsheets or calendars, to-do lists––all of these elements can be added to a single Notion “page” as individual Blocks that make up a workspace. This concept of Blocks is what makes Notion so powerful. A Notion workspace can be whatever you need it to be.

The biggest difference between Evernote and Notion is that Notion was built for teams from the outset. Evernote tried––and largely failed––to make the leap from a personal tool aimed at consumers to a collaborative tool aimed at teams. Notion, however, was designed with teams in mind. Notion’s collaboration features are very strong. Items can be shared with and assigned to team members. Notifications can be set to alert multiple users of pending meetings, deadlines, or urgent tasks. Changes made to one Block can cascade throughout workspaces. In this way, Notion is closer to tools like Airtable that utilize relational databases than a mere note-taking application.

For all its strengths, Notion has two fundamental weaknesses. The first is its flexibility. Although Notion can do pretty much whatever you want it to, that flexibility can make Notion intimidating to newcomers. Even creating a simple note brings up half a dozen potential templates to choose from. This makes Notion less than ideal for taking quick notes in a hurry. The second drawback is Notion’s speed. Notion is a very powerful tool. Unfortunately, this means that the tool as a whole can feel sluggish at times. This can feel especially painful on mobile.

Pricing-wise, Notion is reasonable. Notion’s free version is decent, but has a 1,000-block limit and an upload restriction of just 5MB. Notion is also available on Personal and Team plans, priced at $4 and $8 per month respectively. Notion also offers an Enterprise tier aimed at larger teams priced at $20 per user per month with a dedicated support manager.

Now let’s talk pros and cons.

Notion: Pros

We like Notion a lot. What does it get right?

  • Very reasonable pricing
  • Flexible, diverse toolset with broad functionality
  • Clean, minimal UI
  • Strong collaborative features

Notion: Cons

Notion is a capable tool but it isn’t perfect. Where could Notion improve?

  • Not ideal for taking quick notes on the fly
  • Learning curve can be steeper than that of comparable tools
  • Can feel sluggish at times, particularly on mobile

Evernote Alternative #3: OneNote

The third Evernote competitor we’ll be looking at is Microsoft’s OneNote, a deceptively capable note-taking app that can do a lot more besides.

OneNote is unique in that it looks like a classically Microsoft product but feels like a blend of Evernote and Notion. Open OneNote and you’re presented with an unmistakably Microsoft interface that looks very similar to Outlook and Office. However, that’s where the similarities end.

Once you get past the familiar toolbar navigation at the top of the screen, you’ll notice that OneNote uses a blended notebook/tab system as its primary organizational scheme. First you have Notebooks, which are listed in the left-most column. Each Notebook can be broken down into distinct Sections. Finally, each Section can have multiple Pages, which function similarly to Notion’s freeform workspaces.

This is a little more complex than OneNote’s old tab system, but it’s still easy enough to see where you are in your OneNote file system at a quick glance. You can also add tags to individual elements within OneNote to keep track of your stuff.

Once you drill down into OneNote’s workspaces, you’ll find they’re as flexible and powerful as Notion’s workspaces. Similarly to Notion, OneNote allows you to add many different elements to a workspace. You can add images (including handwritten notes), checklists, media files, and file attachments to OneNote’s spaces. In this regard, OneNote feels much closer to a real notebook than Notion does. OneNote also supports simultaneous editing by multiple users. There’s a little lag between user input and edits displaying in real time, but it’s hardly a dealbreaker.

Like Evernote’s popular Web Clipper, OneNote allows you to save content from virtually any page and store it in OneNote. You can clip a single image or entire webpage, including PDFs. Clipped items can be categorized, tagged, and stored like any other item. This makes OneNote a very capable tool for researchers and users working across a wide range of source material.

In terms of pricing, OneNote is unique in that the product itself is completely free. It doesn’t even have a premium or pro tier. Instead, storage in OneNote is connected directly to a user’s OneDrive account. This is a blessing and a curse. If you’re already using OneDrive, you’re probably already using OneNote, too. If you aren’t using OneDrive, though, switching to another cloud storage provider is quite an ask. OneNote allows you to export notes to virtually every major productivity tool including G Suite, but the connection to OneDrive is its biggest weakness.

Now, let’s see what OneNote gets right and where it could use some improvement.

OneNote: Pros

OneNote looks like a Microsoft product but doesn’t feel like one. Here’s what we liked about OneNote:

  • Smart, intuitive organizational structure
  • Powerful, flexible workspaces
  • Great for casual/quick note-taking
  • Solid collaboration and sharing functionality
  • Integrations with most major products and services
  • Completely free to use

OneNote: Cons

OneNote is a strong Evernote alternative, but it isn’t perfect. Here’s what disappointed us about OneNote:

  • No longer any dedicated desktop app; OneNote for Windows 10 is now the default OneNote experience in both Office 365 and Office 2019
  • Microsoft OneDrive account required
  • No advanced security options/two-factor authentication

Making the Switch from Evernote

Even ten years ago, it would have been difficult to imagine not just one, but several, software products threatening Evernote’s dominance. Evernote isn’t a bad product––it’s just not nearly as good as it used to be.

Fortunately for users, Evernote’s loss is their gain. There’s never been a better time to make the switch from Evernote to a competing tool. That said, there are some users who would probably benefit from sticking with Evernote. All three of the tools above make it easy to import notebooks and notes from Evernote. However, unless you urgently need any of the functionality Evernote lacks, it might be worth sticking with Evernote.

The days of writing notes in various notebooks, furiously scribbling research on notecards, and jotting down ideas on sticky notes that end up in unexpected places are on their way out. Electronic note-taking tools have become more popular for students, professionals, and, well, anyone with ideas, notes, or to-dos.

While some of us diehards still like putting pen to paper (you can pry my notebook from my cold, cramped hands), there’s no denying that note-taking apps make it easy to organize, save, and share notes with others in a way you just can’t do with physical notes.

Evernote has become synonymous with note-taking from its inception in 2008. But just because it’s popular doesn’t mean it’s the right tool for you.

An Overview of Evernote

Used by 225 million people worldwide, Evernote is a leading note-taking app, with cross-platform syncing so you can update notes on any device. A widely used Evernote feature is the Web Clipper, which allows you to save website screenshots, articles, and PDFs directly to your account.

Features:

  • Find templates for notes like goal tracking, weekly planning, and budgeting.
  • Go paperless with document scanning.
  • Include information from the web with web clipping.
  • Upload and search handwritten notes from Post-it notes, whiteboards, etc.
  • Use centralized team spaces for shared team notes and resources.
  • Compatible with Browser, Windows, Mac, Android, iOS.
  • Integrates with Gmail, Outlook, Salesforce, Slack, Google Drive, and Microsoft Teams.

Best for: Anyone looking for a free version that’s packed full of value, or businesses that need an easy-to-use option for team sharing and collaboration.

Cost: Evernote Basic offers note-taking features for free. Premium ($7.99/month) and Business ($14.99/month) provide advanced features for organizing, sharing, and collaborating.

Top Evernote Alternatives for Better Note-Taking

Whether you’re looking for something feature-rich and complex or a simple text-based app where you can dump your ideas, you’ll love these Evernote alternatives.

1. Ideanote

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Marketed as the world’s #1 all-in-one innovation platform, Ideanote gives you one central hub to capture and manage your ideas, notes, and to-dos. This app makes it easy to collaborate with your team (or anyone else!) while developing, managing, and tracking ideas. Ideanote offers a customizable and intuitive workflow that makes note-taking easy and helpful.

Features:

  • Use 100+ idea-collection templates for situations including efficient meetings, new customers, expansion, resources, and processes.
  • Crete goal-oriented idea collections centered around a challenging question.
  • Each member gets their own profile to manage ideas, see progress, and customize settings.
  • Move, copy, edit, and archive your notes for better organization.
  • Get real-time notifications on updated notes.
  • Drag and drop files from your desktop to an Ideanote card.

Best for: Large teams that need an innovative and immediate way to exchange ideas and notes.

Cost: Starter ($249/month), Business ($649/month), and Enterprise ($2,899/month) plans all include unlimited members and their own innovative workspace, with different numbers of admins, ideas, criteria for each plan.

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2. Sticky Notes

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Lightning fast, easy-to-use browser extension for taking notes in Chrome and Edge.

$49.00 | $120.00

Sticky Notes is a browser extension that makes it easy to take notes in both Chrome and Edge. Accessing and organizing notes is also easy, and the app allows you to work offline so you can continue to jot down ideas, to-do lists, and other info at any time. With a range of beautiful themes, this browser extension allows you to personalize your experience while making note taking fun!

Features:

  • Beautiful handpicked themes to create an experience that’s easy on the eyes.
  • Open Sticky Notes in just one click inside your browser.
  • Save your notes with optional Cloud backups and organize them into folders.
  • Access notes quickly by clicking the extension icon.
  • Works offline; take notes without an internet connection.

Best for: Busy entrepreneurs and business owners who want an easy and convenient way to store notes, to-dos, and ideas right from their browser.

Cost: The Free Forever plan is limited to three notes but offers basic themes and unlimited lists. Premium Plan ($9.99/month) gives you all nine notes, premium animated themes, automatic backup of notes, and multi-monitor support. Get lifetime access through AppSumo deals for just $49.00.

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3. Google Keep

Google Keep is one of the simpler note-taking apps on our Evernote alternative list, with an easy-to-use, clean interface. With Google Keep, you can take notes on your phone, tablet, or computer, syncing across devices or sharing notes with friends and family.

Features:

  • Label, pin, and color-code notes.
  • Collaborate on notes in real time.
  • Speech-to-text functionality for note dictation.

Best for: People looking for a simple note-taking app without all the bells and whistles.

Cost: Free

4. Microsoft OneNote

Microsoft OneNote is marketed as a digital notebook where you can “gather your notes and make them even better.” OneNote makes it easy to organize your thoughts across notebooks, sections, and pages with quick navigation and search to find what you’re looking for.

Features:

  • Use on unlimited devices for free.
  • Draw thoughts and annotations with your finger or a stylus.
  • Use Web Clipper to save web content with one click.
  • Share notebooks with coworkers, friends, or family.
  • Include mixed media notes like audio, video, and other files.

Best for: Entrepreneurs already using Windows, Office365, or OneDrive, and those who want a free app with lots of features.

Cost: Free

5. Notejoy

Notejoy has become a well-known product for teams that want to share and collaborate on notes with others. With real-time editing by multiple users and threaded discussions, Notejoy has some of the best team collaboration features of any note-taking app. Integrations with Trello, Slack, and scanner apps also make it a must-have for teams.

Features:

  • Edit notes in real time with multiple team members.
  • See who has viewed and added to notes.
  • Threaded discussions with @mentions and reactions.
  • Embed Google Docs, Microsoft Office docs, PDFs, videos, and audio.
  • Clip any webpage or forward emails to Notejoy to create notes quickly.
  • Organize notes with nested notebooks, nested tags, team libraries, pins, and archives.
  • Available on a browser, Mac, Windows, iPhone, iPad, and Android devices.
  • Integrates with Google Drive, Gmail, Microsoft Office, Slack, Trello, HubSpot, and scanner apps.

Best for: Teams looking for a single, well-organized place to collaborate, store, and share knowledge with others.

Cost: Free option includes up to 5 users, 3 team libraries, 5 notebooks, 10MB per file upload, and up to 100MB library storage. Paid plans start at $4/month and offer additional features and more storage.

6. Bear

A newcomer to the note-taking software game, Bear allows you to create and sync notes across your Apple devices. A unique feature of Bear is the hybrid markdown editor that offers a full range of formatting options. This feature, along with the ability to export and get important stats like word/character count, read time, and paragraph numbers, make this app ideal for authors and students.

Features:

  • Compatible with Mac and iOS.
  • Format text as you type with a hybrid markdown editor.
  • Organize notes using hashtags and slashes for nested tags.
  • Use focus mode to concentrate on the task at hand.
  • Beautiful themes and typography, including a Dark Mode.
  • Encrypt individual notes with a password or Face/Touch ID.

Best for: Writers and students who need the option to take notes or write long-form content they can format before exporting.

Cost: Free option: Create notes, add tags and attachments, and export notes. Pro subscription ($1.49/monthly or $14.99 annually): Syncing, themes, and more powerful export options.

7. Simplenote

Simplenote‘s appeal is described in its name — it’s a simple app with a simple user interface. Simplenote offers a no-frills experience with minimal features, making it ideal for those who tend to get overwhelmed or distracted by all the options and functionality of other mobile note-taking mobile applications. If you’re looking for a distraction-free experience with simple text notes, and you don’t need advanced features, Simplenote may be your new go-to program.

Features:

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  • Available for Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Windows, and web browsers like Chrome.
  • Automatic and real-time sync.
  • Add tags to find notes quickly with the instant search feature.
  • Share notes with others or publish notes online.
  • Write, preview, and publish notes in markdown format.

Best for: People who prefer simplicity over fancy features or want a distraction-free note-taking experience.

Cost: Free

8. Dropbox Paper

Dropbox Paper is another powerful alternative to Evernote that’s ideal for team collaboration. In addition to allowing you to add and edit notes as a team, Dropbox Paper offers a task management tool that lets you assign to-do lists, add due dates, and mention team members in real time within the document. You can also drop a link to nearly anything in your note — YouTube video, Pinterest board, Google Map, SoundCloud clip, GIF — and Paper displays the preview properly.

Features:

  • Compatible with Windows, iOS, and Android.
  • Variety of templates, including meeting notes, launch plan, brainstorming, creative brief, project plan, new hire onboarding, and product spec.
  • Annotate specific parts of an image with feedback.
  • Turn Paper docs into professional-looking presentations in one step.
  • Simplify to-do lists with task management tools like task assignments, due dates, reminders, and task completion.
  • Integrates with Sketch, Invision, Dropbox, Slack, and more.

Best for: Dropbox customers looking to collaborate on notes, or teams that need task management capabilities for project management.

Cost: Free

9. Notion

Notion is another Evernote alternative focused on team collaboration. One of the best note-taking apps for teams, Notion offers a variety of project management capabilities, including Kanban boards, tables, and lists to customize your workflow. Unique to Notion is the team wiki feature, which allows you to turn your team knowledge into a database of easy-to-find answers. If you’re just looking for a personal note-taking solution, Notion may be overkill.

Features:

  • Web app, desktop app, and apps for iOS and Android devices.
  • Turn any type of project into a template, including multi-layered pages.
  • Use tables to create databases or a team wiki.
  • Nested hierarchical organization, including dropdowns.
  • Collaborate in real time, mentioning coworkers when you need input or responses.
  • Invite others to work on notes or share with your entire company.
  • Embed 500+ other apps inside your Notion pages to create a hub for your team’s work.

Best for: Teams that need an easy way to collaborate on notes while accessing a team wiki.

Cost: Free plan allows unlimited pages and blocks you can sync across devices and share with five guests. Paid plans start at $4 a month and offer unlimited guests, unlimited team members, admin tools, and advanced permissions.

10. Zoho Notebook

Zoho Notebook is a unique Evernote alternative, as it takes a novel approach to creating note types by using different note cards. Zoho offers different formatting for text notes, checklists, audio notes, photos, files, sketches, and smart notes with advanced formatting. Another distinction between Zoho Notebook and other solutions is a beautiful visual experience, with separate images for each notebook and colored backgrounds.

Features:

  • Available on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and Linux.
  • Use pinch and swipe gestures to navigate the app and organize notes.
  • Customize notebooks with image covers and color-coded note cards.
  • Search for and organize notes using tags.
  • Secure notes with passcodes or Touch ID.
  • Automatically sync notes to the cloud across all your devices.

Best for: People who need to manage many different types of notes within the same app, and people who are visually inclined and want a beautiful experience.

Cost: Free

11. Apple Notes

If you have an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, you’re probably already familiar with Apple Notes. While simple, Notes makes it easy to capture thoughts, create checklists, and sketch ideas quickly. It comes loaded on your iPhone, iPad, and MacBook, so there’s no need to download the app. To create a note, open the app, tap the “compose” button, create your note, and tap “Done.” Then it’s saved and synced to all your devices. It couldn’t be easier!

Features:

  • Use iCloud to update your notes across all your devices.
  • Pin important notes, so they are easier to find later.
  • Create checklists to mark off as you finish.
  • Format with headings, bold, italics, underline, strikethrough, and more.
  • Scan and sign documents within the app.
  • Add attachments like a website, photo, video, or Google map.
  • Organize your notes in folders.

Best for: Apple users who want a quick and easy way to save thoughts, ideas, to-dos, notes, and attachments.

Cost: Free

12. Turtl

Turtl is a close all-in-one Evernote competitor, with the biggest difference being that it’s a secure and encrypted open-source application. Turtl works well for any kind of notes or project, including passwords, shopping lists, bookmarks, and more long-form content. It also allows you to gain control of your data by installing your own Turtl server at home or work.

Features:

  • Sync across devices, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android. An app for iOS is coming soon.
  • Use bookmark browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox.
  • Share and collaborate with teammates or family members who can access your data without compromising security.
  • Protect note data with Turtl’s high-end cryptography.

Best for: Entrepreneurs and individuals who want a secure and encrypted notebook that’s collaborative.

Cost: Free for up to 50MB of note data and 3 collaborators. Paid plans start at $3/month and offer more storage and additional collaborators.

13. Quip

Owned by Salesforce, Quip brings all your notes, docs, and team members into one place where you can collaborate and chat with ease. A unique feature of Quip is its chat feature, which is built into every document. Quick to set up and easy to use, Quip makes it easy to get started with creating and maintaining living documents.

Features:

  • Integrates with Salesforce’s CRM software so you can create spreadsheets with live Salesforce data.
  • Streamline your workflow with a built-in chat feature, team chat rooms, and 1:1 messaging.
  • Templates for sales, service, marketing, manufacturing, project planning, and more to kickstart your workflow.
  • Collaborate on documents and edit with others in real time.
  • Out-of-the-box security with encrypted, auditable, and controlled data.

Best for: Teams that need to develop and maintain documents that change over time or organizations already using Salesforce.

Cost: Starter ($10/user/month) plan includes unlimited documents, spreadsheets, and slides with group chat and 1:1 messages. Enterprise ($25/user/month) plan adds single sign-on, enterprise API and customization, and custom live apps.

14. Roam Research

Marketed as a personal knowledge management system, Roam is a note-taking tool that’s ideal for organizing ongoing research and collecting data. Roam was inspired by the Zettelkasten method of note taking, which involves writing lots of small notes on rearrangeable index cards instead of taking pages and pages of notes that you then have to sort through. Roam is unique because it allows you to collect notes using “networked thought,” which helps you discover and create relationships between notes and ideas.

Features:

  • Available through web browser.
  • Use bidirectional links to link existing topics or ideas together.
  • Use in-text links or page links at the bottom of notes to jump from one note to another.
  • Get a bird’s-eye view of all your pages and how they are linked using the graph overview.
  • Insert code, images, videos, tables, nested lists, diagrams, and more.

Best for: Students and professionals who need to keep track of research or ideas over time and want to see how the ideas/data interconnect.

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Cost: Professional plan ($15/month) offers up to three private or public Roam graphs, unlimited collaborators, and API access. Believer plan ($500/5 years) adds first access to new features, community calls with the team, and priority support.

15. Obsidian

A direct competitor to Roam, Obsidian markets itself as “a second brain” that helps you make connections between your notes and ideas. This knowledge base works on top of a local folder of plain text Markdown files. Encouraging you to make connections between your ideas, Obsidian makes it easy to connect notes with backlinks and a graph view. The ability to use offline may be a game-changer for those who want to collect ideas or make notes without the distraction of the internet.

Features:

  • Available for macOS, Windows, and Linux.
  • Use offline for a distraction-free experience.
  • Connect ideas and notes using backlinks with a graph view for a bird’s-eye view of connections.
  • Split panes infinitely, resize, and pin to keep content linked.
  • Build your own note-taking toolkit with plugins like graph view, page view, backlinks, daily notes, word count, and search.

Best for: Anyone who wants to organize their notes, data, and ideas by connecting and linking based on themes or topics.

Cost: Personal plan is free for personal use; no sign-up or account needed. The Catalyst ($25+ one-time payment) and Commercial ($50/user/year) plans offer additional support and access.

16. Nimbus Note

Nimbus Note is the ultimate note-taking, sharing, and organizing tool for easy collaboration across team members and clients. This powerful platform eliminates the scatterbrained feeling of juggling tools, folders, and those pesky sticky notes on your monitor. With customizable workspaces for team members to get on the same page, simple tracking, seamless embedding, and even live desktop screen recording, productivity for your team just got a whole lot better.

Features:

  • Use isolated workspaces, each with their own access permissions, branding, and third-party integrations
  • Unlimited nested folders for each workspace to manage complex projects
  • Assemble notes with a block editor, which lets you embed files, audio, video, websites, and widgets like Google Maps, YouTube, and Google Drive
  • Mobile app lets you scan papers and add them straight to your notes
  • Flexible tables that act as spreadsheets, databases, or both
  • Nimbus Capture lets you record desktop videos with a live feed from your webcam, with the ability to take on-screen notes
  • Public pages that you can share with teams and clients with ease
  • Embeddable code of shared Nimbus Pages for your website or blog

Best for: Project managers of small and large teams looking to consolidate all their documents and info in one collaborative workspace

Cost: Pro Plan ($24.99/year), Business Plan ($70/year).

How to Pick the Best Evernote Alternative

If you aren’t loving Evernote as much as you thought you would, there are plenty of note-taking applications that are just as good as, if not better than, Evernote. The key to picking the best Evernote alternative is to choose a program that has the features you care about most, fits in your budget, and works with the technology you’re already using every day.

Start with a free trial from one of the contenders above to see if you like using the software.

If you’re ready to commit, check out our AppSumo deals on note-taking software like Ideanote and Sticky Notes.