Apple Notes vs Microsoft OneNote
Which is better in 2026? Five scores, side by side.
Apple Notes is the better app overall, scoring 9.0 to 8.1. Apple Notes wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Microsoft OneNote on 0, with 1 tied.
iPhone, iPad and Mac owners who want a fast, free place for everyday notes
Students and tablet users who take handwritten or mixed-media notes
Score by score
The details
| Feature | Apple Notes | Microsoft OneNote |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Productivity & Notes | Productivity & Notes |
| Category rank | #5 of 17 | #16 of 17 |
| Developer | Apple | Microsoft |
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Usable for free | Yes | Yes |
| iPhone & iPad | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | — | ✓ |
| Mac | ✓ | ✓ |
| Windows | — | ✓ |
| Web | ✓ | ✓ |
Common questions
Is Apple Notes better than Microsoft OneNote?
Apple Notes is the better app overall, scoring 9.0 to 8.1. Apple Notes wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Microsoft OneNote on 0, with 1 tied.
Which is cheaper, Apple Notes or Microsoft OneNote?
Apple Notes: Free; syncs with 5 GB of free iCloud storage, and iCloud+ starts at $0.99 a month. Microsoft OneNote: Free; Microsoft 365 adds Copilot features and more OneDrive storage. On value for money, Apple Notes scores higher.
Do Apple Notes and Microsoft OneNote work on the same devices?
Only Microsoft OneNote runs on Android, Windows.
Which is more private, Apple Notes or Microsoft OneNote?
Apple Notes scores higher on privacy (9.0/10). App Store label: no tracking. Your note content and an ID are linked to you; usage data is not. Turn on Advanced Data Protection and your iCloud notes are end-to-end encrypted.
Strengths and weaknesses
Apple Notes
- Free and built into every iPhone, iPad and Mac
- Handwriting, scans, tables and transcripts in one app
- No tracking, according to the App Store label
- No Android or Windows app, only iCloud.com in a browser
- Free iCloud storage is just 5 GB
- Not end-to-end encrypted unless you turn on Advanced Data Protection
Apple Notes is free, already on your iPhone, iPad and Mac, and a lot better than most people think. You get checklists, tables, document scanning, handwriting, Math Notes and audio recordings with written transcripts. Share notes with family, lock private ones and export to Markdown. Everything syncs through iCloud. The catch is that it lives in Apple's world, with only a web version for Windows and Android.
Full Apple Notes review
Microsoft OneNote
- Free on every big platform except Linux
- Great for handwriting and stylus pens
- Fits right in with Microsoft 365 and Teams
- Sync can be slow and sometimes clashes
- Looks and note structure feel dated
Microsoft OneNote works like a digital binder. Inside are notebooks, sections and pages. You can type, draw, paste and write by hand anywhere on a page. Pen support is excellent, and it can search text inside images. It's free on Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android and the web. Copilot features come with Microsoft 365. The downsides: it feels dated, sync sometimes clashes, and free-form pages get messy.
Full Microsoft OneNote review
