Fantastical vs Microsoft OneNote
Which is better in 2026? Five scores, side by side.
Fantastical is the better app overall, scoring 8.9 to 8.1. Fantastical wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Microsoft OneNote on 1.
Busy Apple users juggling work and personal calendars
Students and tablet users who take handwritten or mixed-media notes
Score by score
The details
| Feature | Fantastical | Microsoft OneNote |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Productivity & Notes | Productivity & Notes |
| Category rank | #6 of 13 | #12 of 13 |
| Developer | Flexibits | Microsoft |
| Pricing | Free + paid plans | Free |
| Usable for free | Yes | Yes |
| iPhone & iPad | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | — | ✓ |
| Mac | ✓ | ✓ |
| Windows | ✓ | ✓ |
| Web | — | ✓ |
Common questions
Is Fantastical better than Microsoft OneNote?
Fantastical is the better app overall, scoring 8.9 to 8.1. Fantastical wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Microsoft OneNote on 1.
Which is cheaper, Fantastical or Microsoft OneNote?
Fantastical: Free basics; Flexibits Premium is $6.99 a month or $56.99 a year on the App Store. Microsoft OneNote: Free; Microsoft 365 adds Copilot features and more OneDrive storage. On value for money, Microsoft OneNote scores higher.
Do Fantastical and Microsoft OneNote work on the same devices?
Only Microsoft OneNote runs on Android, Web.
Which is more private, Fantastical or Microsoft OneNote?
Fantastical scores higher on privacy (8.4/10). App Store label: no tracking; email, name, IDs, usage and crash data are linked to you. Flexibits says most synced data is end-to-end encrypted, never sold, and forwarded emails aren't used for AI training.
Strengths and weaknesses
Fantastical
- Add events by typing a normal sentence
- Polished apps for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Windows
- Works with Microsoft 365 and Google accounts
- Most power features need the subscription
- No Android phone or tablet app yet
- Microsoft 365 users must switch to Graph sync
Fantastical lets you add an event by typing a normal sentence with the who, what and when, and it fills in the rest. Around that you get the DayTicker, Calendar Sets, tasks from Todoist and Google Tasks, Openings and Proposals for scheduling, weather, and AI that turns forwarded emails and screenshots into events. Most of the best parts need Premium, and Android phones aren't supported yet.
Full Fantastical review
Microsoft OneNote
- Free on every major platform except Linux
- Excellent handwriting and stylus support
- Works well with Microsoft 365 and Teams
- Sync can be slow and occasionally conflicts
- Interface and organization feel dated
Microsoft OneNote works like a digital binder: notebooks, sections and pages where you can type, draw, paste and handwrite anywhere on the canvas. Pen support is excellent, it can search text inside images, and it is free on Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android and the web. Copilot features come with Microsoft 365. The downsides are a dated feel, occasional sync conflicts, and freeform pages that get messy.
Full Microsoft OneNote review
