Agenda vs NotePlan

Agenda

• People whose notes revolve around meetings and dates
• Apple users who want notes tied to Calendar and Reminders
• Project work where older notes need to stay in context

NotePlan

• Apple users who plan their day in notes next to calendar and reminders
• People who time-block tasks around their meetings
• Markdown fans who want plain-text files they control

Agenda

• Available only on Apple devices: Mac, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
• Templates, saved searches, inviting others to collaborate on a note and creating calendar events inside Agenda are Premium features.
• Free accounts get an Agenda watermark on printouts and exported PDFs; removing it is a Premium bonus.
• Sync relies on your own iCloud or Dropbox account.

NotePlan

• There is no free plan: once a trial or subscription ends, notes become read-only.
• Native apps exist only for Mac, iPhone and iPad; Windows and other systems use the web version.
• Sync runs mainly through Apple's CloudKit and is tied to an Apple ID, which the web version also signs in with.
• The monthly plan's free trial lasts 3 days, compared with 7 days on the annual plan.

Agenda

Dated notes on a timeline

Notes sit in project timelines, can carry dates and link to calendar events, so past, current and upcoming notes are seen together.

On the Agenda

Mark notes as current to collect them in a dedicated sidebar group and find them faster in search.

Reminders and calendar events

Calendar events and due reminders appear in one scrolling timeline. Creating and editing events and reminders from inside Agenda is a Premium feature.

Styled-text editor

Headings, lists, checklists, tables, tags and links with consistent styling. Printing and PDF export are included; Markdown and HTML export are Premium.

Capture from anywhere

Clip web pages from Safari on the Mac, share into Agenda from other apps, or email notes to a personal Send to Agenda address (Premium).

Ask Agenda and AI assistants

An on-device assistant answers questions about your notes, and on the Mac assistants such as Claude or ChatGPT can connect through the Model Context Protocol.

NotePlan

Daily, weekly, monthly and yearly notes

Every day gets its own note for tasks and meeting notes, and each week, month and year has one too, for targets, reviews and goals.

Apple Calendar and Reminders

Calendar events and reminders appear beside the daily note. Checking off a reminder in NotePlan also checks it off in Apple Reminders.

Time blocking

Drag a task onto the timeline to turn it into a time block next to your meetings, so you can see what fits in the day.

Project notes and kanban

Project notes hold briefs, decisions and next steps, link to daily work in both directions, and can be grouped into columns as a kanban board.

Plain Markdown files

Notes are plain Markdown files on your device that work offline and can be taken out as one folder. Sync uses your own iCloud account.

Spaces

Shared workspaces for teams or families with shared daily and weekly notes, folders and kanban boards, usable in the apps or in a browser.

Agenda

• Free$0

  The standard feature set with no time limit, including timelines, dated notes, calendar links and sync through iCloud or Dropbox.

• Premium Subscription$39.99

  per year, for Mac, iPhone and iPad

  Unlocks all premium features on every device. Features unlocked while subscribed stay unlocked after canceling.

• Lifetime Premium Features$179.00

  one-time purchase

  A one-off purchase that includes all premium features, now and in the future.

NotePlan

• Individual$8.33

  per month, billed annually ($99); $12 billed monthly

  Full access on Mac, iPad, iPhone and the web, with calendar and reminders, iCloud sync, Spaces, plugins, themes and templates.

• Small Team$19.99

  per month, for up to 5 members

  One shared subscription and a single invoice for up to 5 members. Guests invited to a Space are not billed.

• Business Team$69.99

  per month, for up to 25 members

  The same shared subscription and single invoice for up to 25 members.

Agenda

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime Premium as a one-off purchase

  Instead of the yearly subscription, a one-off lifetime purchase covers all premium features, current and future. The US App Store lists it at $179.00.

• Other savings

  Site and group licenses on request

  Agenda offers licensing of the premium features for larger groups, such as educational institutions or companies, with pricing available on request.

NotePlan

• Annual discount

  Save 31% with annual billing

  The annual plan is $99 a year, which works out to $8.33 a month against $12 on the monthly plan. NotePlan labels this a 31% saving.

• Other savings

  Team subscriptions for 5 or 25 members

  A shared subscription covers up to 5 members for $19.99 a month or up to 25 for $69.99, which NotePlan says is cheaper than separate individual subscriptions.