Antinote vs Stickier
We give Antinote a 2.8 GPA and Stickier a 3.2, out of 4.0. Antinote grades higher on features. Stickier grades higher on the free plan and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Antinote
Mac scratchpad for temporary notes, quick math and checklists
Free trial · from $5 one-time
Stickier
Sticky notes for Mac with iCloud sync and an iPhone companion app
Free plan · from $4.99 one-time
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAAntinoteGood | 3.2GPAStickierVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | A$5 once, with lifetime updates and no subscription. Paid plans in this category typically start at $5.99 a month, so the whole app costs less than one month of most of them. | AThe Mac app is free, with no in-app purchases listed. Stickier Mobile for iPhone and iPad is $4.99 once on the US App Store, and it supports Family Sharing. That's less than a month of a typical note subscription. |
| Free plan and trial | CThere's no free version to stay on. You can download a free trial with no account, which is the right way to do it, but the site doesn't say how long it lasts. After that it's the $5. | AOn a Mac the whole app is free: note windows, iCloud sync, revisions and the quick note shortcut. If your notes only need to live on your Mac, you never pay. It's the phone app that costs. |
| Features | AIt's only a scratchpad, but it does that job fully. Sums worked out as you type, with currencies, distances and weights converted inline. Checklists, a pomodoro timer, text pulled from a dropped image, and export to Apple Notes, Obsidian or Bear. | BEach note is its own window that can collapse, stay on top or snap to a grid. Notes take bold, italics, links, bullets and checkboxes, and a revisions button brings back earlier text. Solid for sticky notes, which is the whole job here. No reminders or attachments are on record, though. |
| Ease of use | BWe have no store rating on record, so a B is as high as we go. One hotkey opens it and a two-finger swipe moves between notes, with nothing to organise. You do have to learn the first-line keywords. | BNo rating on record, so a B is as high as we go. A global shortcut key starts a quick note, and notes save automatically. |
| Platforms and integrations | DMac only, and only macOS 14 or later. The vendor plans no Windows or Linux version, and the iOS app is still in development. On the Mac it does plug into Raycast, Alfred, Shortcuts and iCloud sync. | CMac, iPhone and iPad, synced through iCloud, and that's the lot. No Windows, Android or web version, and no other sync service is named. The Mac app needs macOS 13.1 or later, and the mobile one iOS or iPadOS 16.4. |
| Best for | a throwaway scratchpad on the Mac | free sticky notes on a Mac that sync through iCloud |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Antinote and Stickier. How we grade
Where they differ
- Antinote starts at $5 one-time purchase. Stickier starts at $4.99 one-time purchase for the iPhone and iPad app.
- Stickier has a free plan. Antinote does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Stickier lists an iOS app.
- Antinote also covers Pomodoro timer and calculator.
In commonmacOSOne-time purchaseNotesMenu bar app
At a glance
| Antinote | Stickier | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $5 one-time purchase | $4.99 one-time purchase for the iPhone and iPad app |
| Free plan | None | The Mac app is free on the Mac App Store, and its listing shows no in-app purchases. The iPhone and iPad companion app, Stickier Mobile, is a paid download. |
| Free trial | Free trial download with no account needed; the site does not state its length | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | Cmd-N Studios Inc. | Camazotz LLC |
| Price read from | antinote.io | apps.apple.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Antinote
- Mac users who want a throwaway pad beside their main notes app
- Quick sums, conversions and what-if calculations written in words
- Keyboard-driven users of Raycast or Alfred
Stickier
- Mac users who want floating sticky notes that sync through iCloud
- Keeping a short checklist on top of other windows
- Showing a note in an iPhone Home Screen or Lock Screen widget
Worth knowing
Antinote
- It runs on macOS 14 or later only. The vendor plans no Windows or Linux version; an iOS app is in development with an October 2026 release date.
- Notes are plain text with no fonts, colors or styles, and the vendor says very long notes get laggy.
- There are no folders or tags: it is built for short-lived notes that get exported elsewhere when worth keeping.
- iCloud sync, added in version 2.0, is optional and off until switched on; notes otherwise stay in a local SQLite database.
Stickier
- It runs on Apple devices only: the site lists a macOS app and an iOS app, with no Windows, Android or web version.
- The Mac app is free, but the iPhone and iPad app is a separate $4.99 purchase on the US App Store.
- Sync runs through iCloud; the site and the store listings name no other sync service.
- The Mac app requires macOS 13.1 or later, and Stickier Mobile requires iOS or iPadOS 16.4 or later.
Key features
Antinote
- Swipe-through temporary notes
- A two-finger swipe moves between notes, and swiping past the newest one starts another. Notes can delete themselves, and there are no folders or tags to manage.
- Plain text with paste cleanup
- Notes are plain text with simple Markdown. Pasting strips formatting, bullets and indentation, pasted links are shortened, and a dropped image becomes text through macOS OCR.
- Inline math and conversions
- With math on the first line, calculations are worked out as you type beside your own wording. Named variables recalculate, and currencies, crypto, distances and weights convert inline.
- Checklists, timers and AutoPaste
- Other first-line keywords change what a note does: list makes a checklist, timer runs a stopwatch, countdown or pomodoro, and paste collects everything copied afterwards.
- Global hotkey and display modes
- Option-A brings the app up from inside any other app. It can live in the Dock, the menu bar or a dropdown, show over full-screen apps and be pinned on top.
- Export and automation
- A note can be sent to Apple Notes, Obsidian or Bear, or exported as txt, Markdown or PDF. URL schemes, Shortcuts, Raycast, Alfred and JavaScript extensions can drive the app.
Stickier
- Sticky note windows
- On the Mac each note opens in its own window, which can be collapsed, kept always on top of other windows, and lined up with a snap-to-grid option.
- iCloud sync
- Notes save automatically and sync through iCloud between Macs, iPhones and iPads. Custom note colors sync across devices as well.
- Note revisions
- A revisions button on the note toolbar shows recent revisions of a note, and a Restore button replaces the current text with an earlier revision.
- Formatting, bullets and checkboxes
- Notes take bold, italic, underlined and struck-through text and web links. Bullets and checkboxes repeat on the next line and can be indented.
- Menu bar and quick note shortcut
- The Mac app offers optional menu bar access and a global shortcut key for quick notes. A second shortcut can show the notes list window.
- Widgets on iPhone and iPad
- Stickier Mobile shows notes in Home Screen, Today View and Lock Screen widgets, and the widget text size can be changed in Settings.
Plans
Antinote
Antinote$5
one-time purchase
A license for the Mac app with lifetime updates and no subscription. Requires macOS 14 (Sonoma) or later.
Stickier
Stickier$0
The Mac app, free on the Mac App Store with no in-app purchases listed. Requires macOS 13.1 or later.
Stickier Mobile$4.99
one-time purchase (US App Store)
The iPhone and iPad companion app, with Home Screen, Today View and Lock Screen widgets. Supports Family Sharing; requires iOS 16.4 or later.
Ways to pay less
Antinote
- Other savings
Free license for charity donors and volunteers
The FAQ says that describing a donation you made or volunteer work you did in the #charity-offer channel on the Antinote Discord earns a free lifetime license.
Stickier
No public discounts listed.
