Apple Notes vs Keep It
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Keep It
Notebook and document organizer for Mac, iPhone and iPad
Where they differ
- Apple Notes is free. Keep It starts at $2.99 in-app subscription on the Mac App Store (billing period not labelled).
- Apple Notes has a free plan. Keep It does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Apple Notes lists a web app.
- Only Keep It lists a browser extension.
- Keep It can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Apple Notes also covers transcription.
- Keep It also covers Markdown, web clipper, templates and bookmarks.
At a glance
| Apple Notes | Keep It | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free trial |
| Starts at | Free | $2.99 in-app subscription on the Mac App Store (billing period not labelled) |
| Free plan | The app is listed as free on the App Store, with no in-app purchases. Syncing runs through iCloud, which includes 5 GB of free storage with an Apple Account. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | Two-week free trial with App Store subscriptions; 15-day trial of the direct Mac download |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| iOS | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Apple | Reinvented Software |
| Price read from | apps.apple.com | apps.apple.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Apple Notes
- People who use only Apple devices
- Quick capture with Quick Note, Siri or dictation on Apple Watch
- Scanning receipts and documents into searchable notes
- Families and friends sharing notes and folders over iCloud
Keep It
- Mac users who want notes and reference documents in one library
- People who want their files to stay visible in the Finder and Files app
- Archiving web pages, PDFs and emails for offline reading and search
Worth knowing
Apple Notes
- Apps are listed only for Apple devices; on anything else, notes are reached in a web browser at iCloud.com.
- Notes on iCloud.com works only with notes stored in iCloud, not with notes kept in other accounts such as Google or Yahoo.
- Sync relies on iCloud, which includes 5 GB of free storage; iCloud+ plans with more storage start at $0.99 per month for 50 GB.
- Sharing is limited to people who use iCloud, and Apple says certain features are available only in select languages and regions.
Keep It
- It runs on Apple platforms only, and the iPhone and iPad app is always a separate purchase from the Mac app.
- The iPhone and iPad app requires a subscription; the one-time license exists only for the Mac version bought from the vendor.
- Sync is through iCloud only: it cannot be used with Dropbox, OneDrive or iCloud Drive, and it has a single library.
- The one-time license covers the current major version (2.x), and its price is not shown until the store checkout.
Key features
Apple Notes
- Rich notes
- A note can combine text styles, checklists, tables, photos, PDFs, maps and web links. Section headers collapse to hide the text under them.
- Audio recording and transcripts
- Audio sessions are recorded inside a note with a live transcript, and transcripts are searchable to find a particular moment.
- Document scanner and handwriting
- A built-in scanner captures paper documents. Sketches and handwriting are added with a finger, or with Apple Pencil on a compatible iPad, including on inline PDFs.
- Folders, tags and Smart Folders
- Notes sit in folders and subfolders or carry typed or handwritten tags. Smart Folders collect notes by rules such as date created, checklists or attachments.
- Search and links between notes
- Search covers typed text, handwriting and the text inside scanned documents and photos. Notes can link to one another, with >> as a typing shortcut.
- Shared and locked notes
- Notes and folders can be shared with other iCloud users, with changes shown in real time and an Activity view. A note can be locked with the device passcode or a custom password.
Keep It
- Notes and text files
- Notes with styles, checklists, lists, links, images and attachments, plus rich text, plain text and Markdown files with an HTML preview.
- Web links, PDFs and scans
- Save web links as PDFs or web archives for offline reading, scan documents, and edit PDFs by reordering or removing pages and highlighting text.
- Finder and Files integration
- Everything is stored as files, folders and tags that can be managed in the Finder and in Open and Save panels on the Mac, and in the Files app on iPhone and iPad.
- Folders, bundles, tags and labels
- Organize items in nested folders, gather them into bundles that can overlap, and add tags and color labels. A Tag Filter narrows any list by tag.
- Search and saved searches
- Searches file contents, text recognized in scanned PDFs and images, and metadata, with suggestions as you type. Any search can be saved to the sidebar.
- iCloud sync and sharing
- The library can live in iCloud and be reached from all your Macs, iPhones and iPads, and top-level folders or single items can be shared with other Keep It users.
Plans
Apple Notes
Free$0
Every feature of the app on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple Vision Pro, plus browser access at iCloud.com.
Keep It
Keep It for iPad and iPhone$1.99 or $19.99
monthly or yearly subscription; the listing does not label which
A separate App Store app that requires a subscription, with a two-week free trial for new subscribers.
Keep It for Mac (Mac App Store)$2.99 or $29.99
monthly or yearly subscription; the listing does not label which
Subscription to the Mac app from the Mac App Store, with a two-week free trial and Family Sharing.
Keep It for Mac (one-time license)Not published
Bought from Reinvented Software and covers every 2.x release on all the Macs in a household. The price is shown only in the store checkout.
Ways to pay less
Apple Notes
No public discounts listed.
Keep It
- Other savings
Free or half-price upgrade from Keep It 1
Buyers of Keep It 1.x on or after May 4, 2021 qualify for a free upgrade to version 2, and earlier buyers for a half-price upgrade license.
