DeepNotes vs Noteey
We give DeepNotes a 3.0 GPA and Noteey a 3.2, out of 4.0. Noteey grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
DeepNotes
End-to-end encrypted infinite canvas for nested notes
Noteey
Offline infinite-canvas app for visual notes, PDFs and video
How we grade them
| 3.0GPADeepNotesVery good | 3.2GPANoteeyVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BPro is $3.99 a month billed yearly ($47.88), or $4.99 monthly. That's a little under the middle for notes apps here. It buys unlimited pages, groups and 14-day page history. Working with others costs more than it looks, as every member of a group needs to be subscribed. | BDesktop Pro is $99 once for 4 Macs or PCs, which is about 16 months of a typical $5.99 a month plan here, and then it's yours. Premium is the dear one: $10 a month or $90 a year for unlimited web publishing, YouTube transcripts and AI summaries. Lifetime Premium is $599. |
| Free plan and trial | BBasic is free with end-to-end encryption, two-factor sign-in and use across your own devices. It stops at 50 pages, though, and it's for personal use only. Groups and page history need Pro. | BFree forever with no signup, and every visual tool is in it. But it stops at 3 projects and 100 cards, and you can annotate only 3 PDFs and 3 video or audio files. One real research project and you're at the wall. |
| Features | BInfinite canvases, notes nested inside notes, arrows, pages that link to each other and real-time editing in groups on Pro. Two gaps the vendor owns up to: no offline use at all, and no text search across pages. | AText, drawings, images, PDFs, videos, audio, mind maps and embedded web pages on one board. Highlights in PDFs and time-stamped notes on videos link back to their source. Add a reusable library, card properties with several views, and a presentation mode. No native cloud sync, though. |
| Ease of use | BDouble-click to make a note, drag it where you want, draw an arrow. It runs in the browser, so there's nothing to install first. No App Store rating is on record to go by, so a B is as high as we go. | BNo store rating to go on, so a B is our ceiling. Download it and start, with no account for the core features. Sync is the fiddly part: it's a paid extra that runs through a folder in OneDrive, Google Drive or iCloud. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, a Windows app in the Microsoft Store, and Mac and Linux builds on GitHub. No phone apps we can point to: the download page shows App Store and Google Play badges, but both store listings came back not found. No integrations are listed. | BMac and Windows apps, plus a browser version that's an offline beta, with OneDrive, Google Drive, iCloud and YouTube hooked in. The download page marks iPhone, iPad and Android as Coming Soon, so there's nothing for your phone today. |
| Best for | encrypted notes you arrange on an endless canvas | spreading notes, PDFs and videos over one big canvas |
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: DeepNotes and Noteey. How we grade
Where they differ
- DeepNotes starts at $3.99 per month, billed yearly ($47.88). Noteey starts at $90 per year (Premium plan), or $99 one-time for a Desktop Pro license.
- Only DeepNotes lists a Linux app.
- DeepNotes is open source and end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- Noteey can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Noteey also covers highlights.
At a glance
| DeepNotes | Noteey | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $3.99 per month, billed yearly ($47.88) | $90 per year (Premium plan), or $99 one-time for a Desktop Pro license |
| Free plan | Basic plan: up to 50 pages for personal use, with end-to-end encryption, use across your own devices and two-factor authentication. Groups need Pro. | Up to 3 projects and 100 cards, with all visual creation features and annotation of up to 3 PDFs and 3 video or audio files. No account or signup is required. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Made by | Gustavo Toyota | Noteey |
| Price read from | deepnotes.app | noteey.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
DeepNotes
- Visual thinkers who map ideas as notes and arrows on a canvas
- People who want encrypted notes with the source code published
- Small groups editing canvases together, each on a Pro subscription
Noteey
- Visual thinkers who lay out notes, PDFs and videos on one canvas
- Students and researchers annotating PDFs and lecture videos
- People who want a whiteboard app that works offline without an account
Worth knowing
DeepNotes
- There is no offline mode: the help center says DeepNotes does not support offline usage.
- Text cannot be searched across pages; the vendor gave that up as a trade-off of encrypting each page separately.
- The Basic plan stops at 50 pages and is for personal use; pages created on Pro become read-only when the subscription expires.
- The download page shows App Store and Google Play badges, but both store listings returned a not-found page on 2026-10-09.
Noteey
- The Free plan stops at 3 projects and 100 cards, with annotation limited to 3 PDFs and 3 video or audio files.
- There are no iPhone, iPad or Android apps yet: the download page marks both as Coming Soon, and the browser version is an offline beta.
- There is no native cloud sync. The pricing FAQ says it is still being planned and points to third-party drives instead.
- A Desktop Pro license covers the desktop apps only; unlimited web publishing, YouTube transcripts and AI summaries need Premium.
Key features
DeepNotes
- Infinite canvas pages
- Each page is an unbounded canvas. Double-clicking creates a note, and notes can be moved, expanded, colored and connected with arrows.
- Nested notes and linked pages
- Containers hold notes inside other notes, and pages link to one another, so navigation follows the links you make and not a fixed page hierarchy.
- End-to-end encryption
- Notes and arrows are encrypted under a key hierarchy that starts from the user's password, set out in a public whitepaper. Email addresses and metadata are not end-to-end encrypted.
- Real-time collaboration in groups
- Pro subscribers can create private, public or password-protected groups, invite other subscribed members and manage their roles. Public groups can be viewed by anyone with a page link.
- Page history
- The Pro plan keeps 14 days of history for each page. Page history is not in the Basic plan's feature list.
- Web and desktop apps
- DeepNotes runs in the browser, with a Windows app in the Microsoft Store and Mac and Linux builds published on GitHub.
Noteey
- Infinite canvas
- Text, shapes, lines, drawings, images, videos, PDFs, audio, mind maps, sticky notes, frames, embedded web pages and cards share one board, and a project can hold several boards.
- Highlight system
- Text in cards and text or areas in PDFs can be highlighted, and videos and audio take time-stamped notes. A highlight dragged onto the canvas jumps back to its place in the source.
- Library for reuse
- Cards, PDFs, videos and highlights are kept in a library, where they can be tagged and pulled into other projects from the sidebar.
- Card properties and views
- Cards can be given properties and shown in multiple views, which the site presents as a personal database for structuring notes.
- Presentation and publishing
- Presentation mode steps through a project's boards. Projects export as a local copy others can open, as PDF or as images, and can be published to the web.
- Offline, local storage
- Core features work without logging in and data stays on the computer. Paid licenses add sync through a folder in OneDrive, Google Drive or iCloud.
Plans
DeepNotes
Basic$0
Up to 50 pages for personal use, with end-to-end encryption, graph-based navigation, use across your own devices and two-factor authentication.
Pro$3.99
per month, billed yearly ($47.88)
Unlimited pages, private, public and password-protected groups, user roles and 14-day page history. $4.99 if billed monthly; full refund within 7 days.
Noteey
Free$0
Up to 3 projects and 100 cards, all visual creation features, and annotation of up to 3 PDFs and 3 video or audio files.
Desktop Pro$99
one-time purchase
4 Mac or Windows devices, unlimited local projects, web publishing of projects up to 20 MB, local file import and export, OCR and third-party sync.
Desktop Pro Plus$159
one-time purchase
The same features as Desktop Pro on 8 Mac or Windows devices, aimed at small teams and heavy users.
Premium (Monthly Plan)$10
per month, billed monthly
A Desktop Pro license plus unlimited web publishing, unlimited YouTube transcripts and AI summaries, and priority support.
Premium (Yearly Plan)$90
per year, billed yearly
The same Premium features as the monthly plan, paid once a year.
Premium (Lifetime Plan)$599
one-time payment
The Premium features for a single payment. The page says Premium will become subscription-only soon.
Ways to pay less
DeepNotes
- Annual discount
Save 20% with yearly billing
The pricing page labels yearly billing as saving 20%: Pro comes to $3.99 per month ($47.88 per year) against $4.99 when billed monthly.
Noteey
- Annual discount
25% less on Premium with yearly billing
The Premium plan costs $10 a month billed monthly or $90 a year billed yearly, which works out to $7.50 a month.
- Lifetime license
Lifetime licenses from $99
Desktop Pro ($99) and Desktop Pro Plus ($159) are pay-once licenses, and a Lifetime Premium plan costs $599. Refunds are offered within 30 days of purchase.
