Drafts vs SideNotes

Drafts

• Jotting text down quickly on iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple Watch
• People who route notes into other apps such as task managers
• Automation fans who script their own text workflows

SideNotes

• Mac users who want notes at hand without switching apps
• Keeping snippets, links and screenshots beside the work in progress
• People who prefer a one-time purchase to a subscription

Drafts

• Apps exist only for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch. The Web Capture page can create drafts in any browser but cannot review or edit them.
• Creating and editing actions, workspaces, themes, Mail Drop and the AI chat console all require the Drafts Pro subscription.
• Sync runs through iCloud and needs the same iCloud account, with iCloud Drive active, on every device.
• A subscription bought on iOS cannot be restored on the Mac App Store or the reverse; it carries over only through a shared iCloud account.

SideNotes

• Apple platforms only: the Mac app needs macOS 13 or later, and SideNotes Mobile needs iOS or iPadOS 17.
• SideNotes Mobile is a separate $9.99 purchase and lacks the Mac app's file shortcuts and backups.
• The payment covers version 1.x. The vendor says SideNotes 2 will be a paid upgrade, discounted for owners and free for those who bought in the prior 6 months.
• A free trial is offered, but the site does not say how long it lasts.

Drafts

Capture first, file later

The app opens to a new page with the keyboard ready. Entries go to an inbox and can be tagged, flagged or archived afterwards.

Actions

Actions copy, share or send text to other apps and services. Running installed actions is free; creating and editing them needs Drafts Pro.

Dictation and transcription

A custom dictation interface built on Apple's speech recognition, plus transcription of existing audio and video files into text.

Workspaces

Saved views of the drafts list that restore a preferred tag filter, query and sort order. Workspaces are a Drafts Pro feature.

Capture from outside the app

Text can arrive through Siri, widgets, the share extension, a personal Mail Drop email address (Pro) and a Web Capture page for any browser.

Automation hooks

Supports Shortcuts, URL schemes, AppleScript and JavaScript scripting in actions, and Pro adds an AI chat console that can query and edit drafts.

SideNotes

Screen-edge panel

The panel sits on the left or right edge of the screen and shows above other apps, including full-screen ones. It opens with a click, a keyboard shortcut or by moving the cursor to the edge.

Folders, colors and pinning

Notes are grouped into folders, can be given colors, reordered by drag and drop, pinned to the top of the list and folded to save space.

Markdown with hidden markup

Notes are formatted with Markdown, and the markup can stay out of sight while writing. A formatting toolbar appears when text is selected.

Tasks, images and file shortcuts

A note can hold checklists, pictures, text snippets, or a shortcut to a file or folder. Color codes typed as #rrggbb get a preview.

iCloud sync and backups

Notes sync through iCloud across Mac, iPhone and iPad. The Mac app also backs notes up automatically to a local folder, or to iCloud.

Automation

Shortcuts actions, an AppleScript API and URL links to notes and folders let other apps create, find and open notes. The site lists Alfred, Raycast, PopClip, Hookmark and Dropzone.

Drafts

• Free$0

  Unlimited drafts, editing and iCloud sync, plus the actions that ship with the app or come from the Drafts Directory.

• Drafts Pro$19.99

  per year; $1.99 billed monthly

  Create and edit actions, themes and custom icons, workspaces, the AI chat console, Mail Drop and enhanced widgets on all Apple devices.

• Drafts Pro Patron$29.99

  billing period not shown on the App Store listing

  A supporter tier with the same features as Drafts Pro, for people who want to pay more toward development.

SideNotes

• SideNotes Mobile$9.99

  one-time purchase (US App Store)

  The iPhone and iPad app, sold separately from the Mac app. It syncs through iCloud but has no file shortcuts or backups.

• SideNotes$19.99

  one-time purchase per major version

  The Mac app: a license for 1 user on up to 5 Macs, free updates within version 1.x and a 14-day money-back guarantee.

Drafts

• Annual discount

  Annual billing costs about 16% less

  Drafts Pro is $19.99 a year or $1.99 a month, so twelve monthly payments come to $23.88 against $19.99 for the annual option.

• Other savings

  Family Sharing on both subscriptions

  The monthly and annual Drafts Pro subscriptions support Apple Family Sharing, so one subscription can unlock Pro features for the family group.

SideNotes

• Education

  Student discount through Student App Centre

  Apptorium's buy page says a student discount on SideNotes is available through Student App Centre. The page does not give the size of the discount.