Flexcil vs Noteful
We give Flexcil a 3.0 GPA and Noteful a 3.2, out of 4.0. Flexcil grades higher on features and platforms. Noteful grades higher on value for money, the free plan and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Flexcil
PDF reader and handwriting notebook built around pen gestures
Noteful
Handwritten notes and PDF markup for iPad, with tags and layers
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAFlexcilVery good | 3.2GPANotefulVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BThe US App Store lists Premium at $8.99 and Flexcil Standard at $9.99, with no word on whether that's once or recurring, or what each one unlocks. The sums are small. But we can't call it a bargain when the listing can't say what you get. | ANoteful Pro is $6.99 once on the US App Store, for life. Paid plans in this category typically start at $5.99 a month, so that's about five weeks of somebody else's subscription. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree to download on the App Store and Google Play, with advertising. But neither the site nor the store listings say which features need Standard or Premium, so there's no telling how far free takes you. | AFree with no time limit: handwriting, PDF and Office import, tags, audio recording and PDF export. Only layers and sync between your iPhone and iPad are held back for Pro. On one iPad, most people could stay free. |
| Features | APen gestures that highlight and capture text or images into a notebook, links from each excerpt back to its source, PDF merging and page editing, audio that replays when you tap a note, and a masking pen that hides answers and counts right and wrong ones. | BVector ink built for Apple Pencil, markup on PDFs and Office documents, tags you write as #tag anywhere on a page, and audio that plays back in step with your notes. Pro adds layers you can hide and rearrange. Solid, but the listing shows no collaboration and no AI tools. |
| Ease of use | B4.44 from about 410 App Store ratings. The notebook sits over the PDF, so reading and writing share one screen. The gestures are the thing to learn, and the whole app hangs on them. | A4.8 from about 24,000 App Store ratings. There are no plans to puzzle over either: it's the free app or the one $6.99 upgrade. |
| Platforms and integrations | CiPad, iPhone and Android only. The browser version is a web viewer, not the full app, and there's nothing for Mac or Windows. It does connect to Google Drive, Dropbox, Box, iCloud and OneDrive, plus Google Classroom and Zoom. | DiPad and iPhone only, on iOS or iPadOS 16.4 or later, which we grade the same as an app that's Android only. The App Store marks it as not verified for macOS, and there's no Android, Windows or web version. |
| Best for | studying from PDFs with a pen | handwritten notes on an iPad for a one-time $6.99 |
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: Flexcil and Noteful. How we grade
Where they differ
- Flexcil starts at $8.99 (Premium) or $9.99 (Flexcil Standard) on the US App Store; basis not shown. Noteful starts at $6.99 one-time purchase (Noteful Pro, Lifetime).
- Only Flexcil lists an Android app.
- Noteful can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Flexcil also covers templates.
At a glance
| Flexcil | Noteful | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $8.99 (Premium) or $9.99 (Flexcil Standard) on the US App Store; basis not shown | $6.99 one-time purchase (Noteful Pro, Lifetime) |
| Free plan | Free to download on the App Store and Google Play, with advertising. The site and store listings do not say which features need Flexcil Standard or Premium. | Free with no time limit: handwriting, PDF and Office import, tags, audio recording and PDF export. Layers and sync between iPhone and iPad need Noteful Pro. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Flexcil Inc. | Noteful Technologies Limited |
| Price read from | apps.apple.com | apps.apple.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Flexcil
- Students who study from PDF textbooks and lecture slides
- Readers who collect excerpts from several documents into one notebook
- K-12 schools, which can apply for free licenses
Noteful
- iPad users who write with Apple Pencil and prefer to pay once
- Annotating PDFs, slides and textbooks on separate layers
- Organizing handwritten notes by tag as well as by folder
Worth knowing
Flexcil
- No pricing page is published. The US App Store lists Flexcil Standard at $9.99 and Premium at $8.99 without saying whether either is one-time or recurring.
- Native apps are offered for iOS and Android only. The browser version is titled Flexcil Web Viewer, and the terms describe it as a web viewer.
- Google Play's US listing shows only a range of $2.49 to $31.99 per item, so Android prices may differ from the App Store's.
- The free download carries advertising, and its feature limits are not stated on the site or the App Store listing.
Noteful
- Made for iPad and iPhone only. The App Store shows it as "Designed for iPad. Not verified for macOS", and no Android, Windows or web version is offered.
- Layers and sync between devices are locked until the Noteful Pro upgrade is bought.
- The App Store listing requires iOS or iPadOS 16.4 or later.
Key features
Flexcil
- Pen gestures for PDF markup
- A pen gesture highlights or underlines text, and the same kind of gesture captures text or images from a PDF into a notebook in two steps.
- Notebook beside the document
- A handwritten notebook sits over the PDF so reading, annotating and note-taking share one screen, and a popup viewer shows a second source while writing.
- Reference links
- Content captured into a notebook is linked back to its place in the original document, which keeps material from several PDFs connected.
- PDF editing and page views
- Merges PDFs and edits pages, outlines and bookmarks, with single-page, 2-page and 4-page views for reading.
- Audio recording and note replay
- Recordings are synced with handwriting, so tapping a note plays back what was being said when it was written.
- Cloud sync and masking pen
- Handwritten notes sync automatically between tablet and phone. A masking pen hides content for memorization and counts correct and incorrect answers.
Noteful
- Vector ink for Apple Pencil
- A custom ink engine turns strokes into high-resolution vector ink, with ballpoint pen, fountain pen and highlighter brushes and recognition of geometric shapes.
- PDF and document markup
- PDFs and Microsoft Office documents import into a notebook for annotation alongside images, shapes and typed text, and the annotated pages export as PDF.
- Tags and nested tags
- Writing #tag or #nested/tag anywhere in a notebook files it. Notebooks and pages can be browsed by tag, and tags can be renamed, deleted or reassigned.
- Layers
- Annotations can sit on separate layers that are hidden, shown and rearranged independently, leaving the original content unchanged. Layers are a Noteful Pro feature.
- Audio recording
- Audio can be recorded while taking notes, and the playback position is synced with the notes written at that moment.
- Sync across iPhone and iPad
- Noteful Pro syncs notebooks between a user's iPhone and iPad devices. The listing says notebooks synced with iCloud are encrypted via account-based keys.
Plans
Flexcil
Free$0
The free download, which the App Store notes contains advertising. Its limits are not listed on the site or the store listing.
Premium$8.99
billing basis not shown on the US App Store listing
Listed as an in-app purchase without a description. Flexcil's terms name Flexcil Premium as its paid service.
Flexcil Standard$9.99
billing basis not shown on the US App Store listing
Listed as an in-app purchase without a description of what it unlocks.
Bundles and planner content$11.99 - $14.99
per item on the US App Store; basis not shown
Standard or Premium bundled with planner or toolbar skin packs at $12.99 to $14.99, and planner content sold separately at $11.99 to $13.99.
Noteful
Noteful$0
Free to use without a time limit, minus the features the App Store listing marks as Pro: layers and sync across iPhone and iPad.
Noteful Pro, Lifetime$6.99
one-time in-app purchase on the US App Store
Unlocks the Pro features for good, including layers and sync to all of a user's iPhone and iPad devices.
Ways to pay less
Flexcil
- Education
Free licenses for K-12 schools
K-12 schools can apply for free licenses with an institutional email domain. Flexcil says universities, private education and individual requests may not be granted them.
Noteful
- Lifetime license
Noteful Pro as a one-time purchase
The App Store listing says Noteful Pro is a one-time purchase that unlocks its features forever, listed in the US as Noteful Pro, Lifetime at $6.99.
