Goodnotes vs Kilonotes

Goodnotes

• Handwritten notes on an iPad with Apple Pencil
• Marking up PDFs such as contracts, reports and lecture slides
• Students who want audio synced to their lecture notes
• K-12 schools using iPads, where Goodnotes Education is free

Kilonotes

• Students taking handwritten lecture notes on an iPad or Android tablet
• Annotating lecture slides and PDFs with a stylus
• People who want AI summaries and practice questions built from their notes

Goodnotes

• The Free plan stops at 3 files in total, 100 MB of storage and 20 minutes of audio recording, and its exports carry a watermark.
• Keeping one library in sync between Apple and non-Apple devices needs Goodnotes Cloud, which is included only from Pro.
• Goodnotes says the Android, Windows and web versions do not offer the full range of features available on iPad.
• Essential, Pro and Teams are priced per year, and AI Pass is a separate $9.99 per month add-on for more AI credits.

Kilonotes

• The free version stops at 5 notebooks, and AI use beyond the trial allowance requires buying AI credits.
• The website names Free, Premium and AI Member plans without prices; prices appear only as in-app purchases in the app stores.
• No Windows or web app is offered. On a Mac it runs as the iPad app, which the App Store marks as not verified for macOS.
• Google Play's US listing shows only a range of $0.49 to $24.99 per item, so Android prices may differ from the App Store's.

Goodnotes

Handwritten notebooks

Notebooks mix handwriting, typed text, images and stickers on customizable paper templates. Handwriting stays searchable and can be converted to text.

PDF annotation

Imported PDFs are highlighted and marked up by hand, searched alongside notes, and keep their table of contents for navigating long documents.

Whiteboards and text documents

An infinite-canvas whiteboard for diagrams and mind maps and typed text documents with inline blocks sit in the same library as notebooks.

Audio recording and meeting notes

Audio is recorded in sync with what you write. On Pro, Goodnotes AI for Meetings transcribes and summarizes discussions and links notes to calendar events.

Goodnotes AI

An in-app assistant answers questions from handwriting, typed text and PDFs, with citations back to the source page. AI credits vary by plan; AI Pass adds about 12 times more.

Sharing and real-time collaboration

Every plan can share documents by link. Essential can join real-time collaborative documents, and Pro can host them and share by private link.

Kilonotes

Stylus handwriting

Pressure sensitivity, palm rejection and low-latency ink with Apple Pencil, Samsung S Pen and other styluses, on pages that scroll continuously or use set page sizes.

Handwriting to text and search

Handwriting converts to editable text in a chosen font, with math equations recognized, and handwritten content is indexed so it can be searched across notebooks.

PDF annotation

PDF, PowerPoint, Word and image files import for handwriting, highlights and typed text, with PDF search, outline navigation and translation while reading.

Audio recording and AI recap

Lectures can be recorded in the app. AI transcribes them and produces summaries, outlines and mind maps from recordings, handwriting and PDFs.

AI chat and practice questions

AI answers questions about a selected section of notes and generates practice questions, flashcards and quizzes. Free users get trial uses; after that AI credits are bought.

Custom fonts and templates

Notebooks can use custom fonts, covers, stickers and paper templates such as dot grid, square grid and Cornell. The site lists custom fonts under the paid version.

Goodnotes

• Free$0

  Up to 3 files, 100 MB of storage, 20 minutes of audio recording, limited sharing and limited Goodnotes AI usage.

• Essential$11.99

  per year

  Unlimited files and audio recording, 5 GB of storage, exports without a watermark, basic Goodnotes AI and Google Calendar integration.

• Pro$35.99

  per year

  Adds cross-platform library sync, private link sharing, hosting real-time collaboration, Drive integration and advanced AI including meeting notes.

• Special Edition$35.99

  one-time purchase, Apple devices only (US App Store)

  Unlimited note-taking on Apple devices without a subscription. Limited Goodnotes AI and not eligible for Goodnotes Cloud.

• Teams$120

  per seat / year

  Everything in Pro, plus SAML SSO, domain control, consolidated billing and user and admin management.

• EnterpriseCustom

  For 25 seats and above: AI permissions, the Microsoft Intune App SDK, dedicated account support and custom contracts.

Kilonotes

• Free$0

  5 notebooks and basic AI, according to the site. The App Store listing notes that the app contains advertising.

• Monthly Subscription$1.99

  per month, as labelled on the US App Store

  The listing says subscribing unlocks advanced content. It does not say whether this is the site's Premium or AI Member plan.

• Quarterly Plan$4.99

  per quarter, as labelled on the US App Store

  Three-month in-app subscription, listed without a description of what it includes.

• Annual Plan$9.99

  per year, as labelled on the US App Store

  Yearly in-app subscription, listed without a description of what it includes.

• Lifetime Access$19.99

  one-time in-app purchase on the US App Store

  One-time purchase listed beside the subscriptions. The site says the paid version unlocks unlimited notebooks, custom fonts and exclusive page styles.

• AI and cloud add-ons$0.99 - $9.99

  per item on the US App Store; AI items show no period

  AIChat $5.99 and AI Points Products $1.99; cloud space $0.99 monthly or $9.99 annually; paid notebooks $0.99 and $2.99.

Goodnotes

• Education

  Goodnotes Education is free for K-12 schools

  K-12 schools get Goodnotes Education at no cost, with no trial period, including its classroom tools for teachers and students. It currently works only on Apple devices.

• Lifetime license

  Special Edition one-time purchase on Apple devices

  Special Edition unlocks unlimited note-taking on Apple devices without a subscription and is listed at $35.99 on the US App Store. Availability varies by region.

Kilonotes

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime Access as a one-time purchase

  The US App Store lists a Lifetime Access in-app purchase at $19.99 next to the monthly, quarterly and annual subscriptions.