Heptabase vs Noteey

Heptabase

• Students and researchers learning complex topics from PDFs and videos
• Visual thinkers who like to arrange notes on a canvas
• Readers who sync highlights from Readwise or sources from Zotero

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

Heptabase

• There is no free plan to sign up for; a subscription is required after the 7-day trial.
• Pro includes 100 AI credits a month and only Gemini models; GPT, Claude and AI Tutor need Premium.
• Heptabase says it does not currently offer educational, nonprofit or NGO discounts.
• People invited as free collaborators can edit shared whiteboards and cards but get no journal, tasks or AI features.

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.

Heptabase

Whiteboards and cards

Each note is a card, and cards are laid out on whiteboards to work through a topic visually.

Block editor with bi-directional links

Cards are written in a block-based editor with slash commands and can link to each other in both directions.

PDF highlights and source Q&A

Highlight PDFs in several colors and ask AI to explain PDFs, YouTube videos, notes and journal entries. Unlimited PDF uploads and OCR parsing need Premium.

AI agent and AI Tutor

An AI agent helps take notes and organize knowledge, drawing on monthly AI credits. AI Tutor, which runs structured learning sessions, is part of Premium.

Daily journal

A journal entry for each day sits alongside a calendar and to-dos.

Offline access and collaboration

Notes and files stay available without an internet connection, and friends or teammates can be invited to collaborate in real time for free.

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.

Heptabase

• Pro$8.99

  per month, billed yearly ($11.99 billed monthly)

  Unlimited notes, whiteboards, tags and collaborator invites, 100 AI credits a month and an AI agent limited to Gemini models.

• Premium$17.99

  per month, billed yearly ($23.99 billed monthly)

  Everything in Pro, plus unlimited PDF uploads and OCR parsing, GPT and Claude models, AI Tutor and 1,800 AI credits a month.

• Premium+$53.99

  per month, billed yearly ($71.99 billed monthly)

  Everything in Premium, with 8,100 AI credits a month and a 33% discount on AI credits.

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.

Heptabase

• Annual discount

  Save 25% with yearly billing

  Heptabase's pricing page marks yearly billing as 25% cheaper: Pro is $107.88 a year instead of $11.99 a month, and Premium is $215.88 instead of $23.99 a month.

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.