Heynote vs SnippetsLab (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Heynote grades higher than SnippetsLab: 3.0 against 2.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 9, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Heynote grades higher on platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Which one is for you
Pick Heynote if
- Fits if you're a developer who needs somewhere to park JSON, logs and code snippets
- Works for quick sums and unit conversions next to your working notes
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want your notes on your phone, as there's no mobile app and the author says one is out of scope
- Not for you if you need sync built in, because the docs point you to something like Dropbox and warn of conflicts
- Too light for anyone wanting a full notebook with tags and links, since it's a scratchpad
- Watch out: the Windows build isn't code-signed, so Windows may warn you when installing it
Pick SnippetsLab if
- Fits if you write code on a Mac and want snippets in one searchable place
- Works for people who open snippets from Alfred or Raycast
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you work on Windows or Linux
- Not for you if you need snippets on a phone or in a browser
- Watch out: it needs macOS 14.6 or later, and sync is Mac to Mac
- Too light for general notes, since it is built around code
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAHeynoteVery good | 2.8GPASnippetsLabGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree, and not a stripped version of something paid: every build on the site is a direct download with no price, no account and no licence key, and there's no paid edition behind it. | AThe vendor and the Mac App Store list it as free, and no paid tier is shown. |
| Free plan and trial | AFree outright on Mac, Windows and Linux. Nothing is capped or held back, because there's nothing to upgrade to. | AFree outright, with no paid tier on the listing. |
| Features | CBlocks that each get their own language, highlighting for 30-plus of them, auto-formatting for JSON and friends, math blocks that convert units and currencies, tabs and search across buffers. That's a scratchpad done fully, and a scratchpad is a smaller job: it has no sync of its own, so Dropbox does that bit. | CFolders, tags, smart groups, highlighting for over 600 languages, a menu bar assistant, an MCP server and iCloud sync. It does one smaller job fully, snippets, more than general notes. |
| Ease of use | BDownload it and type in the Scratch buffer. No account, nothing to configure. One wrinkle: the Windows build isn't code-signed, so expect a warning when you install it. No App Store rating is on record. | BNo store rating on record. It installs from the Mac App Store with nothing to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | CMac, Windows and Linux, and that's the lot. Desktop only, with no phone app (the author says one is out of scope for now) and no integrations listed. | DMac only, needing macOS 14.6 or later, with sync between Macs. No Windows, Linux, Android or web version, though Alfred and Raycast hook in. |
| Best for | a developer's scratchpad for snippets and sums | keeping code snippets on a Mac |
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: Heynote and SnippetsLab. How we grade
Price against what you get
Heynote has no paid plan and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SnippetsLab has no paid plan and scores 2.0.
Heynote scores higher for the same starting price. Of the other note-taking apps on the chart, none scores higher than Heynote for less, and none scores higher than SnippetsLab for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Heynote also covers calculator.
- SnippetsLab also covers templates and menu bar app.
In commonFree planmacOSNotesMarkdown
At a glance
| Heynote | SnippetsLab | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Every build on the site is a direct download with no price, account or license key. There is no paid edition. | The whole app is listed as free on the Mac App Store. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Made by | Jonatan Heyman | Renfei Song |
| Price read from | heynote.com | apps.apple.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Heynote
- Desktop only: there is no mobile app, and the author says one is out of scope for now.
- No sync of its own. The docs suggest a file-syncing service such as Dropbox and warn that editing one buffer on two machines at once can cause conflicts.
- The Windows build is not code-signed, so Windows may show a warning when installing it.
- The code is under the MIT license with the Commons Clause, which does not allow selling the software.
SnippetsLab
- The vendor lists macOS 14.6 or later; sync is described as between Mac computers only.
- There is no Windows, Linux, Android or web version.
- A reviewer on the App Store cited iCloud sync crashes in a 2016 version and a weak importer in 2019; recent reviews are positive.
Key features
Heynote
- Buffers divided into blocks
- A buffer is a persistent stretch of text split into blocks. One keystroke adds a block, and select-all picks the current block first, then the whole buffer.
- A language for each block
- Each block has its own language, detected automatically or set by hand, with syntax highlighting for more than 30 languages and auto-formatting for JSON, JavaScript, HTML, CSS and Markdown.
- Math blocks
- A math block works as a calculator pad with variables, functions and unit and currency conversion. It is built on Math.js expressions.
- Multiple buffers
- Besides the default Scratch buffer you can create any number of buffers, open them in tabs, sort them into directories and search across them. Each one is a .txt file on disk.
- Inline images with markup
- Images pasted or dropped into a buffer appear inline, can be resized and annotated with a freehand drawing tool, and copied back to the clipboard.
- Keyboard control
- Default, Emacs-like or custom key bindings, a command palette, multi-cursor editing and an optional global hotkey that shows or hides the app.
SnippetsLab
- Folders, tags and smart groups
- Nested folders, color-coded tags and smart groups that filter on title, content and other metadata, plus tabs inside a snippet.
- Syntax highlighting
- Highlighting for over 600 languages and text formats, language detection for the 50 most popular, and formatting for 20-plus languages.
- Markdown with diagrams
- Side-by-side preview with Mermaid diagrams, MathJax formulas and custom CSS themes.
- Menu bar assistant
- Create, browse, preview, copy or insert snippets from the menu bar, with Alfred and Raycast extensions for search.
- MCP server and command line
- AI agents can search, read and save snippets through a built-in MCP server, and a lab command-line tool does the same from the shell.
- iCloud sync and Gist publishing
- Syncs a library between Macs through iCloud, keeps automatic backups, and publishes snippets to GitHub as Gists.
Plans
Heynote
Heynote$0
The full app as Mac Universal, Arm and Intel builds, a Windows installer, and an AppImage or Snap for Linux.
SnippetsLab
SnippetsLab$0
Free download from the Mac App Store; the listing shows no paid tiers.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Heynote or SnippetsLab?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Heynote and SnippetsLab are free to use.
Which has a free plan, Heynote or SnippetsLab?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Heynote and SnippetsLab have a free plan.
Which platforms do Heynote and SnippetsLab run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Heynote lists Windows and Linux apps. Both list a macOS app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.