Kilonotes vs Notein
We give Kilonotes a 3.4 GPA and Notein a 2.8, out of 4.0. Kilonotes grades higher on value for money, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Kilonotes
Handwriting notes app with AI study tools for iPad and Android
Notein
Handwriting notes, PDF markup and linked notes for Android tablets
How we grade them
| 3.4GPAKilonotesVery good | 2.8GPANoteinGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | A$1.99 a month, $9.99 a year or $19.99 once for Lifetime Access on the US App Store, where paid plans typically start at $5.99 a month. The site says paying unlocks unlimited notebooks, custom fonts and extra page styles. AI credits and cloud space are sold on top, mind. | BThe US Play listing, under the name Orion Notes, shows $5.99 per in-app item and doesn't say if that's a month, a year or for life. The help centre lists all three kinds of VIP with no prices. So it gets the grade we give when a listing can't say. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree to download with 5 notebooks and a few trial goes of the AI features. Five goes quickly if you keep one per subject. After the trial uses, AI needs purchased credits, and the App Store notes the app contains advertising. | BFree covers every handwriting tool, the editor, page management and document organising. But it stops at 3 notebooks, and that's tight for a student with more than three subjects. VIP plans come with a free trial of a length the help centre doesn't state. |
| Features | ALow-latency ink with Apple Pencil and Samsung S Pen, handwriting turned into text and searchable across notebooks, and markup on PDF, PowerPoint and Word files. It records lectures, and AI transcribes them and builds summaries, outlines, mind maps, flashcards and quizzes. | AAn infinite canvas or A4 pages, markup on PDFs, Word and PowerPoint files, layers, links between notes in both directions, and audio tied to your handwriting with speed control and silence skipping. That's the whole handwriting job. AI features are in select regions only. |
| Ease of use | A4.6 from about 5,000 App Store ratings. The shop is the confusing bit: the site names Free, Premium and AI Member plans with no prices, and the store's subscriptions don't say which plan they belong to. | BIt's Android only, so there's no App Store rating on record and a B is our ceiling. One bump for Americans: Notein isn't on the US Play Store, so you're sent to Orion Notes and have to export and re-import any notes. |
| Platforms and integrations | CiPad, iPhone and Android tablets. No Windows or web app, and on a Mac it runs as the iPad app, which the App Store marks as not verified for macOS. No integrations are listed. | DAndroid only. The site lists no iPad, Windows or web version. Notebooks sync through Google Drive or OneDrive, and that cloud sync is part of VIP. |
| Best for | student notes with AI revision tools on a tablet | handwritten notes on an Android tablet with a stylus |
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: Kilonotes and Notein. How we grade
Where they differ
- Kilonotes starts at $1.99 per month (Monthly Subscription on the US App Store). Notein starts at $5.99 per in-app item on the US listing (Orion Notes); billing basis not shown.
- Only Kilonotes lists an iOS app.
- Kilonotes also covers transcription.
- Notein also covers linked notes and whiteboard.
At a glance
| Kilonotes | Notein | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $1.99 per month (Monthly Subscription on the US App Store) | $5.99 per in-app item on the US listing (Orion Notes); billing basis not shown |
| Free plan | Free to download with 5 notebooks and trial uses of the AI features. Once those uses are spent, more AI use needs purchased AI credits. | Core features are free with a limit of up to 3 notebooks, including all handwriting tools, editor features, page management and document organization. |
| Free trial | None listed | The help center says all VIP plans include a free trial period; its length is not stated. |
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Hefei Top-Stack Information Technology Co., Ltd. | Orion Studio Pte. Ltd. |
| Price read from | apps.apple.com | play.google.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
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
Notein
- Android tablet and stylus users who want handwritten notes
- Students annotating PDFs and slides while recording lectures
- Building linked notes into a personal knowledge base
Worth knowing
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.
Notein
- The free tier stops at 3 notebooks; unlimited notebooks, AI features and cloud sync need VIP.
- Android only, and not listed on the US Play Store: US users are sent to a separate app, Orion Notes, and must export and re-import their notes.
- No price list is published. Billing runs through Google Play, and the US Orion Notes listing shows $5.99 per item without a billing period.
- The Play listing says the AI features are available in select regions only.
Key features
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.
Notein
- Infinite canvas and A4 notes
- Two paper sizes: an infinite canvas for freeform sketching and A4 pages, with auto-shape, 3D shapes, color sets and a template library.
- PDF and document annotation
- Imports PDFs, images, Word and PowerPoint files to highlight, comment and draw on, with merge and split, an in-app split screen, dictionary lookup and translation.
- Bidirectional links
- Links connect notes and pages in both directions across all Notein documents, for study guides, planners or a personal knowledge base.
- Layers
- Handwriting, shapes and highlights can sit on separate layers, so part of a page can be revised without erasing the rest.
- Audio-synced notes
- Records a lecture or meeting while writing. Tapping handwriting jumps to that moment in the recording, with speed control, silence skipping and looping.
- Sync and backup
- Notebooks sync through Google Drive or OneDrive, with automatic and local backups. Cloud sync is part of the VIP plan.
Plans
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.
Notein
Free$0
Up to 3 notebooks with all handwriting tools, editor features, page management and document organization.
VIP$5.99
per in-app item on Google Play (US); billing basis not shown
Unlimited notebooks, AI features and cloud sync, offered monthly, yearly or as a lifetime purchase. The US listing, named Orion Notes, shows a single in-app price.
Ways to pay less
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.
Notein
- Lifetime license
VIP as a lifetime purchase
Notein's help center lists a Lifetime option beside the monthly and yearly VIP plans: a one-time payment with no recurring charges. It does not state the price.
