LiquidText vs Notability
We give LiquidText a 3.2 GPA and Notability a 3.8, out of 4.0. Notability grades higher on value for money and platforms. They get the same grade on 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.
LiquidText
Document review workspace that links excerpts to notes
Notability
Handwritten notes with synced audio, transcripts and AI study tools
How we grade them
| 3.2GPALiquidTextVery good | 3.8GPANotabilityExcellent | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CLIVE is $8.99 a month paid annually, or $10.99 monthly, against a typical $5.99 here. That includes just 1 GB of storage and sharing with one colleague, and more of either means Unlimited at $15.99. Pro 2023 is $89.99 once, but for one platform and with no sync. | ALite is $14.99 a year and Plus is $19.99 a year, in a category where paid plans typically start at $5.99 a month. Don't want a subscription? Classic is $49.99 once. Pay yearly, though: Lite by the month is $4.99, which is $59.88 over a year. |
| Free plan and trial | BBasic is free and has the clever part: PDF annotation, excerpts linked back to the page, pinch search, mind maps and notes export. But projects with several documents, inking, tagging and OCR all need a paid version. LIVE has a one-week trial. | BStarter is free with every editing tool, PDF import and 20,000+ templates. But it's 5 notes and that's your lot. The only free trials are 30 days on the Business plans. |
| Features | AIt does document review fully. Excerpts stay tied to their source, a pinch collapses a document so far-apart pages sit together, and Pro projects hold any number of documents with up to 3 side by side and one search across them all. Zotero and Mendeley plug in for references. | AHandwriting, typing and PDF markup on one page, with audio recorded and transcribed alongside. Plus turns your notes into up to 400 quiz and flashcard questions a month, and Pro adds live summaries and a chat about your notes. Notes can be shared and edited together live. |
| Ease of use | A4.6 from about 6,400 App Store ratings. The gestures are its own, so expect a little learning. Picking a version takes thought too: a one-time Pro, three LIVE tiers and Enterprise. | A4.8 from about 457,000 App Store ratings. The plan list takes some reading, mind: six of them, with different features on each. |
| Platforms and integrations | BiPad, Mac and Windows, with Dropbox, Box, OneDrive, iCloud and iManage for files. No phone apps and no web version. And working across those platforms needs LIVE, since Pro 2023 is licensed for one. | AiPad, iPhone, Mac, Windows, Android and the web, with iCloud, YouTube and school device managers like Jamf and Mosyle. Not everything travels: handwriting recognition and audio playback sync are marked iOS and Android only, and YouTube conversion is web only. |
| Best for | picking long documents apart | lecture notes with the audio attached |
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: LiquidText and Notability. How we grade
Where they differ
- LiquidText starts at $8.99 per month, paid annually (LIVE). Notability starts at $14.99 per year, or $4.99 per month (Lite).
- Only Notability lists a web app.
- Only Notability lists an Android app.
- LiquidText also covers research, mind mapping and highlights.
- Notability also covers transcription and templates.
At a glance
| LiquidText | Notability | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $8.99 per month, paid annually (LIVE) | $14.99 per year, or $4.99 per month (Lite) |
| Free plan | Basic: free PDF reading, annotation, excerpts linked to notes, pinch search and highlight view, mind maps and notes export. Multi-document projects, inking and tagging need Pro. | Starter plan: 5 notes with all editing tools, PDF and document import, access to 20,000+ templates and 7-day version history. |
| Free trial | One-week free trial on any LiquidText LIVE subscription | 30-day free trial on the Business and Business Pro plans. |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | LiquidText Inc. | Ginger Labs |
| Price read from | liquidtext.net | notability.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
LiquidText
- Lawyers and analysts reviewing long documents
- Researchers comparing passages across several papers
- Pen-and-tablet users who want notes tied back to their sources
Notability
- Students recording lectures alongside handwritten notes
- Turning class notes into flashcards and quizzes
- Annotating PDFs, slides and forms with a stylus
- Schools that manage devices, where Notability for Education is free
Worth knowing
LiquidText
- The apps cover iPadOS, macOS and Windows only.
- The free Basic version leaves out multi-document projects, inking, tagging and OCR.
- Pro 2023 is licensed for one platform; syncing between devices or working across operating systems needs a LIVE subscription.
- LIVE includes 1 GB of storage and sharing with one colleague; more of either needs an Unlimited tier.
Notability
- The free Starter plan is limited to 5 notes.
- Audio transcription and the AI quiz and flashcard tools start at Plus; real-time summaries, note chat and unlimited transcription are listed under Pro.
- Third-party backups are iOS only, and YouTube link-to-note conversion works on the web only.
- The plan comparison marks handwriting recognition, math conversion and audio playback sync as iOS and Android only.
Key features
LiquidText
- Unified workspace
- Source documents and notes share one screen. Excerpts dragged out of a document stay linked to their original location and return to it with one tap.
- Pinch to compare and search
- A pinch gesture collapses a document so distant pages, search results or highlights sit together, with as much surrounding context as needed.
- Ink links and freehand notes
- Pro adds freehand inking anywhere and live links drawn as a line between any two objects, such as a page, an excerpt and a comment.
- Multi-document projects
- Pro projects hold any number of documents, show up to 3 in parallel (5 on PC) and search across all of them at once.
- LIVE sync and collaboration
- The LIVE subscription syncs projects across devices in real time, backs them up continuously and lets a colleague work in a shared project.
- Export and reference managers
- Notes and excerpts export to PDF and DOCX, and Pro integrates with the Zotero and Mendeley reference managers.
Notability
- Handwriting, typing and document markup
- Notes combine handwriting, typed text, images and sketches on one page, and PDFs, documents and slides can be imported and written on.
- Audio recording with transcripts
- Lectures and meetings are recorded alongside your notes and transcribed, and playback follows the moment each note was written. Live transcription is unlimited on Pro.
- AI flashcards and quizzes
- Practice questions, quizzes and flashcards are generated from your notes: up to 400 questions a month on Plus and unlimited on Pro.
- Summaries and chat with your notes
- Pro generates real-time summaries of notes, imported documents and recordings and answers questions about a note in a chat. Meeting notes can also yield action-item checklists.
- YouTube link-to-note
- On the web, a YouTube link is converted into a note with a transcript and summary: 100 conversions a month on Plus, unlimited on Pro.
- Collaboration and shared libraries
- Notes can be shared by link and edited together live. Business plans add shared note libraries, centralized user admin and admin-based feature controls.
Plans
LiquidText
Basic$0
PDF reader with annotation, a unified workspace, excerpts linked back to the document, pinch search and notes export.
Pro 2023$89.99
one-time purchase, one platform
Local app for a single platform: inking, multi-document projects, links across documents, tagging, OCR, and Zotero and Mendeley integration.
LIVE$8.99
per month, paid annually; $10.99 paid monthly
Everything in Pro 2023 on all platforms, plus real-time sync, continuous backup, 1 GB of project storage and sharing with one colleague.
LIVE Unlimited$15.99
per month, paid annually; $18.99 paid monthly
Adds unlimited storage, document replacement, enhanced search actions and priority support.
LIVE Unlimited Plus$20.99
per month, paid annually; $24.99 paid monthly
Raises real-time collaboration from one colleague to nearly unlimited collaborators per project, with sharing and privacy controls.
Enterprise EditionCustom
Quoted on request, with a license management console, single sign-on, password-based file encryption and an on-premises server option.
Notability
Starter$0
5 notes with all editing tools, PDF and document import, 20,000+ templates and 7-day version history.
Lite$4.99
per month, or $14.99 per year
Unlimited notes and third-party backups (iOS only), with 7-day version history.
Plus$7.99
per month, or $19.99 per year
Adds audio recording and transcription, handwriting search, up to 400 AI quiz and flashcard questions and 100 YouTube conversions a month.
Pro$19.99
per month, or $99.99 per year
Unlimited live transcription, real-time AI summaries, quizzes, flashcards and YouTube conversions, chat with your notes and 90-day version history.
Classic$49.99
one-time purchase
Unlimited notes with handwriting recognition and search, math conversion to LaTeX, live collaboration and Notability Cloud sync.
Business$6
per user / month, or $60 per user / year
Shared note libraries, central admin and billing, AI summaries and transcription. Business Pro is $18 per user / month or $180 per year.
Ways to pay less
LiquidText
- Annual discount
Lower monthly rate when paid annually
LIVE is $8.99 a month paid annually against $10.99 paid monthly; LIVE Unlimited is $15.99 against $18.99, and Unlimited Plus $20.99 against $24.99.
- Education
Student pricing through in-app purchase
The pricing page says student discounts are available only as in-app purchases in a LiquidText app downloaded from the app store. It gives no rate.
- Lifetime license
Pro 2023 as a one-time purchase
LiquidText Pro 2023 is paid once at $89.99 for a single platform and can run on up to 5 personal devices on that platform.
- By country
Lower LIVE price shown to buyers in India
On October 9, 2026 the pricing page showed LIVE at $4.99 a month, paid annually, to a reader in India, against $8.99 in its US price data. Pro 2023 was higher there: $99.99 against $89.99.
Notability
- Annual discount
Yearly plans cost far less than paying monthly
Lite is $14.99 per year against $4.99 per month ($59.88 over a year), Plus $19.99 against $7.99 per month and Pro $99.99 against $19.99 per month. Business is $60 per user yearly or $6 monthly.
- Lifetime license
Classic one-time purchase
The Classic plan is a one-time purchase, regularly $49.99, with unlimited notes, handwriting recognition, live collaboration and Notability Cloud sync and no subscription.
- Education
Free for schools that manage devices
Schools managing devices through an MDM such as Jamf or Mosyle can use Notability for Education at no cost. It is similar to the Plus subscription and configurable by administrators.
- Other savings
Back-to-school sale: up to 20% off all plans
At the time of checking, the pricing page showed sale prices of $11.99 (Lite), $15.99 (Plus) and $79.99 (Pro) per year and $39.99 for Classic. No end date is stated.
