Milanote vs Scapple

Milanote

• Designers, filmmakers and writers collecting references and ideas
• Building moodboards and storyboards to share with clients
• Teams of 5 to 50 who want one flat annual price
• Trying every feature on a free plan with no time limit

Scapple

• Writers working out plots, arguments or research before drafting
• People who find a mind map with one central topic too rigid
• Scrivener users who want to carry rough notes into a project
• Buyers who prefer a one-time license to a subscription

Milanote

• The Free plan stops at 100 notes, images or links and 10 file uploads, with images capped at 10MB each.
• Team plans are billed annually only; monthly billing exists only on the per-person plan at $12.50 a month.
• Teams of more than 50 people need a custom enterprise plan arranged through sales.
• There is no separate Pro trial: the vendor points people to the Free plan to try the product.

Scapple

• Scapple is offered for macOS and Windows only; the vendor lists no web, iOS or Android version.
• Each license covers a single platform, so running Scapple on both a Mac and a Windows PC means buying two.
• Minor updates are free, but the vendor says a future major version such as Scapple 2 would be a paid upgrade.
• The Windows version (1.4.2, December 2022) is behind the macOS version (1.5.4, November 2025).

Milanote

Freeform visual boards

A board combines notes, images, videos, links, files and sketches, arranged freely, so a project's research and plans sit in one view.

Moodboards and storyboards

Templates and guides cover moodboards, storyboards, creative briefs, character profiles, shot lists and other formats used in creative work.

Web clipper

A browser extension saves text, images, links and video from any page to a board. It is offered for Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge and Opera.

Sharing and collaboration

Invite clients or teammates to edit, comment on or just view a board, and work together in real time. Shared boards are unlimited on every plan.

Mind maps and whiteboarding

The same boards work as an online whiteboard on an infinite canvas and as a mind mapping tool for brainstorming sessions.

Desktop and mobile apps

Desktop apps for Mac and Windows open Milanote outside the browser with live notifications, and mobile apps cover iPhone, iPad and Android.

Scapple

Notes anywhere on the page

Double-clicking any spot on the page creates a note there. Notes can be moved and rearranged at any time, and the page keeps growing so there is always more room.

Connections without a hierarchy

Dragging one note onto another joins them with a line or an arrow. No note is the center of the map, notes can stay unconnected, and connections can carry labels.

Stacks and background shapes

Related notes can be stacked into columns, and background shapes group a set of notes visually. The appearance of individual notes can be customized.

Export and printing

Boards can be printed or exported. The release notes refer to PDF and PNG output on the Mac and to plain text, rich text and OPML export.

Hand-off to Scrivener

Notes can be dragged from a Scapple board into Scrivener, the vendor's long-form writing app, to be developed into a draft.

Household license

A license bought from the vendor covers every computer the buyer owns and mainly uses, plus the computers of family members living in the same house.

Milanote

• Free$0

  100 notes, images or links, 10 file uploads and unlimited shared boards, with no time limit.

• Pro (pay per person)$9.99

  per person / month, billed annually ($12.50 billed monthly)

  Unlimited notes, images, links and file uploads, with images up to 100MB and other files up to 5GB each.

• Team (up to 10 people)$49

  per month for the team, billed annually

  Unlimited content for up to 10 people under one team admin. Annual billing only.

• Team (up to 50 people)$99

  per month for the team, billed annually

  Unlimited content for up to 50 people under one team admin. Annual billing only; larger teams are quoted an enterprise plan.

Scapple

• Standard Licence$20.99

  one-time, per platform (macOS or Windows)

  The full version for one platform, under a household license that covers the buyer's own computers and those of family in the same home.

• Educational Licence$16.79

  one-time, per platform (macOS or Windows)

  The same full version at 20% off for students and academics, who need an institutional affiliation to qualify.

Milanote

• Annual discount

  About 20% less with annual billing

  The per-person plan costs $9.99 a month when billed annually against $12.50 billed monthly, a saving of about 20%.

• Other savings

  Flat team price for 5 or more people

  The team plan costs $49 a month for up to 10 people or $99 a month for up to 50, billed annually. The plans page labels the two sizes "Save 50%" and "Save 80%".

• Education

  Student and academic discount

  Milanote's help centre says students and academics get a discount by emailing its education address with details of their institution or course.

• Nonprofit

  Discount for NGOs and not-for-profits

  Milanote says it generally discounts plans for NGOs and not-for-profits, decided case by case after contacting support.

Scapple

• Education

  20% off for students and academics

  The vendor's store sells an Educational Licence to students and academics with an institutional affiliation: $16.79 instead of $20.99 in US pricing, on macOS or Windows.