Readwise vs Web Highlights (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Readwise grades higher than Web Highlights: 3.0 against 2.4 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Readwise grades higher on features, ease of use and platforms. Web Highlights grades higher on value for money and the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Readwise
Highlight library with a daily review and a read-later app
Web Highlights
Highlighter for web pages and PDFs with notes and sync
Which one is for you
Pick Readwise if
- Fits if you highlight in Kindle or other ebooks and want those passages sent back to you
- Works for readers who'll pay $7.99 a month to get highlights into Notion, Obsidian or Logseq
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan: after the 30-day trial it's a paid subscription or nothing
- Too light for note-takers on Highlights Lite at $5.59, which has no tags, notes, exports to note apps or Reader
- Pricey if you only want Reader: alone it is $7.99 a month billed yearly or $8.99 monthly, more than most reading apps here
- Not for you if you're on Linux, as the desktop apps are listed for Mac and Windows only
Pick Web Highlights if
- Fits if you mark up articles and PDFs for study
- Works for people who send highlights into Notion or Obsidian
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you want sync, since cloud sync, the web app and phone sync need a paid plan
- Watch out: Notion and Capacities exports are one a day on Free and Premium
- Watch out: PDF and HTML files and image highlighting need Ultimate
- Skip it if you want a price list, as none could be read
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAReadwiseVery good | 2.4GPAWeb HighlightsFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DExports to note apps, tags and notes are on Highlights only at $7.99 a month billed yearly, Reader alone is $7.99 too, and both are $9.99. Reading apps here sit at $3.33 a month in the middle and $7.99 at the dearest tenth. Highlights Lite at $5.59 is cheaper and leaves those out. | CPlan prices load by script and could not be read, so none are on record and value sits at the default. |
| Free plan and trial | CThere's no free plan. You get 30 days free with no credit card required, covering both Readwise and Reader, and then it's a paid subscription or nothing. Students, academics and nonprofits can ask for 50% off by email. | BThe extension has unlimited highlights, notes and tags, with a 7-day Ultimate trial. A person could live on it, without sync. |
| Features | AIt covers the whole job and does what rivals don't: highlights from Kindle, Apple Books, Kobo, Instapaper and photos of paper books, a Daily Review timed with spaced repetition, exports to Notion and Obsidian, and Reader for articles, RSS, newsletters, PDFs, EPUBs and YouTube transcripts. | CHighlights, notes, bookmarks, flashcards and exports. Sync, PDF and HTML files and image highlights need paid plans. |
| Ease of use | A4.8 from 1,513 App Store ratings, which clears our bar for an A on both the score and the number of people behind it. Once your reading sources are connected, new highlights sync in and the Daily Review turns up by email without you doing anything. | CAn extension to install and start, though notes and tags take building. App Store rating not on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | AThe full set: web, Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android and a browser extension, plus an API, a command-line tool and an MCP server for AI assistants. It syncs with Kindle, Apple Books, Kobo and Instapaper and exports to Notion, Obsidian, Evernote and Logseq. No Linux app is mentioned. | BWeb, iPhone, Android and an extension, with Notion, Capacities and Obsidian exports. No desktop app. |
| Best for | keeping and revisiting everything you highlight | highlighting web pages and PDFs |
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: Readwise and Web Highlights. How we grade
Where they differ
- Readwise also covers rSS reader.
- Web Highlights also covers notes, web clipper and bookmarks.
At a glance
| Readwise | Web Highlights | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $5.59 per month, billed annually (Highlights Lite) | Not published |
| Free plan | None | Unlimited highlights, bookmarks, notes and tags in the extension, with Markdown copy and one Notion export a day. |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial of Readwise and Reader, no credit card required | 7-day free trial of Ultimate, which includes sync. |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Readwise, Inc. | Web Highlights GmbH |
| Price read from | readwise.io | Not confirmed |
| Checked | Nov 9, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Readwise
- There is no free plan: a paid subscription is needed once the 30-day trial ends.
- Highlights Lite leaves out tags and notes, exports to note-taking apps, and the Reader app.
- Reader alone costs $7.99 per month billed annually; with Highlights it comes in the Full Readwise plan at $9.99 per month billed annually.
- Desktop apps are listed for Mac and Windows only, with no Linux app mentioned.
Web Highlights
- Cloud sync, the web app and phone sync need Premium or Ultimate; the site says sync needs a paid plan.
- Notion and Capacities exports are one a day each on Free and Premium; PDF and HTML export files need Ultimate or the trial.
- Highlighting images from websites is an Ultimate plan feature.
- Plan prices could not be read because the pricing page loads them with a script, so none are recorded.
Key features
Readwise
- Daily Review
- A daily selection of past highlights, delivered by email and in the app and timed with spaced repetition so older passages come back around.
- Highlight import
- Syncs highlights from Kindle, Apple Books, Kobo, Instapaper and other listed sources, and captures passages from paper books by photographing the page.
- Export to note-taking apps
- Sends highlights to Notion, Obsidian, Evernote, Roam, Logseq and other listed apps, or to Markdown and CSV. Exports are part of the full plan.
- Reader
- A read-later app for web articles, RSS feeds, email newsletters, PDFs, EPUBs, YouTube transcripts and X threads, with highlighting, full-text search and text to speech.
- Ghostreader and chat with highlights
- Ghostreader answers questions about a document, defines terms and simplifies passages. Chat answers show the highlights they were drawn from.
- MCP server, CLI and API
- An MCP server connects Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or another MCP-compatible assistant to the library, alongside a command-line tool and an API.
Web Highlights
- Highlight web pages and PDFs
- Select text and pick a color, or use the Alt+S shortcut. PDFs can be downloaded with the highlights embedded as annotations.
- Notes and tags
- Attach a formatted note and tags to any highlight, or write a note about a whole page.
- Bookmarks and collections
- Save a page with one click and file it in a collection, so the extension doubles as a bookmark manager.
- Export to Notion and Capacities
- Send highlights and notes to a Notion database or Capacities, or copy Markdown for Obsidian.
- Flashcards
- Highlights can become flashcards, which the iPhone app schedules for review with spaced repetition.
- Sync across devices
- With a paid plan, highlights sync to a web app and to the Android and iPhone apps.
Plans
Readwise
Highlights Lite$5.59
per month, billed annually ($67.08), or $6.99 billed monthly
Daily Review by email and app, a searchable highlight library, and syncing of new highlights from all sources.
Highlights only$7.99
per month, billed annually ($95.88), or $8.99 billed monthly
Everything for highlights, including tags and notes, exports, Ghostreader chat over the library, OCR and flashcards, without the Reader app.
Reader only$7.99
per month, billed annually ($95.88), or $8.99 billed monthly
The Reader app for articles, PDFs, EPUBs, newsletters, RSS and videos, with highlighting, text-to-speech and Ghostreader, without Highlights.
Full Readwise$9.99
per month, billed annually ($119.88), or $12.99 billed monthly
The full plan: everything in Lite, plus tags and notes, exports to Notion, Obsidian and other note apps, and the Reader app.
Web Highlights
Pricing could not be confirmed. See web-highlights.com.
Ways to pay less
Readwise
- Annual discount
Save up to 23% with yearly billing
Billed yearly, Highlights Lite is $5.59 a month instead of $6.99, Highlights only and Reader only $7.99 instead of $8.99, and Full Readwise $9.99 instead of $12.99; the page says up to 23% off.
- Education
50% off for students and academics
Students and other members of academia get 50% off by emailing Readwise before subscribing, then subscribing through the Readwise website.
- Nonprofit
50% off for nonprofits
The Reader page lists the same 50% discount for nonprofits, educators, military and first responders, requested by email.
Web Highlights
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Readwise or Web Highlights?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Readwise starts at $5.59 per month, billed annually (Highlights Lite), and Web Highlights has no price we could confirm.
Which has a free plan, Readwise or Web Highlights?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Web Highlights has a free plan. Readwise does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Readwise and Web Highlights run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Readwise lists macOS and Windows apps. Both list a web app, iOS and Android apps and a browser extension. 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.