Reflect vs Relanote
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Reflect
Open-source daily notes app with backlinks and local Markdown
Relanote
Linked note-taking in the browser with AI writing and chat tools
Where they differ
- Reflect starts at $9.99 per month, or $99 per year, for the iPhone and iPad app. Relanote starts at $4.99 per month, or $49 per year if paid annually.
- Only Reflect lists a macOS app.
- Only Reflect lists a browser extension.
- Only Relanote lists a web app.
- Only Relanote lists an Android app.
- Reflect is open source, according to its own site.
- Reflect also covers Markdown and daily notes.
- Relanote also covers chat assistant.
At a glance
| Reflect | Relanote | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $9.99 per month, or $99 per year, for the iPhone and iPad app | $4.99 per month, or $49 per year if paid annually |
| Free plan | The Mac app is free and open source, with no subscription or account required. The iPhone and iPad app needs a paid subscription. | Starter plan, free for life with no card required: up to 100 notes, 100 MB of storage, 3,000 AI credits a month, private sharing and community support. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Reflect App, LLC | Ubidesk LLC |
| Price read from | apps.apple.com | relanote.com |
| Checked | Oct 4, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Reflect
- Mac users who want free, open-source notes kept as plain Markdown files
- People who work from a daily note and link ideas together
- Users who prefer to bring their own AI provider and API key
Relanote
- Students and researchers building a linked set of notes on a topic
- People who want Zettelkasten-style links without setting up sync
- Drafting study notes with AI and then chatting with PDFs or videos
Worth knowing
Reflect
- Only the Mac app is free; the iPhone and iPad app requires a paid subscription.
- There is no web app, and the vendor says Windows and Android versions are not available and have no release dates.
- AI features need your own API key, and the AI provider bills that usage separately.
- Reflect Open adds no end-to-end encryption of its own; sync and encryption rely on iCloud Drive or Git.
Relanote
- The free Starter plan stops at 100 notes and 100 MB of storage, with 3,000 AI credits a month.
- Premium still caps storage at 1 GB and AI use at 30,000 credits a month.
- Publishing a note publicly needs Premium, and a privately shared note can only be opened by someone with a Relanote account.
- The features page lists iOS and Android apps only; on a computer Relanote runs in the browser.
Key features
Reflect
- Local Markdown notes
- Notes are plain Markdown files in a folder you choose. There is no account, no telemetry and no Reflect-hosted cloud service.
- Daily notes and calendar
- The app starts on today's note. Apple Calendar events appear beside the daily note and can be turned into meeting notes.
- Wiki links and backlinks
- Double-bracket links connect notes into a graph, backlinks are tracked for each note, and one search covers notes, backlinks and tags.
- Optional AI with your own key
- Add an OpenAI, Anthropic, Google or OpenRouter key to ask questions about your notes, pull out takeaways and fix grammar. Requests go directly to the provider.
- Voice notes and transcription
- Record audio inside the app and transcribe it through the transcription provider you connect.
- Capture and sync
- The Reflect Capture Chrome extension saves links, selected text and screenshots. Notes sync between devices through iCloud Drive or Git.
Relanote
- Links, folders and tags
- Folders and sub-folders sit alongside wiki-style bi-directional links. Typing @ creates a new note or links to an existing one without leaving the page, and # adds a tag.
- Graph view
- A mind map-style graph shows how notes and notebooks connect, can be filtered by notebook or tag, and opens any note with a click.
- AI notebooks and writing tools
- A few words of prompt can produce a notebook of 50 or more notes. A / shortcut inside a note opens Write with AI, auto-complete and summarizing.
- Chat and Q&A with your material
- AI chat works over notes, notebooks, PDFs, web pages and YouTube videos. The Q&A tool answers a question and lays out follow-up questions as a graph.
- Sharing and publishing
- Notes and notebooks can be shared privately on every plan with people who have a Relanote account. Publishing them at a public link needs Premium.
- Backup, history and encryption
- A daily backup to Google Drive is optional, notes export as HTML, JSON or text, the last 10 edits of a note can be restored, and chosen notes can be encrypted on the device.
Plans
Reflect
Mac app$0
Free and open source under the MIT license. No subscription and no account.
Reflect Pro (iPhone and iPad)$9.99
per month, or $99 per year (US App Store)
Subscription for the iPhone and iPad app, bought in the App Store, where prices are set per country.
Relanote
Starter$0
Up to 100 notes, 100 MB of storage and 3,000 AI credits a month, with private sharing and community support.
Premium$4.99
per month, or $49 per year if paid annually
Unlimited notes and notebooks, 1 GB of storage, 30,000 AI credits a month, priority support and public sharing.
Ways to pay less
Reflect
- Annual discount
About 17% lower price with the yearly subscription
On the US App Store, Reflect Pro is $99 per year versus $9.99 per month, which works out to about 17% less over a year.
- Other savings
One year of the mobile app free for Classic subscribers
Reflect's site says paid Reflect Classic subscribers get one year of the iPhone and iPad app free.
Relanote
- Annual discount
About 18% less when paid annually
Premium is $4.99 a month or $49 a year if paid annually. Twelve monthly payments come to $59.88, so the annual price saves about 18%.
- Education
Discount for students and teachers
The FAQ offers students and teachers a discount on the annual plan that lasts as long as the subscription continues. It gives no figure and excludes the monthly plan.
- Nonprofit
Discount for nonprofits on request
Nonprofits can email support from their organization's address with a link to their website to receive a discount. The FAQ does not state the amount.
