Top 15 Best Evernote Alternatives You Can Use

Evernote is one of the oldest and most feature-packed note-taking software. The app offers a ton of different ways which you can use to collect notes. You can create text-notes, voice-notes, and use Evernote’s Web Clipper tool to directly save entire articles in your notes. However, all these features have made Evernote very clunky and complex. Another big negative for Evernote is that the company doesn’t seem to be stable. Just an year back, Evernote lost its CFO, CTO, CPO, and HR head in just one month. The company is going on, but the future remains uncertain. Add that to the fact that the paid version of the app costs a hefty $4.99/month, no one can blame you for looking at Evernote alternatives. Well, if that’s the case, here are the 15 best Evernote alternatives that you can use in 2020.

Best Evernote Alternatives in 2020

Before we get started, let us discuss about Evernote’s features and drawbacks. It will help you decide whether switching from Evernote is the right decision for you or not. First we will mention Evernote’s key features and then look at some of its drawbacks.

  • Evernote: Key Features
    • A great place to dump your notes
    • Powerful organizational structure
    • OCR support
    • A handy web-clipper to save articles and web bookmarks
    • Document Scanning
    • Handwriting recognition
    • Not syncing across platform
  • Evernote: Drawbacks
    • Complex and takes time to learn
    • Bloated apps with slow response
    • Packed with features that most users are not going to use
    • Slow sync
    • Lacks productivity focused features
    • It costs a lot. The premium plan starts at $7.99/month

Comparing the features and the drawbacks, you can decide if the app is for you or not. With all that said, let’s get to our list of best Evernote alternatives. I have added quick links below. You can click on them to quickly move between the apps.

1. Notion

If you are a person who needs more features than what Evernote offers, Notion is just for you. Notion is a note-taking app which does much more than just allowing you to take notes. Notion is an all-in-one work-space which allows you to take notes, create an internal wiki of notes, collect research material from the web in form of links, text, and images, create table and databases, manage projects and tasks, and more.

Despite bringing so many features, Notion remains easy to use because it allows users to use only those features that they need without overcrowding the user interface.

Notion

Another great thing about Notion is its support for templates. There are hundreds of templates that you can just download and use. From business templates like agile process, coding guidelines, and more to create templates like video production, mood board, editorial calendar, you can find Notion templates for everything that you want to do.

This saves users a ton of time from creating their own templates and they can get started as soon as they download the app. Since the entire Notion community can create and share templates, there are always new and novel templates to discover.

Notion Templates

Notion also comes with a web-clipper which allows you to easily save webpages offline just like on Evernote. Another thing that makes Notion a great Evernote alternative is the fact that it supports instant import from Evernote.

That means switching from Evernote to Notion is as simple as it can get. In my opinion, Notion is one of the best Evernote alternatives on the market and you should definitely check it out.

Supported Platforms: Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Web

Price: Free, $4/month for individual users, $8/month/user for teams

Visit: Website

2. OneNote

For anyone who is looking for a note taking app which is as powerful as Evernote but doesn’t cost you anything, OneNote is the one for you. Coming from Microsoft, OneNote brings all the features that Evernote has and then some. The app allows you to easily save text-notes, voice-notes, pictures, and more.

It even has its own web clipping tool just like Evernote. However, what makes OneNote one of the best Evernote alternatives is the fact that the service is available cross-platform so no matter which device you are using, you can get OneNote working on it.

1. OneNote

That said, Just like OneNote brings Evernote’s power, it also comes with all the Evernote’s drawbacks. So, expect a complex note-taking app with large set-up files and a learning curve attached to it. Still, the fact that it’s completely free makes it a dream alternative for anyone who is looking to replace Evernote with a similarly powerful yet free alternative.

Supported Platforms: Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, Web, Apple Watch, Android Wear, Chromebook

Price: Free

Visit: Website

3. Simplenote

If you are someone who is looking for a simple note-taking app which offers an intuitive and easy-to-navigate UI, Simplenote is the one for you. Simplenote is one of the best note-taking app which not only offers a no-nonsense interface but also brings most of the basic features that you might require from a note-taking app. You can easily create text-notes, reminders, to-do list, and more.

2. Simplenote

All your notes are synced across devices allowing you to take notes anywhere. That said, the best part about Simplenote is its modern and minimalistic UI which makes using the app a joy. Also, the app is very light and doesn’t take more than a few MBs of space on your device.

Simplenote has a dark mode too which in my opinion looks really beautiful. I do miss the ability to keep pictures inside my notes, but other than that, I don’t have any problem with this app. Also, did I tell you that it’s completely free?

Supported Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux(.deb), Linux(.tar.gz), Android, iOS

Price: Free

Visit: Website

4. Google Keep

Google Keep is one of the best note-taking apps in the market right now, and it also happens to be my most favorite app on the list. I love how Google Keep displays all my notes in the form of simple cards which not only makes the notes look beautiful but also makes it easy to scan through them at a glance. I also love the ability to color code my notes which makes it easier to find the exact note that I am looking for.

3. Google Keep

My most favorite feature of Google Keep is that it makes it really easy to set reminders, create lists, and more. The app also has a web companion which works exactly like Evernote’s web clipper and allows users to save web-articles directly inside the app. Other features include the ability to share notes, add pictures, take hand-written notes, and more.

Supported Platforms: Android, iOS, Chrome, Web

Price: Free

Visit: Website

5. Notejoy

While Evernote has a note sharing feature, it is not as robust as many other options out there. If your main problem with Evernote is that it doesn’t efficiently allow you to share notes with your team members then you should try out Noetjoy. Notejoy is an incredible note-taking application which takes note sharing to the next level.

In the app, all your notes are arranged in libraries. You have a personal library where you can save all your private notes. Then there are shared libraries which contain notes you have shared with other users.

NoteJoy

Once you share a library with someone, all the notes saved in the library are automatically shared with them. Then you can collaborate with other users on that note. In fact, Notejoy even brings a real-time chat feature which you can use while taking notes.

Other features of the app include pinned notes, image galleries support, support for any kind of documents including word, PDFs, Google Doc, and more, markdown support, tags, and more. All these features make Notejoy great for people who like to work in shared spaces. If Evernote was unable to meet your note sharing needs, you should give Notejoy a chance.

Supported Platforms: Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Web

Price: Free, $4/month for individual users, $8-$12/month/user for teams

Visit: Website

6. DEVONthink 3

If you are one of those few people who has surpassed the limits of Evernote, and even it cannot fulfill all your needs, DEVONthink 3 is just for you. In fact, calling DEVONthink a note-taking app will be undermining its full potential as it’s not only a note-taking app, it’s also a full-blown document management system that can handle PDFs, links, and more. The app even has a built-in browser which lets you open the links inside the app itself.

Devonthink

DEVONthink also brings a ton of automation tools and scripts which you can use to automate your note organization. The software basically has more features than anyone will ever need. The app also has a web clipping tool just like Evernote and offers the best search features out of any app on this list. If Evernote cannot meet your demands, DEVONthink is certainly for you.

Supported Platform: macOS, iOS

Price: DEVONthink Standard ($99),  DEVONthink Pro ($199), DEVONthink To Go ($14.99)

Visit: Website

7. Keep It

If you are a Mac user, Keep It can serve as a good Evernote Alternative option for you. Keep It is from the guys who previously created Together 3 which was one of the most famous note-taking apps on the Mac. Their new product brings a better and more organized user interface which not only looks good but is also very intuitive.

6. Keep ItYou can create notes, organize them using notebooks, tags, bundles, and bookmarks, save web articles, and more. Probably the biggest feature of Keep It is that it is optimized for macOS which means you can perform native functions such as searching for notes using Spotlight, back up with Time Machine, open notes in any app, and more.

Supported Platforms: macOS, iOS

Price: $49.99

Visit: Website

8. Zoho Notebook

Zoho Notebook is one of the coolest looking note taking app on this list. The app lets you easily create Notebooks which actually look like a real notebook. Inside, you can create text-notes, voice-notes, add pictures, and more.

It also has a web clipping tool which lets you save articles from the web. One of the best features of Zoho is how easy it makes writing and editing your notes by giving all the controls right at your fingertips.

8. Zoho Notebook

I also love the quick note feature of Zoho Notebook which is available for macOS. Basically, the app creates a menu bar app, clicking on which, you can record a quick note without even opening the app.

It also supports the multi-window editing feature in iPad. The app also supports Google Keep like color coding of your notes, making it easier to find the notes you are looking for. Zoho Notebook is one of the most fully featured note-taking apps you can use. The fact that it also looks good also helps.

Supported Platform: macOS, Android, iOS, Web

Price: Free

Visit: Website

9. CintaNotes

CintaNotes is a very good Evernote alternative for Windows users. It is a lightweight, fast, and simple note-taking software which makes it really easy to save notes to your device. The app allows you to clip information from almost anywhere. Any information that you can copy can be clipped to CintaNotes. Just, select the information and hit Ctrl+F12.

9. CintaNotes

The app also lets you interlink notes using note links, allowing you to basically create your own personal wiki of knowledge. The notes are organized by either using tags or creating notebooks. The notes inside a notebook are placed in a vertical scrolling list making it easy for you to find the one you are looking for.

It also packs a powerful search engine, allowing you to find your notes in an instant. CintaNotes is basically one of the most powerful note-taking apps you can get on Windows.

Supported Platform: Windows

Price: Free, $39/year

Visit: Website

10. Roam Research

Roam Research is a new player in the town, and it’s taking the note-taking industry by the storm. Normal note-taking apps depend on a system of folders and tags for organizing your notes. While Roam Research has support for tagging, the main USP of Roam is that it lets you create links between notes.

This allows you to have a repository of interlinking ideas. The concept here is that the folder structure of organizing notes is too constrained. It enables you to collect thousands of notes but not act on them. The notes lay there undiscovered unless you consciously search for them.

Roam Research

By interlinking notes, you allow yourself to discover old notes that relate to the current notes. This confluence of ideas is better for creativity. Or at least, that’s the general principle behind it. If you are into this kind of note-taking, then Roam Research is the tool for you.

I love that everyday Roam Search starts you with a daily note, forcing you to write and collect important stuff and then link it back to your old notes. Roam search is the antithesis of note-taking apps like Evernote, and that’s exactly what makes it a viable Evernote alternative. If Evernote has not been working out for you, you should try it out.

Supported Platforms: Web

Price: 30-day Free trial, $15/month

Visit: Website

11. Milanote

Some people are visual thinkers, and they need a different note-taking experience. For them, I suggest Milanote. Milanote is kind of an endless whiteboard where you can add notes, columns, photos, links, and more. You can create multiple boards and even nest boards inside other boards. The app is really good and responsive, and I love the clean look and feel of it. I find it perfect for doing creative work like story-boarding and planning a novel. But you can also use it for things like managing tasks and even entire teams.

12. Milanote

The app comes with a limited but excellent selection of templates. You can find templates for different fields including, product design, novel writing, digital marketing, mood boarding, and game design, among others. The app is available for free, but the limit of 100 notes is quite restrictive. You will surpass it within days. If you want to use it, you will have to buy the premium version.

Supported Platforms: Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Web

Pricing: Free, $9.99/month

Visit: Website

12. Bear

Bear is another great note-taking app for people who don’t like to confine their notes inside a folder. Instead of using folders, Bear uses tags. And since a note can have multiple tags, it can exist in multiple locations. Bear also allows you to link notes to other notes, thereby allowing you to create wiki-style notes.

Bear

I also love that Bear uses markdown instead of rich-text formatting. For the unfamiliar, markdown is a simple language that allows you to format plain-test. Your notes will exist in plain-text but they can be easily exported into different formats including rich-text, PDF, and more.

If you want a simple note-taking app without the bells and whistles that come with an app like Evernote, Bear is the right app for you. One thing to mind here is that Bear is only available for Apple devices (iPhone, iPad, and Mac).

Supported Platforms: macOS, iOS, and iPadOS

Price: Free with restriction, $1.49/month

Visit: Website

13. Turtl

If you want an app that is as powerful as Evernote, try out Turtl. Just like Evernote, you can use Turtl to save all kinds of files and information. You can save notes, images, bookmarks, passwords, files, shopping lists, and anything else that you can think of.

14. Turtl

One of the biggest benefits of Turtl is that all your data is encrypted. It uses high-end cryptography to protect your data. So if you are you’re worried about information leaks, competitive advantage, or surveillance, this is the right app for you. Turtl also supports collaboration, allowing you to easily collaborate with your co-workers on a note or project.

Other features of Turtl include the ability to organize notes into folders and spaces, support for TeX math rendering, a comprehensive search engine that lets you easily find notes, markdown support, and more.

If you want the power of Evernote with encryption capabilities, this is the app for you

Supported Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and Web

Price: Free, premium plans start at $3/month

Visit: Website

14. Dropbox Paper

Dropbox is one of the best if not the best cloud storage provider on the market. It’s features like selective sync and robust sync-engine that never fails always keep it at the top of the chain. And if you are already a Dropbox subscriber, I urge you to give a chance to its other service; Dropbox Paper.

15. Dropbox paper

Dropbox Paper is for people who work in teams and want to collaborate on notes and projects. All your notes are synced across devices and you can invite anyone with a Dropbox account to work on them. It brings features like comments, annotations, version history, and more, so you always know who is contributing what.

Apart from creating notes, you can create to-dos, introduce all kinds of multimedia like images, videos, and PDF files, and comment on each-other work. If you want a collaborative note-taking environment, I highly recommend Dropbox to you.

Supported Platforms: Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Web

Price: Free, starts at $9.99/month (Dropbox Paper is free for all Dropbox users, the pricing here shows Dropbox’s pricing)

Visit: Website

15. Quip

Unlike Evernote, Quip is a fully-featured documents manager app that you can use to create notes, write long-form content, and collaborate with team-members. In Quip, not only you can create a word document, but also sheets, and presentation.

Quip

The best thing about Quip is that you can use all these things inside a single document. That means you can have written word, tables, pictures, videos, and more, inside a single document. That means you don’t have to adapt to Quip, it adapts to your needs.

The collaboration features on Quip are second to none. You can share documents with team members, add comments, send inline replies, check document history, and more. If you are looking for an Evernote alternative for your team, you should give Quip a chance.

Supported Platforms: Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and Web

Price: Free, $10/user/month

Visit: Website

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Is there something better than Evernote?

No one note-taking app can be the best. It depends on your requirement and your note-taking skills. For some, Evernote is the best option, for others, it might be Notion or Roam Research or One Note. So, yes, Evernote is not the best note-taking app and I have given you ample options to choose from.

Q. Is Evernote worth paying for?

If it works for you then absolutely yes. You have to realize these are all tools that you can use to get work done. If Evernote can help you in that direction, it’s worth paying for. If not, look for other options on this list.

Q. Is Evernote going away?

Evernote had a rocky patch for a few years now, but it now seems to be in the right hands. And I am confident the app is here to stay. But if you are still not sure, we have mentioned all the best options that you can use as Evernote alternatives.

Q. Is Evernote better than Apple Notes?

If you consider features and cross-platform availability, then yes, Evernote is better than Apple Notes. Then again Apple Notes is clutter-free and easy-to-use, and can easily meet the demands of most users.

Q. What is wrong with Evernote?

Evernote lost its CFO, CTO, CPO, and HR head in just one month and the company was not stable for a while. Also, many people find Evernote to be too complex and think it has become bloated with nonessential features.

On the other hand, it still has a huge core user-base who loves it to death and won’t switch to anything else. So, there’s nothing inherently wrong with Evernote. The question you should ask is whether Evernote is right for you or not.

Q. Is Evernote owned by Google?

No. Evernote is an independent, privately held company headquartered in Redwood City, California. It only uses Google Cloud Services for hosting your data. This is nothing new.

Most of the companies you have heard of are using Google, Amazon, or Microsoft as their cloud service provider. Running a cloud server is too costly and not feasible for anyone other than the biggest companies in the world.

Evernote Alternatives: Best Note Taking Apps!

That ends our list of the best Evernote alternative note-taking apps you can use. All the apps that are mentioned here are really good. However, it totally depends on your use-case scenario and requirements as to which app is the best for you. Do check them out and let us know which one catches your fancy. Also, if you are already using a good note-taking app which you think is a worthy Evernote alternative, share with us by dropping its name down in the comments section below.

comment Comments 14
  • Jorge Casales says:

    I’ve been using Evernote for about ten years. While I appreciate many of its features, I’m concerned about reliability. Now and then note attachments just disappear. Not good, since I use EN to have as close to a paperless life as possible. I keep the paper copies of important documents, but I’m disappointed that I cannot rely on EN as much as I would like. I tried Bear yesterday and it’s not going to work for me. I want a data repository that is secure and reliable and contains some 11,000 notes, some of which are quite large. Perhaps Notion might be up to the task.

  • Anahita says:

    I have used Evernote for more than 10 years for my life time research. Suddenly my subscription gone and I have to upgrade & pay double for Premium Account. It is nothing for people who use US currency. But for me, it was too expensive & I’m thinking of leaving Evernote. This article helps a lot.

  • Janet Arthur says:

    I have Evernote but it is way too complex for my very limited knowledge of computers, computer language and the Evernote app and the terms it uses and how do anything in the app. I have premium for customer support only( supposedly they read premium member questions first). But I have found by the time they answer my question I have forgot what I asked and they NEVER put it into non computer talk words!!
    1.- I use Evernote for
    typing down stuff I want to keep like recipes, lists.
    2.-3 I use it to keep pictures
    2.- and I use it to download stuff from a page I am looking at on the internet that I want to keep
    I am retired and never used a
    computer for work.
    So I just want something ALOT cheaper and
    SIMPLE to use!
    What would you recommend for me?
    Also how can I transfer everything from my Evernote app to whatever you recommend. I have hundreds if not a thousand amount of stuff that I have had ever since Evernote existed( almost)???

  • Marian says:

    Which of these apps store data on your own location? I like Evernote features but I don’t like that my own data are stored on Evernotes’s cloud. I try to use Notability which si not so complex app but my data are store in my own cloud on apple.

  • James Schles says:

    Thanks for the recommendations! I used to use Evernote but I started to need more features. The thing about EN is that it never really changes and lack in some features. It’s a good software, but I need something that could work better.
    I decided to switch for task management softwares because I noticed that they could be used to take notes and also remind me of the things I need to do.
    I use Quire for this because it’s free and I can also collaborate with others.
    Pretty useful.

  • Jason Artix says:

    Would be interested if you can also do a review on Milanote…

  • Herbert Haubold says:

    Thanks a lot for the great review, it has actually reconfirmed my intention to move away from OneNote to Evernote.
    I have tested several of the apps and from my perspective, Evernote is simply unsurpassed in terms of ease and day-to-day utility. I disagree with the notion that OneNote “brings all the features that Evernote has and then some”, e.g. there is no tagging feature which I definitely need. OneNote is definitely prettier, but do not lat that lure you into thinking it is more versatile.
    Finally, a WARNING when using OneNote: It has, other than most note-taking apps, no real export function, that is, there is no way to export your data in a way that it can thereafter be imported into another note-taking app. I think this is a very unfair measure to keep users from switching. It comes with 5 GB of free storage, and once you run out of that you must use payed-for OneDrive storage. This is of course fair enough, but that it “doesn’t cost you anything” is not true.

    • Chris Elford says:

      While I’m not convinced as to which one (Evernote or OneNote) is better, I’d like to point out that:
      1. There is tagging in OneNote for Windows 10 – the built in version (Version 16001.11231.20118.0)
      2. You can import OneNote notes (Notebooks that are open in the OneNote 2016 Windows desktop version — that can be run parallel to the Windows 10 version) into Evernote directly from the Evernote (Windows desktop version) Import menu (it gives you 2 options: OneNote and Evernote). From there you can use all the Evernote export functions (which are not very robust).

  • SERGIO OLIVA says:

    I’m not sure any of the listed apps can truly substitute Evernote. I’ve been using Evernote for so many years and I’m surprised to see there is simply no competition so far.
    EN is not perfect, and not always does it work good, but no real alternative for me.

  • Damien says:

    Been using Evernote premium for many years now but I’m slowly getting bored with it. Their constant “improvements” are killing what was good with it. Simple, flawless and easy.
    Now, it’s consuming more CPU than it should on a computer, synchronizing from my cell is often hard to do like if I was uploading big data. And now, it keeps asking for a valid certificate though I accepted and imported it several times.
    I wish they returned to what Evernote was 3 or 4 years ago when it was a simple and efficient note synchronizer.

  • Glenn says:

    Do any of the apps that you have compared apart from Evernote and Onenote have a feature where a plugin from an email client can be used to transfer emails to them. eg. Evernote and Onenote have a plugin where you can transfer emails to the Note Taking apps. This can be used to organise stuff in the Note Taking app.

  • Tom Keefe says:

    I have used Evernote for over 10 years but recently had to contact support and based on that experience will never use the software again. It was truly a horrible experience.

    • A Brown says:

      Tom, What are you using instead?

  • Carl Cooper says:

    I have used Evernote for decades and am satisfied with it performance I bought it for its memory capabilities

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