Note-taking apps on iOS

Evernote vs Microsoft OneNote

Evernote

Free (offers in-app purchases) FROM Evernote, evernote.com Needs iOS 11 or later

Getting started

Evernote makes it incredibly easy to create your first note, pointing you in the direction of its varied templates as soon as you first log in. Tap the green + icon to add a new note, or press and hold to add an audio recording, photo or reminder. Its interface is also friendlier than OneNote’s.

Note management

In your list of notes, swipe left to add it to your list of shortcuts, add a reminder to it or delete it. Tap and hold a note to rearrange it in your list, give it a tag to make it easier to find, or add it to a folder-like Notebook.

Adding content

Evernote lets you insert any file from your iCloud Drive, plus audio recordings and photos. You can mark up your notes, and even have your doodles snap to shapes, although this is a little hit and miss. You can also add checklists, scan documents and save web pages.

Advanced features

Evernote integrates with Siri Shortcuts and has its own reminders system. Advanced features, though, are behind a paywall – you’ll need to pay if you want things like AI recommendations, team collaborations and sharing to more than two devices, plus extra online storage space.

Evernote’s friendly interface and quickstart button make it a breeze to use even for beginners, and its reminders system is invaluable. microsoft Onenote

Free FROM microsoft, onenote.com Needs iOS 11 or later

Getting started

It takes a little longer to add a note (known as a page) in OneNote. You must create a Notebook first, then a section; only then can you create a note. Options to add audio and pictures are only displayed when the on-screen keyboard is present, rather than existing separately as in Evernote.

Note management

OneNote also allows you to press and hold to rearrange items, plus lets you move and copy pages to different Notebooks, and indent pages to become sub-notes. Swiping a note’s name only gives you the option to delete it, though.

Adding content

Aside from photos and audio, you can annotate images in your notes. Although there aren’t as many markup tools as in Evernote, OneNote’s are far easier to use. There are options to add checklists or files from iCloud Drive, plus a more reliable link inserter than you’ll find in Evernote.

Advanced features

Unlike Evernote, OneNote is completely free and all its features are immediately available. These include Office Lens, which automatically crops and straightens photos after you take them. Some features (like collaboration) are free here whereas you must pay for them in Evernote.

a great app that’s totally free and has some excellent features, but can take a bit of getting used to when you first try it out.