Best free note taking apps
Note apps you can use at no cost, either because the app is free or because it has a free plan. Free plans often cap storage, devices or history, so check the free option column before you commit.
14 apps. 14 free or with a free plan, 4 open source, 3 store notes as Markdown files. Facts checked on vendor sites between 2026-10-20 and the latest update in 2026.
Quick picks by need
- Notes as Markdown files you own: Obsidian, free for personal use, notes stay as plain Markdown files in a folder, large plugin ecosystem.
- Free and open source on every platform: Joplin, open source apps for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android and the terminal, sync through Dropbox, OneDrive or Joplin Cloud.
- Team wiki and shared workspace: Notion, pages, databases and real-time collaboration, with a free plan.
- Only Apple devices: Apple Notes, free, already installed, syncs through iCloud, and can export Markdown on the Mac.
- Handwriting and Microsoft 365: Microsoft OneNote, free notebooks with pen input, part of the Microsoft 365 set.
- Quick lists and reminders on your phone: Google Keep, free with a Google account, real-time shared lists.
- Outliner and daily journal: Logseq, open source (AGPL-3.0), local Markdown or Org-mode files.
- Open source Notion-style workspace: AppFlowy, AGPL-3.0, can be self-hosted, free personal plan.
- Academic writing with citations: Zettlr, open source (GPL-3.0), Markdown files on disk, free.
Compare all 14
| App | Price | Free option | License | Platforms | Notes stored as |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obsidian | Free for personal use | Free without limits for personal use, no sign-up required | Proprietary, free for personal use | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Plain Markdown files on your device |
| Notion | Free plan, paid from $10 per member per month | Free plan with limits: 5 MB per file upload, 7 days of page history, up to 10 guests | Proprietary SaaS | Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android | Notion cloud, block-based pages (Markdown import and export) |
| Logseq | Free | The app is free; the vendor describes it as privacy-first and open source | Open source (AGPL-3.0) | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Local Markdown or Org-mode files (outline format) |
| Joplin | Free app, optional Joplin Cloud from 2.99 EUR per month | The apps are free; sync works with Dropbox, OneDrive and other services as well as Joplin Cloud | Open source | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Terminal | Local notes in an open format, synced to a service of your choice |
| Bear | Free tier, Pro $2.99 per month or $29.99 per year | Free tier with local notes and some exports; iCloud sync and OCR search need Pro | Proprietary | macOS, iOS, iPadOS | Bear app library, iCloud sync with Bear Pro |
| Zettlr | Free | Free to download and use | Open source (GPL-3.0) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Markdown files on disk |
| AppFlowy | Free personal plan, Pro from $12 per member per month billed annually | Personal plan: $0, 100 MB storage, 7 MB per file, 7 days of version history | AGPL-3.0 (per the GitHub repository) | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Web | Workspace data in AppFlowy Cloud or on your own self-hosted server |
| Anytype | Free plan, paid from $4 per month billed yearly | Free: 100 MB of remote storage, 10 shared channels, unlimited private channels | Any Source Available License 1.0 (source available, not an OSI open source license) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Offline-first local storage with optional peer-to-peer sync |
| Evernote | Free plan, paid tiers (Starter, Advanced, Flexible, Unlimited) | Free: 50 notes, 1 notebook, 1 synced device, 1 GB storage | Proprietary | iOS, Android, Web, Windows, Mac | Evernote cloud with offline notes |
| Microsoft OneNote | Free to use, Microsoft 365 plans from $9.99 per month | Microsoft advertises OneNote as free ("Take notes anywhere for free") | Proprietary | Web, iOS, Android, Windows, Mac | Microsoft cloud notebooks, synced across your devices |
| Coda (Superhuman Docs) | Free plan, paid plans from $12 per Doc Maker per month billed annually | Free plan with collaborative docs, connected tables, formulas and automations, with limits (7 day version history, 1 GB attachments per doc, low automation quota) | Proprietary | Web, Desktop, iOS, Android | Vendor cloud, docs live in your Coda workspace |
| Capacities | Free plan, Pro $9.99 per month | Basic is free forever: unlimited spaces, objects and blocks, sync, offline support, import and export, 5 GB media uploads in total then 100 MB per month | Proprietary | Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android | Synced to the vendor cloud, hosted in EU data centers, with offline support |
| Apple Notes | Free, included with Apple devices | Notes is free on Mac, iPhone and iPad. Syncing uses your iCloud storage, and iCloud+ storage plans start at $0.99 per month for 50 GB | Proprietary, included with Apple devices | macOS, iOS, iPadOS, Web (icloud.com) | iCloud or on-device notes, with Markdown import, export and Copy as Markdown on the Mac |
| Google Keep | Free with a Google account | Free with a Google account. Keep is also part of Google Workspace for business accounts | Proprietary | Web, Android, iOS | Google account cloud, synced in real time |
Each app in one paragraph
Obsidian
Local-first notes in a folder of Markdown files, with optional paid sync and publishing. Price: Free for personal use.
Good: Your notes are ordinary Markdown files in a folder, so any other editor can open them. Large plugin and theme ecosystem.
Watch out: The app itself is not open source.
Notion
Cloud workspace of pages and databases for teams, with Markdown import and export. Price: Free plan, paid from $10 per member per month.
Good: Databases, tables and project views alongside documents. Built for teams: sharing, comments and guests.
Watch out: Content lives in Notion rather than in files you own; Markdown is an import and export format.
Logseq
Open source outliner for linked notes and daily journals, with local storage. Price: Free.
Good: Open source with a public codebase you can read. Outliner first: every bullet can be linked and referenced.
Watch out: Outline format means exported Markdown is a nested bullet list.
Joplin
Open source note app with Markdown or rich text editing and end-to-end encrypted sync. Price: Free app, optional Joplin Cloud from 2.99 EUR per month.
Good: End-to-end encryption. Web clipper for Chrome and Firefox.
Watch out: Interface is more utilitarian than Obsidian or Bear.
Bear
Apple-only notes app with flexible tags and Markdown formatting. Price: Free tier, Pro $2.99 per month or $29.99 per year.
Good: Tags with icons and nested organization instead of folders. Exports to Markdown, PDF, HTML, DOCX, ePub and more.
Watch out: Apple devices only.
Zettlr
Open source Markdown editor aimed at academic writing, citations and note linking. Price: Free.
Good: Citation and reference manager support for academic work. Open source with a public codebase.
Watch out: Desktop only, no iOS or Android app.
AppFlowy
Self-hostable AI workspace for projects, wikis and teams, positioned as a Notion alternative. Price: Free personal plan, Pro from $12 per member per month billed annually.
Good: Self-hosting is documented, including in your own cloud. Notion-style pages, databases and boards in one workspace.
Watch out: The vendor pages do not describe Markdown import or export, so check before relying on it for plain-file workflows.
Anytype
Local-first, peer-to-peer and end-to-end encrypted knowledge workspace. Price: Free plan, paid from $4 per month billed yearly.
Good: Local-first with zero-knowledge encryption (per the client README). Objects and relations instead of a single page tree.
Watch out: The client README lists macOS, Windows and Linux; check the vendor site for mobile availability.
Evernote
Long-running note app with tasks, calendar and AI features, on tiered plans. Price: Free plan, paid tiers (Starter, Advanced, Flexible, Unlimited).
Good: Tasks, calendar and external calendar connections in the same app. Web clipping and email-in for collecting material.
Watch out: The free plan caps you at 50 notes and one synced device.
Microsoft OneNote
Microsoft's digital notebook, free to use and bundled with Microsoft 365 subscriptions. Price: Free to use, Microsoft 365 plans from $9.99 per month.
Good: Sketch, annotate and highlight freely, which suits handwriting and pen input. Share and collaborate on notebooks.
Watch out: Proprietary and tied to a Microsoft account.
Microsoft OneNote pricing · Microsoft OneNote alternatives · official site ↗
Coda (Superhuman Docs)
Collaborative docs with connected tables, formulas and automations. Coda has been renamed Superhuman Docs. Price: Free plan, paid plans from $12 per Doc Maker per month billed annually.
Good: Docs and tables in one place, with formulas, buttons and automations. Docs AI assistant that can build pages, trackers and views (beta on the plans page).
Watch out: Proprietary and cloud only, notes are not plain Markdown files.
Coda (Superhuman Docs) pricing · Coda (Superhuman Docs) alternatives · official site ↗
Capacities
A note app that organizes ideas as connected objects with types, rather than files and folders. Price: Free plan, Pro $9.99 per month.
Good: Object types and links let you model people, books, meetings and projects as structured notes. Free plan keeps sync, offline use and export.
Watch out: Proprietary and stored in the vendor cloud, not as a folder of Markdown files.
Capacities pricing · Capacities alternatives · official site ↗
Apple Notes
The free notes app built into every Mac, iPhone and iPad, synced with iCloud. Price: Free, included with Apple devices.
Good: Already installed on every Apple device, nothing to set up. Drawings, audio recording with live transcripts, inline math, and attachments (per the Apple Notes User Guide).
Watch out: No native app for Windows, Linux or Android; other devices use icloud.com in a browser.
Apple Notes pricing · Apple Notes alternatives · official site ↗
Google Keep
Google's free sticky-note style app for quick notes, lists, photos and reminders. Price: Free with a Google account.
Good: Notes, lists, photos, drawings and audio, with reminders. Real-time sync across phone, computer and watch, and real-time shared editing.
Watch out: On a computer Keep runs in the browser; Google says offline access is only in the mobile apps.
Google Keep pricing · Google Keep alternatives · official site ↗
What is the best free note taking app?
It depends on what you need. Notes as Markdown files you own: Obsidian (free for personal use, notes stay as plain Markdown files in a folder, large plugin ecosystem). Free and open source on every platform: Joplin (open source apps for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android and the terminal, sync through Dropbox, OneDrive or Joplin Cloud). Team wiki and shared workspace: Notion (pages, databases and real-time collaboration, with a free plan). Only Apple devices: Apple Notes (free, already installed, syncs through iCloud, and can export Markdown on the Mac).
Which of these note apps are free?
Obsidian, Notion, Logseq, Joplin, Bear, Zettlr, AppFlowy, Anytype, Evernote, Microsoft OneNote, Coda (Superhuman Docs), Capacities, Apple Notes and Google Keep can be used at no cost, either as a free app or on a free plan.
Which of these note apps are open source?
Logseq, Joplin, Zettlr and AppFlowy are open source. The others are not open source, even when they are free to use.
Which note apps store notes as Markdown files?
Obsidian, Logseq and Zettlr keep notes as Markdown or plain text files on disk, so other editors can open them.
How this list is made
Every price, license and platform here comes from the vendor's own website, its app store listing or its source repository, and each profile shows the date it was checked. We do not take payment for placement, and the order of the table is not a ranking. Apps that only import or export Markdown are not counted as storing Markdown files. For the storage question in more depth, read which notes apps keep your notes as Markdown files.
Markdown Tools is not affiliated with any app on this page. 16 apps are tracked in the directory.