The Best Note-Taking Apps Available Today

Revenue earned via the sales of mobile apps worldwide per year has made a leap from USD97.7 billion in 2014 to an estimated USD461.7 billion this year. That’s a USD364 billion jump in a little less than five years! There are literally millions of apps out there and with mobile phone owners in the world increasing, so is the usage of these apps.

Among the many free and charged apps available for download, note-taking or personal management and productivity apps are the sorts that appeal to a niche market. In terms of app availability, productivity apps make up only 3.43% of available Google Play store apps and 2.71% of available Apple Store applications.

Though this may seem like a small amount, it isn’t, and there are enough note-taking apps out there to confuse users about what may suit them best potentially. So what are the best note-taking apps available? Which should you try out?

Note Taking Apps Worth a Try

If you want to find a note-taking app that suits your needs, you might have to shop around a little. Different note-taking apps will offer different features. Suitability depends on your own needs as well as your preferences. That said, we’ve listed some note-taking apps that we’ve learned through experience, and popular opinion are rather useful and user-friendly.

All-Round Best I: Evernote

Most note-taking app users and industry authorities agree that when it comes to note-taking apps, Evernote is first-rate. The app offers users a diverse and extensive range of features from photo snapping and web clip storage to annotation and geo location. Apart from this, the cross-platform support offered by the app is impeccable.

What makes this app the best is its ability to integrate, store, and organize data in different forms as well as how accessible stored data is. Evernote is compatible with numerous devices including phones, laptops and computers as well as operational on both Android and iOS.

All-Round Best II: OneNote

If you’re looking for something that is almost as user-friendly and extensive as Evernote pairs well with your MS Office suite, OneNote might be a good one to try. Available on Android, iOS, and other mainstream platforms. The app offers a digital space for users to save and organize a large amount of data in different forms.

One note also offers options such as color-coding, stylus input options, and highly efficient search capabilities allowing users to zero in on relevant data which may be scattered in separate notes.

For Projects and Collaboration: Dropbox Paper

Though Dropbox Paper does not offer users the wide array of note-taking features like the two apps above and others below, it is a winner when it comes to data sharing. This app is ideal for situations where you have a number of people working together on a project or task. The app offers easy to use common interface where all kinds of information from updates and ideas to completed tasks and deadlines can be shared.

Dropbox paper is also very cloud-compatible and functions on iOS and Android systems but is also available in a web-based version.

For a Little Color: Zoho Notebook

If you’ve got a lot happening in your life and you’re the sort of person who likes a little color and variety, you might want to go for Zoho Notebook. This app allows you to differentiate data types via a color code, making various notes a lot easier to navigate.

With customizable features and a variety of note-taking options, including spreadsheets, PDF files, and more, Zoho notebook makes navigating different data types extremely simple.

To Keep things Simple: Simplenote

If you’re looking for a very basic note-taking app which is fast, reliable, and efficient, Simplenote is what you want to try. This app doesn’t offer any extras or frills like others on our list of the best note-taking apps, but it is ideal for quick and easy access while on-the-go.

These are best suited to those of us who have hectic days and plenty of stuff that needs remembering on the spot.

Built-in Babies: Google Keep/Apple Notes

When it comes to stock note-taking apps, two brilliant basics are Google Keep for Android app and Apple Notes for iOS. Both these apps are cloud compatible and hence can sync across devices. They also offer a full range of basic note-taking app features to users allowing access across different platforms.

For Added Protection: Saferoom

The first thing you need to remember is that Saferoom is not a note-taking app within its self. The reason we have added it to our list of best note-taking apps is due to its usefulness. Many of us may have highly confidential information jotted down. Though most apps on this list are password protected, that is sometimes inadequate when it comes to keeping information safe from fishing and other such data theft.

Saferoom is an app that allows you to add additional encryption protocols to notes stored in Evernote, OneNote, and other note-taking apps you may use.

Personal Preference

Though the apps mentioned here are the sort that we feel cover all bases, we’re sure there may be others out there that suit some of you better. It’s really a matter of what you need from the app in combination with how compatible the app interface is with you. In any case, if you’re just looking to get started with note-taking apps, any of those mentioned above would do.