Strawberry Notes vs Apple Notes
Apple Notes is free, built in, and great for quick notes and checklists. Strawberry Notes is the all-in-one study app: just as simple, but with far more control and power, from infinite pages and subnotes to flashcards that schedule themselves, tasks, and AI study tools.
Go with Apple Notes if…
- You want something free that's already on your iPhone
- You mostly jot quick notes and checklists
- You want to record lectures with a transcript
- You want Math Notes that solve equations as you write
Go with Strawberry Notes if…
- You want one simple app for school: notes, flashcards, and tasks, with docs and a calendar coming soon
- You want more control over your notes: subjects, subnotes, tags, links, and a map of it all
- You want flashcards with spaced repetition and image occlusion
- You want an infinite notebook and whiteboard with infinite zoom
- You want AI to make quizzes, study guides, and games from your notes
Side by side
Checked against Apple Notes’s own website in September 2026.
| Feature | Strawberry Notes | Apple Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Works on | ||
| Works on | iPad and iPhone. Android, Windows, and Mac coming soon | iPhone, iPad, and Mac, plus iCloud.com |
| Price | ||
| Price | $19.99 a year (7 days free), $4.99 a month, or $39.99 once | Free. More iCloud storage from $0.99 a month |
| Handwriting | ||
| Handwriting | Yes:Smooth, realistic-looking ink with pens, pencil, highlighter, study tape, and shape recognition | Yes:Smooth writing, shape recognition, and handwriting that tidies itself up |
| Page style | ||
| Page style | Yes:Infinite notebook or infinite whiteboard, with infinite zoom and templates | One scrolling note with drawing areas. No infinite canvas |
| Write on PDFs | ||
| Write on PDFs | Yes:Write on PDFs and scans, or read side by side | Yes:Write on PDFs and scans |
| Typed notes | ||
| Typed notes | Yes:Text boxes mixed in with your handwriting. Full typed docs coming soon | Yes:Headings, lists, checklists, and tables |
| Record audio | ||
| Record audio | No:Not yet | Yes:Recordings with live transcripts on newer devices |
| Flashcards | ||
| Flashcards | Yes:Built in, with FSRS spaced repetition, image occlusion, and Anki import | No:No |
| AI study tools | ||
| AI study tools | Yes:Chat, summaries, study guides, games, and quizzes with matching, fill-in-the-blank, and ordering questions. Free starter credits, then pay only for what you use | Partly:Writing tools and summaries with Apple Intelligence, on newer devices |
| Tasks | ||
| Tasks | Yes:Tasks and reminders for every class, with a calendar coming soon | Partly:Checklists. Tasks live in the separate Reminders app |
| Organize and link | ||
| Organize and link | Yes:Subjects, folders, subnotes, tags, links, backlinks, and Sky View, a map of your notes | Partly:Links between notes, and folders. No subnotes or map |
| Works offline | ||
| Works offline | Yes:Yes. Everything saves on your device first, then syncs to your other devices through iCloud | Yes:Yes |
| Where your notes live | ||
| Where your notes live | Yes:Your device, plus your own iCloud if you want it. Back up your whole library as one file anytime. We can't read your notes | Yes:Your device and your own iCloud, with optional end-to-end encryption |
| Share and work together | ||
| Share and work together | Partly:Publish a note, or export it as a .sbnote file, to share it. Live editing isn't here yet | Yes:Live editing with other Apple users |
Why Strawberry Notes
Everything for school, in one simple app
Notes, flashcards, and tasks live together, and docs and a calendar are on the way. Every subject, folder, and subnote gets its own notes, flashcards, and tasks, so nothing gets lost between apps.
- Notes
- Flashcards
- Tasks
- Docs (soon)
- Calendar (soon)
Notes that connect like your brain does
Link any note to any other, nest subnotes as deep as you like, and zoom in forever. Sky View shows it all as a map. You're free to think your way instead of going page by page.
Private by design
Your library lives on your devices, and we can't read it. iCloud sync is optional: keep everything on one device if you like, and export your whole library as one file anytime to back it up or bring it back in. Handwriting recognition runs on your device. AI only sees what you choose to share, and we don't store your chats.
Coming from Apple Notes?
Apple Notes can export a note as a PDF. Import it into Strawberry Notes to keep writing on it, then turn the important parts into flashcards.
DownloadQuestions people ask
For studying, yes. Strawberry Notes adds an infinite notebook and whiteboard with infinite zoom, flashcards with FSRS spaced repetition and image occlusion, subnotes with a map of how they connect, and AI quizzes made from your notes. For quick notes and checklists, Apple Notes is hard to beat.
No. Apple Notes doesn't have flashcards or spaced repetition. Strawberry Notes has flashcards, image occlusion cards, and Anki import built in, all scheduled with FSRS.
It works the same way: your library lives on your devices and in your own iCloud Drive, and we can't read it. Handwriting recognition runs on your device, iCloud sync is optional, and AI only sees what you choose to share.
More comparisons
- vs Notability
- vs Goodnotes
- vs Notion
- vs Obsidian
- vs RemNote
- vs Anki
- vs Quizlet
- vs Knowt
- vs OneNote
- vs Evernote
- vs Notewise
- vs Freenotes
- vs CollaNote
- vs Ahmni
Sources: Apple Notes on iPad, Record and transcribe in Notes, Link notes, iCloud+ plans. Prices are in US dollars and can change, so check before you buy.
Apple Notes is a trademark of Apple Inc., and Strawberry Notes isn't affiliated with them. Spotted something wrong? Tell us and we'll fix it.