Verdict
The one that fits into a file system you already have. WebDAV, Dropbox, iCloud and a self-hosted Nextcloud all work, which is why people point it at an Obsidian vault.
Best for
Anyone whose notes already live in folders somewhere and who wants to edit them on a phone without moving them.
Dealbreaker
The interface has not been rethought in years — reviewers call the navigation unintuitive and long nested documents awkward — and Dropbox is where the sync complaints cluster.
The facts.
Pulled from the App Store, not written by hand.
Price
$4.99 once
In-app purchases
Unknown
Ads
Unknown
Platforms
iPhone, iPad
Rating
4.6★ (391)
Version
3.3.8
Last updated
Sep 24, 2025
Released
Aug 14, 2013
Attributes
Native appOne-time purchaseNo subscription
Category
Productivity, Utilities
What reviews consistently say.
Themes grouped from 200 App Store reviews. Source feed ›
Praised for
Import and export72 reviews
Sync and multi-device54 reviews
Ease of use and design15 reviews
Subscription pricing and paywalls5 reviews
Works offline2 reviews
Notifications and reminders2 reviews
Battery and performance2 reviews
Complained about
Sync and multi-device8 reviews
Crashes and stability3 reviews
Import and export3 reviews
Confusing interface2 reviews
Where this comes from
72 of 200 recent reviews raised: Import and export (positive)App Store reviews ›
3 of 200 recent reviews raised: Import and export (negative)App Store reviews ›
54 of 200 recent reviews raised: Sync and multi-device (positive)App Store reviews ›
8 of 200 recent reviews raised: Sync and multi-device (negative)App Store reviews ›
5 of 200 recent reviews raised: Subscription pricing and paywalls (positive)App Store reviews ›
2 of 200 recent reviews raised: Confusing interface (negative)App Store reviews ›
Edits markdown in place over Dropbox, WebDAV and iCloud rather than importing itApp Store listing ›
Where we recommend it
Note-taking apps you buy once ›Writing and note apps with no monthly charge.
Alternatives with the same rule.
Every app here is a single purchase. None of them can start charging you monthly for what you already bought. Also with a catch.
$19.99 once · 4.6★ (1,533) · Updated Aug 10, 2026
Verdict. The one that gets out of the way. Plain markdown files, a focus mode that dims everything except the sentence you are on, and nothing you have to learn first.
Best for. Someone who writes prose and wants the app to disappear while they are doing it.
Dealbreaker. Steady on iCloud and shaky off it. Reviewers working out of Dropbox or Google Drive report freezing and lockups, and that is where most of the crash reports come from.
$23.99 once · 4.2★ (2,603) · Updated Sep 29, 2023
Verdict. Built for manuscripts rather than notes. You write in fragments and rearrange them, which is the right shape for a book and far too much for anything shorter.
Best for. Someone drafting something long enough that the structure is the hard part.
Dealbreaker. Syncing is the most common complaint by a wide margin — thirty-nine of the last two hundred reviews raise it against eighteen who say it works — and it runs through Dropbox rather than iCloud.
$5.99 once · 4.4★ (180) · Updated Apr 9, 2020
Verdict. The plainest of these. Markdown, a clean sheet, and files that live in iCloud or Dropbox rather than inside the app.
Best for. A writer who already keeps plain-text files in a folder and wants a tidy place to edit them on a phone.
Dealbreaker. Syncing is where it falls down — nineteen of the last two hundred reviews describe it hanging on download or crashing when opening a file it did not create itself.