NoteApps.info
Browse features Compare apps
Home » Standard Notes

Standard Notes

Launched 2016
103 features found available
Home page iOS App Store Android Play Store

In their words

Standard Notes is a safe place for your notes, thoughts, and life's work. A free, open-source, and completely encrypted notes app.   Read more

Pricing

Our most recent pricing details for Standard Notes:

1 Year plan: $49.99, full price, billed annually
5 Year plan: $149.00, full price, billed every 5 years

Read more | View screenshot | Report a mistake

Platforms
Compare
Appearance
Features pertaining to how the app comports itself visually
Configurable panes
It is possible to control how many strips of navigation are shown
Themes
Different sets of colors can be chosen to alter the appearance of the app window
Read provider description
Themes =>
Custom CSS
Custom CSS can be included by the note editor to effect a specific theme via CSS
Read provider description
Daily notes
The app allows note content to be created & viewed with minimal formatting and today's date as the default note title
Multiple editing panes
A mechanism is provided to have more than one note concurrently open for editing within a single viewing window
Content Uploads & Embeds
What kind of content can be uploaded or inserted into notes?
Arbitrary file
An arbitrary file of any type can be added to a note
Excel
Image
Image =>
Can be resized
The note app allows the edges of the picture to get dragged so it becomes larger or smaller
PDF
Word
YouTube
A YouTube video can be inserted into a note
Read provider description
Google Docs
Google Sheets
Image =>
Can be cropped
The note app provides editing tools that allow an image in a note to be cropped (e.g., to remove the left half of it)
Image =>
OCR image text in full text search
Words in the image are added to full text search, so the note will show up in search results that contain a word from within the image
Image =>
Text extracted to note
Text from within an image can be inserted into the note body
Image library
App provides a library of ready-to-use images
PDF =>
Can be annotated
PDF =>
Can be viewed from within note
Content of the PDF can be viewed inside the note, rather than clicking on PDF and having it open in a new tab or external PDF viewer
PDF =>
Content indexed in search
The title and body of the PDF are automatically indexed in search
Twitter (tweet)
Customer-centric
Features that pertain to how the app interfaces with its customers
Chat support available
Company offers on-site real time chat support, or a chat server in which the company participates
Read provider description
Community chat available
There is a dedicated venue such as Discord where users can chat about the product in real time
Read provider description
Community knowledge base
There exists a community knowledge base where questions can be asked and answers can be upvoted
Read provider description
Message forum available
The company has officially anointed a discussion forum for its product
Read provider description
Perpetual free version
The company offers a version of the product that can be used indefinitely at no cost
Read provider description
Feature voting
There exists a publicly accessible site upon which users can upvote features they want to see implemented
Regular product updates
Company has averaged at least one blog post per month over the past year
Encryption/Security
What measures are taken to ensure customer data remains private, even to employees of the companies themselves?
2FA available
Can enable two-factor authentication from within the app (not only via third parties) to protect account access
Read provider description
Encrypted at rest
Documented claim that all note data is encrypted at rest
Read provider description
Encrypted end-to-end
Documented claim that note data can be saved in such a way that the note app maker can't access it
Read provider description
Encrypted in transit
Documented claim that all data is encrypted in transit
Read provider description
Explicit security policy
An explicit policy describes how security is implemented, and what access employees have to data.
Read provider description
Explicit security policy =>
Database access insufficient to decrypt secure note content
Note content can be created such that even a user who gained access to the note app's cloud database (employee or intruder) couldn't decrypt content (i.e., they couldn't obtain a usable decryption key even if possessing the database contents)
Read provider description
Explicit security policy =>
Employees are unable to access secure note content
A documented claim exists that note content can be created that employees are unable to access
Read provider description
Explicit security policy =>
Policy that employees will not read note content
Read provider description
Password-protect notes
A note or block can have a password applied to hide it
Read provider description
Password-protect notes =>
Password-protected content available offline
Encrypted end-to-end =>
All notes end-to-end encrypted
Formatting Supported
What options are available for formatting text and related content in a note?
Block quote
Bold
Bullet list
Bullet list =>
Nested bullet list
Code
Can text be formatted as code?
Code =>
Auto-indented code
As text is written in the code block, the level of indentation survives an "enter" press
Code =>
Code highlighting
Does text formatted as code get syntax highlighting?
Read provider description
Code => Code highlighting =>
Language-specific code highlighting
Multiple languages can be selected to define the code syntax highlighting
Read provider description
Colored text
Excluding text that gets colored as a side effect of some other formatting feature listed (e.g., highlight)
Colored text =>
Background coloring
There exists a means to recolor the background behind specific text in more than one color
Emojis
Font face
User can choose an explicit font (not just a theme) to restyle text
Font size
Can font size be explicitly set? I.e., not just through setting it as a header
Highlight
Images
Indent
Text can be indented (without bullets, block quote, or other incidental features)
Italic
Justification
Text can be explicitly justified center or right
Literal
A monospace font with its own background color can be invoked without breaking a line
Numbered list
Numbered list =>
Nested (indented) numbered list
Strikethrough
Superscript & subscript
Underline
Visible formatting bar
A visible text formatting bar is automatically shown, or can be made consistently visible without a mouse hover
h1/h2/h3
Header formatting
Bullet list => Nested bullet list =>
Foldable list
Bullet items can be "folded" or "contracted" such that their nested content is hidden from view
Clear formatting
There is a hot key or icon to remove all text formatting currently applied
Doodles
App provides a built-in means by which to capture user drawing ("doodles")
Drag positioning
Text can be dragged to any arbitrary location within the note (i.e., because it resides in a movable text block)
Emojis =>
Emoji selector
Emojis can be inserted via a selector built into the app
Footnotes
Text or images can be linked from a particular string of text in the note (not just URLs)
Images =>
Text can wrap around image (multi-line)
Multi-line text can be formatted next to an image
Images =>
Text can wrap around image (single line)
One line of text can be placed on the same line as an image
Table of contents
A set of links to each header in the note can be inserted into the note
Transclusion
A note can show content that was authored from within another note
Transclusion =>
Block-level transclusion
Transclusion allows the user to choose a specific block/section from within the source note being transcluded
Transclusion =>
Editable transclusion
Transcluded content can be edited from any source at which it is transcluded
Unicode
Import/Export and Data Backups
What features are provided for interoperability between apps? How much lock-in is there?
Export note to email
Read provider description
Import from Evernote
Read provider description
Import from markdown
Read provider description
Import from markdown =>
Imports from Roam
Note content can be imported from Roam while preserving all linked content
Syncs to cloud automatically
App automatically syncs note & image data to the cloud without implementing extensions, and without signing up for a secondary account on a storage provider
Read provider description
Trash
Note app offers ability to restore deleted notes
Read provider description
Version history
Read provider description
Version history =>
Restore from past version
Read provider description
Export: Hierarchy
Hierarchy is exported in a way that other apps can import
Export: Images
When an export is initiated, the downloadable package includes image files for each image uploaded to the user's notebook
Exports to markdown
Import from Trello
Note data can be hosted locally
Note content & embeds can be stored locally to a directory on the user's hard drive as the notes are created
Version history =>
Namable versions
Past note versions can be named or labeled
Integrations
What features does the note provider offer in terms of third-party integrations and utilities adjacent to the note content itself?
Note templates
Note templates exist to pre-configure the arrangement of tables and widgets within a note
Plugin/extension system
The app offers a plugin or extension system to extend functionality beyond default features included
Read provider description
Word count
Word count and character count are provided for a note
API offered
A public API is available to fetch and write note content
Audio recording
It's possible to record and store audio
Configurable key bindings
Hotkeys can be remapped from their default values
External service callbacks
It's possible to setup callbacks to external services when a note changes
External service callbacks =>
Callback can be scheduled
Note app allows a callback (not just an event reminder) to be scheduled for a particular date & time
Graph view
Linked notes can be viewed as a graph
IFTTT integration
The app can be connected to https://ifttt.com/
Kanban Board
Word count =>
Selectable count
The user can select part of a note or task and get a word+character count for just that selection.
Zapier integration
The app can be connected to Zapier
Mobile/Tablet
Features specific to the mobile experience
"Note view" widget (Android)
"Note view" widget (iOS)
A widget is provided to allow viewing a note
Search widget (Android)
Search widget (iOS)
Share Content (Android)
When picking the "Share with..." option from an Android app, the app exposes a means for sending content to the app.
Share Content (iOS)
When picking the "Share with..." option from an iOS app, the app exposes a means for sending content to the app.
Offline
How well can the app function without internet access?
Full text search
Note read access
Any note can be read when offline after initial download from server
Note write access
Note content can be created or updated
Attachments
Attachments can be inserted into a note and viewed within the note, even when offline
Platforms
Which platforms are officially supported?
Android
There is an Android app available for download in the Play store
Read provider description
Linux
Includes web apps that can be installed as PWAs
Read provider description
Linux =>
Native app
An app is available that isn't a Progressive Web App
Read provider description
Windows =>
Native app
An app is available that isn't a Progressive Web App
Read provider description
iOS
There is an iOS app available for download in the App Store
Read provider description
macOS =>
Native app
An app is available that isn't a Progressive Web App
Read provider description
Search & Navigation
What options are there for navigating around the app and finding the note you're after?
Archived section
Archived notes can be filtered & viewed
Full text search
Read provider description
Full text search =>
Allow quoted/literal searches
Full text search =>
Sort by date
Search results can be sorted by the note's date of creation
Note organization hierarchy
The app provides a means by which to arrange notes in an arbitrarily deep hierarchy for browsing and etc
Note organization hierarchy =>
Allows 3+ levels deep hierarchy
Read provider description
Note organization hierarchy =>
Can apply multiple hierarchies to one note
A note can be in multiple navigation hierarchies concurrently
Read provider description
Note organization hierarchy =>
Hierarchy can be moved
It's possible to drag-and-drop, or otherwise relocate a branch of the organization hierarchy to a new location
Read provider description
Note organization hierarchy =>
Hierarchy normalizes casing/spacing
Hierarchy members have capitalization and spacing normalized in order to avoid creation of duplicates
Pin to top
A note can be pinned to the top of the note list for easy access, and will stay there until unpinned
Quick open note lookup
A hotkey is available that can be used to access an input box that searches notes, and a note can be selected from that list without using the mouse
Search within note
The app provides special provision for searching for text contained within a single note (beyond just allowing browser Ctrl-F)
Read provider description
Cross-note linking
It's possible to create a link from one note to another note
Full text search =>
Filter on author
Full text search =>
Filter on date range
Full text search =>
Filter on hierarchy
Using whatever mechanism the app provides to organize notes (e.g., tags, folders), can that mechanism be used as a full text search filter?
Inline tags
It's possible to assign a hierarchy identifier (such as a tag) to a line of text, such that the line (not the note itself) can be discovered when browsing the note hierarchy
Lookup notes to link out =>
Link to content within notes
A dialog is provided to lookup and link to specific headers/blocks within another note
Note organization hierarchy =>
Emojis in hierarchy
Emojis can be used to demarcate note hierarchy members
Note organization hierarchy =>
Hierarchy coloring
Nodes in the note hierarchy can be colored
Note organization hierarchy =>
Hierarchy must be defined per note
As much an anti-feature as a feature, some note apps only allow notes to be created in a specific folder/hierarchy user must choose.
Quick open note lookup =>
Quick-open can filter on hierarchy
Search within note =>
Works on mobile
Shortcuts
Groups of notes can be accessed from a dedicated "Shortcuts" area within the app
Sharing/Collaboration
What features exist to share notes with the world?
Locking
A note can be locked to prevent editing
Read provider description
Publish to URL
Notes can be published to a URL
Read provider description
Publish to URL =>
Customizable URL
Read provider description
Sharable with individual
It's possible to enable a single user to view or edit one's otherwise-private note content
Read provider description
User commenting
Read provider description
Embeddable in web pages
App provides means to embed note content in web pages outside the app
Presentation mode
A set of notes can be presented as full screen slides
Publish to URL =>
Expiration date can be set on published URL
Real-time collaboration
Multiple parties can edit a note concurrently + see where each editor's cursor resides
Sharable with individual =>
Allows configurable read or write access
Share notes en masse
It's possible to define a group of notes to be shared through a single action.
Shareable with group
There exists a mechanism by which a group of recipients can be granted access to a note en masse (not by publishing note to URL)
User commenting =>
On a note itself
User commenting =>
On text in a note
Workspace view
All documents shared by collaborators can be accessed on a consolidated page
Tables
Does the app support formatting data in tables?
Apply formatting to entire row/column
Read provider description
Cell background coloring
Column data types
Column data types (e.g., numeric, text, enumerated) can be defined such that they restrict the type of input that can be entered into a cell
Formulas
Formulas =>
Math formulas
Search/filter
Table rows can be filtered based on an input query
Table-formatted content
Basic support for formatting content as a table
Read provider description
Cross-document
A table's data can be viewed from different notes for a single source of truth
Formulas =>
Crowd interactive
Possible to setup a formula such that other users with document access can vote or rate the contents of the table row
Formulas =>
Formula autosuggest
Formulas can be deduced by an inline autosuggest hint
Sortable rows
Rows can be sorted by the contents of a column
Tasks
What to-do list features does the app support?
Removed from list upon completion
Calendar integration
It's possible to configure a task to show up on a calendar when it's due
Calendar integration =>
Exports to external calendar
Calendar integration => Exports to external calendar =>
Google Calendar
Calendar integration => Exports to external calendar =>
Outlook
Calendar integration =>
Imports tasks from calendar
App will import existing events from an external calendar (e.g., Google Calendar) and show them within the app
Create from external sources
Create from external sources =>
Calendar
Tasks in the app can be created from an external calendar
Create from external sources =>
Email
Create from external sources =>
Slack
Due date
Embeddable content
Content can be contained in a task beyond standard markdown text/links
Embeddable content =>
Images
Embeddable content =>
PDFs
Embeddable content =>
Video
Global task view
There exists a means to view all tasks that have been created across a group of notes
Movable en masse
It's possible to move a batch of tasks from one note to another using drag and drop
Nesting/Sub-tasks
Nesting/Sub-tasks =>
Collapsible
It's possible to "fold" or "contract" a group of tasks so that sub-tasks are hidden
Nesting/Sub-tasks =>
Draggable
Groups of task hierarchies can be dragged from one location to another
Priority
There exists a means by which one can designate a task as being "high priority"
Priority =>
Important
There exists the means to mark a task as "Important," implying the task should not be forgotten but needn't be done soon
Priority =>
Urgent
There exists a means to mark a task not only as "High priority," but "Urgent," which brings the additional implication that the task is to be completed soon.
Recurrence
Recurrence =>
Flexible recurrence
It's possible to set up tasks to recur at a chosen interval after the previous instance of the task is completed. For example, if you want to exercise every 2 days after you last exercised.
Reminders
An alert time can be associated with a task
Snooze
An option is provided to hide a task until a later date chosen
Stats
Stats are available on past completed tasks
Time estimate
It's possible to set a task duration estimate
Two or less taps to add new task from mobile
When the mobile app is opened, no more than two taps are ever necessary to add a new task
Web Capture
What functionality is offered to capture content discovered on the internet?
Annotate clipping
Capture URL
The URL of the web page from whence the capture occurred can be included among the content inserted into note
Choose note destination
Web clipper allows choosing a note to insert image into
Chrome extension
Clip content longer than one screen
The clipper can capture an entire web page, even when it is taller than their viewport
Clip partial page
A specific area on the page can be selected to capture
Clipped text pastable into note
Clipped text searchable
Firefox extension
Safari extension

Did we miss something?‍

We are constantly working to make sure this page stays up-to-date with the features available in Standard Notes. If there is a feature you think we missed, please email us a screenshot and the URL where the feature is described to [email protected].

Our goal is to respond to all correction submissions within a few business days.