Upnote Review Clean And Beautiful Notes The Nerdy Student

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Jan 2, 2026, 7:53 PM

upnote review clean and beautiful notes the nerdy student

I have been using Evernote for nearly 10 years – I have been a member since October 24th, 2014. The first ever post on this website was originally written in Evernote, and the second post was about Evernote. However, it hasn’t been a smooth ride since that date. Evernote has been getting worse and worse over the years, especially in the monetisation aspect. I used to be a heavy user of Evernote Premium, but as prices were hiked further and further – originally with fairly minor price hikes – I started using it less and less and... Throughout university I used Evernote extensively for managing essays and general notation – I rarely used features such as tasks anymore, and all I wanted was an affordable note-taking app that stopped trying to...

I understand the need for monetisation, but the various new plans and increased pricing for an app that offered no new features, and that was slow and clunky, were not appetising to me. Looking around, I eventually found an appealing app – UpNote. The pricing structure was great, with a very affordable lifetime option, as well as an incredibly cheap monthly plan. It was simple and structured fairly similar to Evernote – with tags, notebooks and various options in the left-hand bar. It also has a lovely dark mode, which I vastly prefer to light modes. UpNote, like Evernote, allows you to create notebook stacks, which is a crucial feature.

One lovely touch is the ability to add custom covers to notebooks, which makes it easy to see what your notebook is about at a glance. The title, as well as the number of notes, is also displayed in the sidebar. In addition to this, you get the option to show all notes at the top, as well as various views. I use the Today view, which shows notes I have created today, as well as Todo, which shows notes with unchecked todo boxes. Uncategorized is for quick notes that you want to sort later, or an idea you throw into there – like an Inbox. Then you have notes you’ve added to quick access, a list of your notebooks, tags, and then templates – I will expand on this later.

Inside these notebooks, notes are shown with the title and a snippet – you can enable a compact mode that will only show the title if you want to fit more notes on the... If a note has an image inside it, the first image is also shown in a little preview. You can change how your notes are sorted, as well as various options regarding how the notes are displayed. A nice feature of UpNote is the ability to easily pin notes to the top of the notebook – useful for reference notes such as colour palette information. In addition to this, you can favourite notes to show up in a Quick Access menu in the left sidebar for even quicker access. I've been writing about technology and the internet for over six years.

I love breaking down unfamiliar tech topics and making them accessible to the average reader. I'm also passionate about internet culture and productivity software. I've written for How-To Geek, Digital Trends, and MakeUseOf, among others. My interests include live music and movie awards. A good note-taking app is a big part of every productivity toolkit. Here are six note-taking apps I incorporated into my workflow, and why I think UpNote is the best one.

I have been on the hunt for the perfect note-taking app for as long as I can remember. Not only are these apps crucial for my workflow, but I also use them to organize my personal life. Whether it’s making a grocery list, to-dos for the week, or lists of my favorite albums, a good note-taking app is essential. I tried six different apps in search of the perfect digital notebook. Several factors influenced my decision-making process. First, I use an iPhone, an iPad, and a Windows PC, so I need an app that natively supports all three platforms and syncs across all my devices.

Built by a two-person team, UpNote feels every bit as polished as note-taking apps from huge corporations. It offers user-friendly apps for every major platform and seamlessly converts Markdown code into rich text formatting. Best of all, you can buy the full version for a one-time fee and never worry about the (still reasonable) subscription costs. You have to deal with some downsides, most notably the limited file size for uploads and the omission of drawing tools; however, UpNote is otherwise a worthy note-taking app that keeps your expenses down. Still, our Editors' Choice winners for the category remain Joplin, which offers a better free version, and OneNote, which is far more capable. UpNote offers a free version that allows you to sync notes across all your devices.

But instead of imposing a limit on total storage, UpNote restricts you to just 50 notes and doesn't allow attachments, importing (aside from plain text files), or exporting. Far more generous free applications are available, namely OneNote, Joplin, and Obsidian. A Premium UpNote subscription costs $1.99 per month. Alternatively, you can buy a lifetime license for $39.99. Lifetime subscribers get access to all the current features in perpetuity—the company can't guarantee that Premium Lifetime members will get all future features, however, citing the unknowable nature of related costs. As of this writing, the Premium tier removes all restrictions of the free version, while also adding support for notebook covers and interface themes.

It's possible to lock your notebooks at this level as well. UpNote recommends storing fewer than 20,000 notes to ensure optimal performance when syncing across devices. Each file upload can be up to 20MB. The only way to pay for a premium subscription is via UpNote's Android, iOS, or macOS app; you can't upgrade via the service's Linux or Windows apps. The UpNote team suggests paying through one of the supported platforms and then syncing with the other apps to access paid features across all your devices. You are probably not expecting a lot from UpNote—it is not Notion, Google Keep, Evernote, or another worldwide popular note-keeping app.

During the mystery shopping review, we didn’t have high expectations at the start either, but UpNote turned out to be a delightful surprise. Its design is elegant and aesthetically pleasant; the features are advanced, well-crafted, and neat. UpNote allows you not only to solve note-keeping problems but also to craft well-designed documents, to-do lists, spreadsheets, and organizers. UpNote’s pricing structure is understandable and straightforward. While many apps offer free plans loaded with hidden limitations or frustrating ads, UpNote bucks the trend by providing genuine usability in its free version. UpNote doesn’t require registration, allowing you to start using it immediately.

And for users who want access to premium features like unlimited devices, additional formatting options, and advanced organization tools, there’s a one-time payment or a budget-friendly subscription plan. Given its elegant design and polished features, the app offers excellent value compared to pricier competitors. It’s an option that appeals to budget-conscious users while still delivering top-tier functionality. By the way, you can get UpNote surprisingly cheap. It costs only $1.99 per month or $39.99 for a lifetime deal, and these prices are extremely democratic in comparison with competitors. From the moment you open UpNote, it feels clean and polished.

Its minimalist design strikes the perfect balance between functionality and aesthetic appeal, making note-taking an enjoyable experience rather than a chore. The advanced text editor shines, offering the flexibility to create to-do lists, documents, and even simple spreadsheets. The presentation of these features is intuitive rather than overwhelming, which allows you to concentrate on your content rather than struggling with the app itself. Your notes sync seamlessly, ensuring that everything you jot down is readily accessible wherever you need it. The simplicity of UpNote encourages creativity, giving you a blank canvas to build exactly what you need. On the flip side, the lack of pre-made templates might be a drawback for those accustomed to apps with quick-start options.

UpNote is incredible. In most, if not all, ways it exceeds the stock Notes app that come with Apple products. First off, UpNote lets you search specific folders (this is something you still can’t do with Notes). Second, UpNote gives users more heading options (H1-H6 plus “Normal”). Additionally, most (possibly all) text modification options are tied to hot keys. This makes it very easy to set different heading levels and to organize and style text as you see fit without moving the cursor.

In this way, UpNote also offers a productivity boost over Notes. Also, thanks to a sync system that is seamless and the availability of both iPad and iPhone apps, UpNote makes it easy to get your notes wherever you need them. Also, just like Notes UpNote incorporates tags as another method for organizing notes. Finally, UpNote is filled with useful and well-implemented features. Here’s one of my favorites: based on the heading level you choose in a document (e.g., H1-H6), UpNote will automatically generate a table of contents in the Info pane of a note. Additionally, that table of contents is clickable, so you can easily jump to sections of your notes.

I don’t mean to gush (I have no affiliation with the app or the developers), but this app is incredible and well worth the money. UpNote is incredible. In most, if not all, ways it exceeds the stock Notes app that come with Apple products. First off, UpNote lets you search specific folders (this is something you still can’t do with Notes). Second, UpNote gives users more heading options (H1-H6 plus “Normal”). Additionally, most (possibly all) text modification options are tied to hot keys.

This makes it very easy to set different heading levels and to organize and style text as you see fit without moving the cursor. In this way, UpNote also offers a productivity boost over Notes. Also, thanks to a sync system that is seamless and the availability of both iPad and iPhone apps, UpNote makes it easy to get your notes wherever you need them. Also, just like Notes UpNote incorporates tags as another method for organizing notes. Finally, UpNote is filled with useful and well-implemented features. Here’s one of my favorites: based on the heading level you choose in a document (e.g., H1-H6), UpNote will automatically generate a table of contents in the Info pane of a note.

Additionally, that table of contents is clickable, so you can easily jump to sections of your notes. I don’t mean to gush (I have no affiliation with the app or the developers), but this app is incredible and well worth the money. I have been searching for a new notes app since Evernote began to charge outrageous prices. I have tried Standard notes, BEAR, Notesnook, Amplenotes.... may I continue. After searching high and low, I have come to the conclusion that Upnotes is the best because 1.

Upnote Review Clean And Beautiful Notes The Nerdy Student

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