Note-taking is essential in almost every aspect of your life. Whether you are a student, instructor, or employee, a basic note-taking app can help organize information. However, not all note-taking software is compatible with a Mac, which may leave you scratching you on the hunt for something that is.
Fortunately, there are dozens of notes apps that work seamlessly with Macs and can make your life a little easier. Read on to find out which best note-taking apps for Mac we recommend and what their best features are!
When shopping for the right notes app for Mac, things you’ll want to consider include:
Ease of use: Creating quick notes, editing, and sorting them should be seamless and intuitive.
Accessibility: Much like taking notes on a piece of paper, you need an app that you can access from anywhere – be it your laptop, tablet, or mobile device.
Value for money: If you’re paying for a subscription to a simple note-taking app, the price should be justified by excellent features that make doing your job easier.
Integrations: If you already have an existing task management software, using a note-taking app that integrates with it can save you the time and effort of importing data.
How To Choose The Right Note-Taking App For Mac
With so much available on the internet, you might have trouble choosing the best note-taking app for Mac. Fortunately, these best practices can help you narrow your choices.
Read App Store reviews: One of the best ways to get a sense of how well an app works is to take a look at reviews. Consider negative reviews as well – something that doesn’t work might outweigh the benefit of other features.
Think about what notes you need to take: Some notes require more organization than others. If this is the case for you, you might prefer an app with advanced features like highlighting, labeling, and more.
List the features you need: Casual users may not need the bells and whistles power users do. On the other hand, users who work with a team might benefit from collaborative features.
How Much Do Mac Note-Taking Apps Cost?
Many Mac-based note-taking apps are free. However, accessing additional features like increased storage and multiple users may require that you invest in a subscription. Ultimately, how much an app costs will depend on the extra features it offers.
For users who require collaboration and task management, Notion is for you. You can create blocks using elements like checklists, headings, media attachments, links, and more. Plus, you can automate actions and tasks through Integrately.
Pros
Highly customizable templates: Whatever you need, you’ll get with Notion’s hundreds of templates. Do anything from creating tables to embedding media and incorporating links to a Google Doc, Sheet, or other files.
Free personal plan: Notion’s freemium personal plan is chock-full of features like hybrid editing and stunning visual elements.
Cons
No offline functionality: To use Notion, you’ll have to be connected to the internet.
Hard-to-use blocks: Because Notion incorporates a block system for creating notes, it doesn’t provide the most seamless writing experience.
Pricing
Personal plans are free, while Personal Pro and Team plans cost $4/month and $8/month per user, respectively. Enterprise pricing is available upon request.
If you’re looking for a built-in simple note-taking app, you can start with Apple Notes. This totally free note-taking app is straight to the point and easy to use.
Pros
Compatible across all Apple devices: If you have multiple Apple devices, you can easily sync your notes. You can even create handwritten notes using your Apple Pencil and iPad.
Nested lists: Unlike other apps with to-do lists, Apple Notes allows you to create nested lists of hierarchical folders – that’s a first!
Cons
No hybrid markdown: Apple Notes for technical documents is not the best.
Are you looking for an app with plenty of features? OneNote is rich with powerful editing tools that you can use to format your notes in whatever way you want.
Pros
Impressive list of features: You can do almost anything on OneNote, including solving mathematical equations, attaching files, securing notes, and even customizing your file to look like a real notebook.
Entirely free: No need to pay for a subscription to access OneNote’s premium features – everything is free!
Cons
Lackluster organization: Unfortunately, you can’t do much to sort your notes.
Messy interface: While some users prefer the look of a traditional notebook, OneNote is admittedly quite messy – you’ll find tabs and dividers everywhere.
Bear has to be one of the most beautiful writing apps we’ve tried. It has powerful markdown functionality and is so simple to use.
Pros
Superior archive features: You’ll be surprised how much cleaner archiving your notes can make your interface look!
Supports over 150 programming languages: If you’re a fan of code snippets, you’ll be pleased to know that Bear can recognize elements like emails, weblinks, and access to Google Drive. You also get hashtag-based organization and in-line image support.
Cons
No Windows compatibility: If you’re using Bear on a Mac, you won’t be able to sync it to any of your Windows devices.
Pricing
Bear Pro costs $1.49/month or $14.99/year per user.
Visual thinkers will love what Obsidian has to offer. With it, you can view your notes and tasks as a graph and connect related files with backlinks.
Pros
Multiple views: List your tasks in a calendar, a kanban board, or other templates that suit your process.
Custom hotkeys: Set hotkeys to activate commands quicker and filter through long lists.
Cons
Steep learning curve: If you want to make the most of Obsidian, you’ll have to really learn the ropes. Everything is customizable, but it may take some time and effort to get used to.
Pricing
The Personal plan is free forever, while the Catalyst plan costs a one-time fee of $25. Commercial plans cost $50/year per user.
What’s The Best Note-Taking App For Mac?
To determine what the best note-taking app for Mac is, you’ll have to align each software with your specific needs. For instance, if you prefer something with a simple interface, you might as well stick to Apple Notes. If you’re looking for an app that supports additional themes, try Notion.
Other things to consider include access on mobile, cloud services, budget, and security.
In Conclusion
Without a way to organize your notes, recalling important information can become almost impossible. We hope these best note-taking apps for Mac can help keep your data in one place.
Want to make the note-taking process even simpler? Automate more than 8 million actions using Integrately!
FAQs about note-taking apps
What is the Mac equivalent of OneNote?
Apple Notes is considered to be the “Mac equivalent” of Microsoft’s OneNote by most people.
How can you make note-taking easier?
You can make the note-taking process easier by using an app that allows you to sort and tag information and offers many different ways to view your notes.
Author - Abhishek A Agrawal
Abhishek is the founder of Integrately, CompanyHub, and Dreamwares. He is passionate about technology and entrepreneurship. He is always looking to leverage technology for the growth of the business. He has a deep understanding of how businesses work and uses this knowledge to build products that help entrepreneurs grow their businesses.
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