The 9 absolute best Android note-taking apps for 2023
On the list of tech must-haves for modern life, a great note-taking app easily makes the cut. Lucky for us Android users, we’ve done some research to help you narrow down your (many) choices in the Google Play store. Whether you’re looking for something minimalist to simply replace your sticky notes or something more advanced, capable of handling team wikis and more, this post has something for you!
Here’s a peek at the awesome apps covered below in depth:
- Colornote
- Google Keep
- Microsoft OneNote
- Simplenote
- Zoho Notebook
- Evernote
- Nimbus Note
- Notion
- Slite
Read on for the best note-taking apps for Android devices, divided by free and paid options, then sorted alphabetically.
Free note-taking apps
Colornote
With 4.9/5 stars and nearly 3.5 million reviews in the Google Play store (more impressive than big-name apps like Evernote and Microsoft OneNote), we had to see why so many people consider this one of the best Android apps for note-taking. Colornote features a user-friendly interface where you can take notes in two ways: text notes and checklists. Checklists are completely interactive — just cross items off with a quick tap. You can even set notifications to stay on top of your to-do list without the need for other productivity apps.
ColorNote Backup New Location | Android 11 & Android 12
It’s also convenient that everything automatically backs up to the Cloud, so you never have to worry about losing any of your content. Overall, Colornote is a straightforward and simple app, designed for basic task management and to capture quick ideas. Just note it’s for our Android-exclusive note-takers — so if you’re looking for cross-platform functionality, this won’t be a good note-taking app for you.
- Widget feature allows you to access notes on your device’s home screen
- Easily create interactive checklists
- Set reminders and notifications
- Searchable notes
Google Keep
OS: Android, iPhone, iPad, Web version
If you’re looking for a free and simple way to capture light-bulb-moment ideas or create lists, then you’ll love Google Keep. Although it’s light on features, it has everything you’d expect from a personal note-taking app: checklists, voice notes, the ability to add images, and labels for easy sorting. You can also add drawings, collaborators, reminders, and even backgrounds to your notes.
Since Google Keep comes pre-installed on most Android devices, we can’t help but stack it up against Apple Notes — so, how do they compare? Both apps are lightweight and intuitive, but most notably, Keep lacks where Apple excels: formatting options. For instance, you can’t underline, italicize, or bold text, nor can you add tables, paragraph styles, or bulleted and numbered lists. Not a dealbreaker if you just want a place for your grocery list to live, but if you’re looking for more customization, check out our next favorite below.
- Completely free to use (no paywall)
- Syncs across Android, iOS, and Web app
- Easily create interactive checklists
- Share notes to collaborate with other people
- Add time- and location-based reminders
- Multimedia support (voice memos, images, drawings)
- Limited text formatting options
- Can’t adjust permissions to make notes view-only (like you can in Google Docs and other Google apps)
Microsoft OneNote
OS: Android, iPhone, iPad, MacOS, Windows, Linux, Web version
Microsoft OneNote is one of the best tools for taking, organizing, and sharing all kinds of notes — from quick memos to extensive documentation. For that reason, OneNote works really well for personal and business needs. The platform takes after your classic notebook system, where you can organize your content into different notebooks, sections, then pages (with optional subpages). There’s also multimedia support, sharing and collaboration, and syncing across multiple devices.
OneNote for Android is pretty impressive as far as mobile apps go. There’s a complete formatting toolbar, a “Sticky Notes” tab to capture info quickly, and a widget feature that lets you access recent notes on your device’s home screen. And of course — you can’t beat 0. To use OneNote, all you need is a free OneDrive account. Just note that most free OneDrive accounts come with only 5 GB of storage. Depending on the type of notes you’re storing (like if you’re saving a lot of images), that 5 GB might not last long.
- Share and collaborate on your notes in real-time
- Multimedia support (audio notes, images, drawings)
- Widget feature allows you to access recent notes on your device’s home screen
- Text formatting (bold, italicize, underline, highlight, increase/decrease indentation)
- Scan documents into OneNote
- Syncs across devices
- Searchable notes
- Works well in conjunction with other Microsoft Office tools (i.e. insert entire Excel spreadsheets into your notebooks)
- Some users might not be fans of OneNote’s “note containers,” which are essentially drag-and-drop content blocks
- If 5 GB isn’t enough storage for your needs, you’ll have to upgrade to a paid account
Simplenote
OS: Android, iPhone, iPad, MacOS, Windows, Linux, Web version
Like Google Keep, Simplenote is a great choice if you’re looking for something simple and straightforward. No frills whatsoever — just an easy-to-use note-taking platform backed by some impressive features (like markdown support, the ability to create shareable links for your notes, and tags for easy searching).
Simplenote’s minimalist interface and features make it an easy platform to maximize right away — no learning curve involved.
- Markdown support
- Searchable notes (including keyword tags)
- Cross-platform compatibility and real-time syncing
- Collaboration features
Zoho Notebook
OS: Android, iPhone, iPad, MacOS, Windows, Linux, Web version
Not as minimalist as Google Keep, yet not as robust as Notion (below), Zoho Notebook is a great option for people who are looking for something in-between. It has all of the features necessary to bring your notes to life, from rich text formatting and stylus support (if you like writing your notes by hand or sketching) to hyperlinks and code.
What makes Zoho Notebook stand out among the other apps on this list is its “Smart Cards” feature, which automatically formats and structures your notes so that they’re never messy and always easy to read. We also like how Notebook leverages touch screen gestures for a unique user experience (take a look at what we mean here).
- Complete text formatting bar (bold, italicize, underline, highlight, increase/decrease indentation, strikethrough)
- Multimedia support (audio notes, checklists, images, handwritten notes, sketches)
- Collaboration features
- Widget feature (an Android exclusive)
- No ads!
Paid note-taking apps
Note: All apps listed in this section offer free versions. Our reason for listing them here is because the paywall stands in the way of a lot of the features that make these apps standout choices.
Evernote
OS: Android, iPhone, iPad, MacOS, Windows, Web version
Evernote is arguably the most widely known note-taking app out there, and for good reason! It’s packed with features that adapt to personal and business needs, making it one of the more versatile note-taking platforms on this list. From checklists and meeting notes to mixed media and web clippings, the Evernote platform works for all of it. And with cross-platform support, you can sync your notes across all of your devices.
Although we’re listing Evernote as one of our favorite paid note-taking apps, Evernote does offer a free version. Upgrading to one of Evernote’s paid plans (more details below) gets you more integrations and lightweight project management capabilities. You also can’t annotate images and PDFs in Evernote Free or sync across unlimited devices.
- Set reminders and due dates
- Searchable notes (including keyword tags and character recognition)
- Templates
- Web clipper
- Integrates with Google Calendar, Gmail, Google Drive, Slack, and Microsoft Teams
Evernote offers four plans: Free, Personal, Professional, and Teams. Personal costs 5.83/month (billed annually), Professional costs 8.33/month (billed annually), and Teams costs 15.99/user/month.
Nimbus Note
OS: Android, iPhone, iPad, MacOS, Windows, Web version
Nimbus is all about giving you the ability to create “super documents” and “super notes.” On top of basic text notes, you can zhuzh up your short-form and long-form documents with audio, video, checklists, tasks, databases, spreadsheets, and tables. A built-in web clipper lets you save entire web pages, snippets of web pages, PDFs, web images, emails, and attachments — and add annotations if you like.
With Nimbus Note for Android, you get a complete text formatting bar, the web clipper, scanner functionality (using your device’s camera), markdown support, widgets, and more. All in all, Nimbus Note is a feature-packed platform with a powerful Android app to match.
- Try out Business plan free for 14 days
- Multimedia support (audio notes, images, drawings)
- Built-in web clipper
- Searchable platform
Nimbus Note offers three plans: Free, Pro, and Business. Pro costs 4/month. Business costs 6/user/month (billed annually).
Notion
OS: Android, iPhone, iPad, MacOS, Windows, Web version
So much more than a notes app, Notion is an all-in-one workspace that’s completely customizable for your needs. It’s powerful enough to function as a project management tool, with features that let you organize and manage workflows, collaborate in real-time, and create a knowledge base that acts as a single source of truth for your team. On the other side of the spectrum, Notion also works beautifully as an app to simply jot down your ideas.
Notion works similarly to OneNote, in that each piece of content is enclosed within a drag-and-drop block. One feature we find impressive is that the Android app is capable of handling all kinds of content blocks, from text to checklists to TeX and code. There’s also a built-in web clipper, markdown support, Kanban boards, spreadsheets, and databases. Notion has managed to create an mobile device app that’s truly a powerhouse in functionality. Not to mention that Notion works on iOS, MacOS, and Windows.
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- Try out premium plans for free
- Super flexible platform (you can even build web pages)
- Huge selection of templates
- Web clipper is available for Chrome, Safari, and Firefox
Notion offers four plans: Personal, Personal Pro, Team, and Enterprise. Personal is free, Personal Pro costs 4/month (billed annually), and Team costs 8/month (billed annually). Contact sales for Enterprise pricing.
Slite
OS: Android, iPhone, iPad, MacOS, Windows, Web version
Like Notion, Slite offers so much more than note-taking and is useful for creating a company knowledge base complete with documents, wikis, videos, spreadsheets, and more. The text editor is straightforward and intuitive, making it easy for entire teams to adopt without having to pore over every tutorial — you can even try it out live here!
If the idea of a knowledge base platform entices you and you’re having a hard time picking between Slite and Notion, consider how comprehensive of a tool you are looking for. Put another way: How many different tools and platforms are you looking to replace? Notion is more comprehensive and is meant to replace many different tools, while Slite is less comprehensive but integrates and works nicely with your existing tools. Of course, sometimes the best way to arrive at a decision is to give both apps a test run!
- Full text formatting bar (on desktop and mobile)
- Searchable platform
- Packed with collaboration features (invite external members to work with you, too)
- Huge selection of templates
- Integrates with hundreds of tools
- Markdown support
Slite offers four plans: Free, Standard, Premium, and Enterprise. Standard costs 6.67/user/month (billed annually, Premium costs 12.50/user/month (billed annually). Contact sales for Enterprise pricing.
Bottom line
Need help deciding? Here’s a quick recap of the apps we covered and what they’re best used for:
- Colornote, Google Keep, and SimpleNote are ideal for capturing quick notes and creating simple lists.
- Notion and Slite are awesome choices for teams who need collaboration features, knowledge sharing, and customization.
- Microsoft OneNote, Zoho Notebook, and Evernote are great in-between platforms, with the ability to adapt nicely to personal and professional settings.
About the author
Judy Tsuei is a Simon Schuster author, speaker, and podcast host. She’s been featured in MindBodyGreen, BBC Travel, Fast Company, Hello Giggles, and more. As the founder of Wild Hearted Words, a creative marketing agency for global brands, Judy is also a mentor with the Founder Institute, the world’s largest pre-seed accelerator. Judy advocates for mental and emotional health on her popular podcast, Fck Saving Face. Follow along her journey at WildHeartedWords.com.
ColorNote: Android Taking Note Widget
ColorNote is one of the simplest yet best Android note taking apps and widgets. You can easily create notes, to do list, shopping list, and check list. You also get to manage the tasks by assigning different colors to them and stick some of them on your home screen. This application also lets you set reminders for the tasks, search, sync data, and set passwords. The sticky note widgets are to stick notes with different colors on your home screen to make sure you never forget your tasks.
When you go to your widget list, you can see these 3 widgets: ColorNote Sticky 2×2, ColorNote Sticky 1×1 ColorNote Today 2×2. Then you are asked whether to add Note, or Checklist and you can add your notes or list. You also have access to these features, by pressing Menu button while modifying the note: Changing color, Lock, Revert, set Reminder, Send, Archive, Delete
ColorNote Notepad Notes Main Features
- Assigning different colors to notes
- Sticky home screen widgets
- Check list
- Adding tasks in the calendar
- Setting password to protect notes
- Online backup and sync
- Search notes
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ColorNote Notepad
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Features Use
ColorNote Notepad is a text app with the following features:
- Write notes and checklists
- Categorize your notes with different colors
- Set reminders for your notes
- Protect your notes with a password
- Backup all your notes
- Place post-it notes on your desktop
- Share notes
- Access ColorNote Notepad from other apps
- Integrate ColorDict with ColorNote
Bottom Line: ColorNote works well as a basic notepad, but also let’s you organize and manage your notes and to-do lists. Another neat feature is that fact that you can save news from the browser as a note in ColorNote. Since I’m constantly reading through all sort of Android news, I set-up a green category where all relevant Android info gets stored.
Screen Controls
When you start up ColorNote, you can add a note or to-do list by pressing the plus icon at the top of the screen. The button to the right of it changes the way your notes are organized. You can choose to organize:
Using the magnifying glass you can search for specific notes in ColorNote.
Pressing the menu-button reveals the following options:
- Add Note
- Category
- Switch View
- Settings
- Backup
- About
You have the following options in Settings:
- Default color
- Default font size
- Default sort option
- Use ColorDict
- Edit title (the first couple of words of your note automatically become the note’s title when this option turned off)
- Auto word selection (replace words with those suggested by the integrated dictionary)
When creating a new note, you have to select between a text and a checklist. A checklist works well for shopping lists, whereas text can be used for everything else. At the top of the note you can add a title and select a category color for the note or to-do list. Now you can type in your text or add items to your checklist.
Pressing the menu-button while writing a note gives you these options:
- Color (Select category)
- Lock (Protect with a password, only possible with notes)
- Reminder (Set a reminder time)
- Share (Forward notes to others)
- Discard
Pressing the back button automatically saves your note.
The following options appear when you press the menu-button in a finished note:
- Edit
- Check (mark a task as completed)
- List
- Reminder (change or set up a reminder)
- Share
- Delete
In order to use the dictionary, you must first install ColorDict and then download the dictionaries of your choice. This way you can select individual words in a note by clicking on them. You have to be in edit mode in order to look up words. After selecting a word, it then appears in the search field. Press the magnifying glass in order to look through the dictionary. If you wish to add a note to your homescreen, simply do a long press on the desktop and select the ColorNote widget. Your note then appears as a post-it on your desktop.
Bottom Line: ColorNote is definitely a notepad with a ton of useful features. It may take a little while to get used to the way ColorNote works, but it should be a breeze once you get the hang of it. After spending some time using ColorNote, I promptly deleted my previous notepad app from my phone.
Speed Stability
ColorNote ran smoothly and without any issues.
Price/Performance Ratio
ColorNote can be downloaded for free from the Android Market.
Screenshots
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Text. Color Note To PDF
Free App
Rated 3.40/5 (58) — Free Android application by Over The Hood
About Text. Color Note To PDF
The application serves the purpose of saving your Text and Color Note data in PDF file.How to use :- Just open the app. Write text in the area- Click convert
For Color Note :- Open you Color Note application.- Open your Note- Click Send from more options menu.- Send to Color Note To PDF- Click Convert.- You can check your PDF file from download files list.
How to Download / Install
Download and install Text. Color Note To PDF version 1.0 on your Android device!Downloaded 10,000 times, content rating: EveryoneAndroid package: com.ColorNoteToPDF, download Text. Color Note To PDF.APK
What are users saying about Text. Color Note To PDF
Very helpful to me for for taking to hard copy
Don’t waste your time friends.
Good but doesnt work offline. very Useful.but.needs offine pdf conversion too.
Good idea. Poor application
I wished it could convert textimage scripts to PDF!
Where is devnagri font. Plz fix it. But this is a very good apps.
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