A fast overview of major features in top note-taking apps.
We all probably have OneNote installed, and most wonder what it’s for. The chart in this article shows us what features there are, and how they compare to similar apps:
This chart gives you a bird’s-eye view of more than 40 features many professionals, students, families or individuals look for in a great note-taking app.
| OneNote | Evernote | Keep | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Developer | Microsoft | Evernote | |
| Delivery | Web, Mobile, Desktop | Web, Mobile, Desktop | Web, Mobile |
| Windows | Yes | Yes | Online Only |
| Mac OS X | Yes | Yes | Online Only |
| Android | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes | Online Only |
| Windows Phone | Yes | Yes | Online Only |
| Blackberry | Online Only | Yes | Online Only |
| # of Devices Per License | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| OneNote | Evernote | Keep | |
| Packages and Cost in USD | Free | Free or Premium Available Education or Business version also available (varied) | Free |
| Microsoft Office Document Compatibility | Can Attach | Can Attach | Can’t Attach Files |
| Open Document Compatibility | Can Attach | Can Attach | Can’t Attach Files |
| Portable Document Format (PDF) | Can Attach | Can Attach | Can’t Attach Files |
| Autosave and Backup | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent |
| Security, Document Password Protection, Encryption | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent |
| Accessibility | Excellent | Poor (Your device may have some features) | Good (Your device may have more) |
| Update Process | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent |
| Support | Good | Good | Good |
| OneNote | Evernote | Keep | |
| Web Clipper App | OneNote Web Clipper | Evernote Web Clipper | Chrome App or “Share via” |
| News App | Several including Feedly and News 360 | Several including Feedly and News 360 | No |
| Email App | Email to OneNote, CloudMagic and Powerbot | CloudMagic and Powerbot | Gmail |
| Printing / Scanning App | Several including OfficeLens and NeatConnect | Several including ScannerPro and CamScanner | Google Drive Apps available |
| SmartPen App | Livescribe and ModNotebooks | Livescribe and ModNotebooks | LiveScribe to Docs (not Keep) |
| Connection to Other Major Web Apps | IFTTT and Zapier | IFTTT and Zapier | IFTTT and Zapier (though with fewer options) |
| Home Screen Display Widget | Available | Available | Available |
| Annotation / Quick Sketch App | Skitch | Skitch and Penultimate | Sketch for Keep |
| OneNote | Evernote | Keep | |
| User Interface & Customization | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent |
| Text & OCR | Excellent (with Office Lens) | Excellent | Good |
| Handwriting | Excellent | Excellent | Poor |
| Images | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent |
| Audio | Excellent | Excellent | Good |
| Task Lists and Alerts / Reminders | Excellent | Excellent | Good |
| Notebooks, Tags, & Categories | Excellent | Excellent | Good (hashtags available but not as many organization tools) |
| References | Poor | Poor | Poor |
| Comments | Poor | Poor (Markup available though) | Poor |
| Spelling & Grammar Check | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent |
| Printing & Exporting | Good (requires cloud printing) | Good (requires cloud printing) | Good (requires cloud printing) |
| Cloud Environment | Microsoft OneDrive | Evernote Cloud | Google Drive |
| Asynchronous Collaborative Editing | Excellent – available in free version | Good – available in Shared Notes (Premium version) or Related Notes (Business version) | Poor (share to Google+ but no collaborativeediting) |
| Online to Offline Syncing & Editing | Excellent | Good in Free, Excellent in Premium | Only in the Chrome app |
| Social Sharing | With Zapier app | Depends on device (Facebook, Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn) | Google+ |
| Templates | Excellent (page templates) | Excellent (download from Evernote site) | Poor |