Productivity · alternatives
Alternatives to Microsoft OneNote
24 productivity tools sit alongside Microsoft OneNote in this directory. Below is what separates each from Microsoft OneNote on the figures we hold, price, model, tier count and rating, and a direct comparison for every one.
- Alternatives listed
- 24
- With a free tier
- 15
- Cheaper to start
- -
- Microsoft OneNote starts at
- Free
Why people look past Microsoft OneNote
Nothing on the record flags a reason to move. Microsoft OneNote has a free tier. People still switch over fit and workflow, and those are not things a catalogue entry can measure, which is what the comparisons below are for.
What each alternative does differently
Ordered by the aggregated rating on each catalogue entry. Differences are drawn from price, pricing model, tier count and rating, the fields the category listing carries. For a feature-level difference, follow the head-to-head link on each card: those pages read both full records.
The world's #1 task manager and to-do list app
- Publishes an entry price of $5/month, where Microsoft OneNote does not.
Professional task management for complex workflows
- No free tier, where Microsoft OneNote has one.
- Publishes an entry price of $74.99/month, where Microsoft OneNote does not.
- Sold on a one-time model rather than freemium.
The award-winning personal task manager
- No free tier, where Microsoft OneNote has one.
- Publishes an entry price of $9.99/one-time, where Microsoft OneNote does not.
Scientifically-designed music to enhance focus and productivity
- Sold on a subscription model rather than freemium.
Journalling app for iOS, Android and Mac now sold as a subscription after years as a one-time purchase
- Sold on a Free tier plus subscription model rather than freemium.
Security-focused AI email client with end-to-end encryption and a lifetime purchase option
- Sold on a Per user per year, or one-time purchase model rather than freemium.
Every Microsoft OneNote alternative at a glance
A dash means the catalogue entry carries no figure, not that the answer is nothing.
| Tool | Entry price | Model | Tiers | Head to head |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft OneNote (this page) | Free | Freemium | - | |
| TodoistThe world's #1 task manager and to-do list app | Free, then $5/month | - | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| OmniFocus 3Professional task management for complex workflows | $74.99/month | One-time | 4 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Things 3The award-winning personal task manager | $9.99/one-time | - | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Brain.fmScientifically-designed music to enhance focus and productivity | Free | Subscription | 2 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Day One | Free | Free tier plus subscription | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Canary Mail | Free | Per user per year, or one-time purchase | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Alfred | Free, then £34/one-time | One-time purchase | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Bring! | Free | Free, with an optional paid Premium tier for extras | 2 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Samsung Food | Free | Free, no subscription | 1 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Bluemail | Free | Quote | 1 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Spark Mail | Free | Per user per month | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Mealime | Free, then $5.99/month | Freemium subscription | 2 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Supernormal | Free, then $20/month | Per month by credits | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| MeetGeek | Free, then $9.99/month | Per user per month | 4 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Bluedot | Free, then $14/month | Per recording user per month | 4 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| LibreOffice | Free | Open source, no licence fee | 1 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Gamma | Free, then $12/month | - | 6 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Memtime | €10/month | Subscription | 4 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Streaks | $5.99/one-time | One-time purchase | 1 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| AnyList | On request | Per user per year | 1 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Mimestream | $4.99/month | Per user per month | 1 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Paprika Recipe Manager | $4.99/one-time | One-time purchase, priced separately per platform | 2 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| HEY | $99/year | Per user per month | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
| Fastmail | $3/month | Per user per month | 3 | vs Microsoft OneNote |
Ratings are aggregated from third-party sources and imported with each catalogue entry; Softwr hosts no reviews of these products. How each figure is used is set out on the Microsoft OneNote badges page.
Cheaper ways to solve the same problem
Free to start (15)
These publish a tier that costs nothing, so they can be evaluated before any money changes hands.
- Todoist , Free, then $5/month
- Brain.fm , Free
- Day One , Free
- Canary Mail , Free
- Alfred , Free, then £34/one-time
- Bring! , Free
- Samsung Food , Free
- Bluemail , Free
What you would be giving up
Microsoft OneNote is most often brought in for handwritten notes on a pen tablet that you still need to find months later by searching for a word you wrote., lecture or meeting notes where a recording needs to line up with what you were typing at the time., a team already inside microsoft 365 that needs a shared notebook without buying anything or seeking approval., collecting mixed material such as screenshots, clippings and sketches on one page, where a document editor would force a linear structure.. Anything replacing it has to cover the ones you actually depend on, and a cheaper tool that misses one of them is not cheaper.
Two things this page cannot settle. It compares on price, model, tier count and rating, because those are the fields the category listing carries, feature-level differences need both full records, which is what the head-to-head pages load. And the ratings are third-party aggregates imported with each entry rather than reviews written here, so a 0.2 difference between two tools is noise rather than a finding.
If Microsoft OneNote is broadly right and the question is cost, the Microsoft OneNote pricing breakdown covers every tier and what each one adds. If you want the whole field rather than a shortlist, the Productivity category lists everything the directory holds, and best productivity tools ranks them.
Microsoft OneNote runs on web, ios, android, macos, windows. Platform coverage is not carried on the category listing for the alternatives, so it is one more thing to check on each head-to-head page rather than here.
Questions about Microsoft OneNote alternatives
- What are the main alternatives to Microsoft OneNote?
- 24 other productivity tools are listed in this directory, led by Todoist, OmniFocus 3, Things 3, Brain.fm. They are ordered by the aggregated rating on each catalogue entry, not by any Softwr ranking.
- What is the best free alternative to Microsoft OneNote?
- 15 of the alternatives listed here can be used without paying: Todoist, Brain.fm, Day One, Canary Mail, Alfred.
- Is there a reason to switch away from Microsoft OneNote?
- Nothing in the data flags one. Microsoft OneNote has a free tier. Fit and workflow are the usual reasons to move, and those are not things this record can measure.
- What would I give up by switching from Microsoft OneNote?
- Microsoft OneNote is most often brought in for handwritten notes on a pen tablet that you still need to find months later by searching for a word you wrote., lecture or meeting notes where a recording needs to line up with what you were typing at the time., a team already inside microsoft 365 that needs a shared notebook without buying anything or seeking approval., collecting mixed material such as screenshots, clippings and sketches on one page, where a document editor would force a linear structure.. Anything you replace it with has to cover the ones you actually rely on, the side-by-side comparisons linked from each alternative below put the two feature records against each other.
- Is there an open-source alternative to Microsoft OneNote?
- None of the productivity tools listed here are recorded as open source. That is what the licence field on each entry says, and the field is not always filled in, so it is worth checking directly for any tool you are serious about.
- How were these Microsoft OneNote alternatives chosen?
- They are the tools filed in the same category, Productivity, ordered by the aggregated rating on each entry. There is no editorial shortlist, and nothing on this page is paid: no sponsored placement runs on alternatives pages and the order cannot be bought. Softwr has not used these products.
- Where can I compare Microsoft OneNote against one of these directly?
- Every alternative below has a side-by-side page against Microsoft OneNote covering price, platforms, features and what each one is used for. Those pages read the full record for both products rather than the summary shown here.
- Does this list cover every productivity tool?
- No. It covers what this directory holds in the Productivity category, 24 tools beside Microsoft OneNote. The category page lists the rest of the catalogue as it grows.