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Productivity · head to head

DeskTime vs Microsoft OneNote

DeskTime logo

DeskTime

Productivity

Automatic computer activity tracking and productivity analytics

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Microsoft OneNote logo

Microsoft OneNote

Productivity

Microsoft's free-form notebook, free with a Microsoft account and synced through OneDrive

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: DeskTime screenshots are excluded from the Pro plan and start at Premium; Microsoft OneNote notes live in a proprietary notebook format on OneDrive or SharePoint and the only exports are a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document, produced section by section, so a large notebook is effectively unmovable to any other tool.
  • They diverge on capability: DeskTime covers Automatic activity tracking, Microsoft OneNote covers Free-form page canvas.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which DeskTime and Microsoft OneNote actually diverge.

Attributes where DeskTime and Microsoft OneNote differ
AttributeDeskTimeMicrosoft OneNote
PlatformsWeb, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows, LinuxWeb, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows
Founded20131975

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Productivity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in DeskTime

  • Automatic activity tracking
  • Application and website tracking
  • Daily reports
  • Weekly summaries
  • Privacy-first design
  • Detailed analytics
  • Goal setting
  • Mobile apps

Only in Microsoft OneNote

  • Free-form page canvas
  • Notebook hierarchy
  • Indexed handwriting
  • Audio recording
  • Web clipper and Outlook capture
  • Shared notebooks
  • Cross-platform clients
  • Tags and cross-notebook search

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

DeskTime

  • Automatic time tracking of desktop app and website usagenot Microsoft OneNote
  • Measuring team productivity and idle timenot Microsoft OneNote
  • Scheduling shifts and tracking absencesnot Microsoft OneNote

Microsoft OneNote

  • Handwritten notes on a pen tablet that you still need to find months later by searching for a word you wrote.not DeskTime
  • Lecture or meeting notes where a recording needs to line up with what you were typing at the time.not DeskTime
  • A team already inside Microsoft 365 that needs a shared notebook without buying anything or seeking approval.not DeskTime
  • Collecting mixed material such as screenshots, clippings and sketches on one page, where a document editor would force a linear structure.not DeskTime

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

DeskTime

  • Screenshots are excluded from the Pro plan and start at Premium
  • Integrations and API access require the Premium plan
  • Shift scheduling requires the Premium plan
  • Enterprise is aimed at 200+ users and is priced by quote with no published rate
  • The advertised $6.42 and $9.17 per user rates require annual billing; monthly billing costs more
  • The trial lasts 14 days

Microsoft OneNote

  • Notes live in a proprietary notebook format on OneDrive or SharePoint and the only exports are a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document, produced section by section, so a large notebook is effectively unmovable to any other tool.
  • Personal notebooks consume OneDrive quota, which is 5 GB on a free Microsoft account, so a notebook full of scans, images and recordings quietly exhausts the whole account including the space Outlook needs for mail.
  • Sync happens at section level and conflicts are resolved by placing both versions on the page, so simultaneous edits to a large or media-heavy section produce duplicated content that somebody has to merge by hand.
  • Search behaves differently across clients, so what the Windows desktop app finds inside handwriting, images and attachments is not necessarily what the browser or mobile version finds, and the same query gives different answers on different devices.
  • There is no relational structure, no database and no properties, so anything that needs a table of records with fields has to be maintained by hand or moved elsewhere, and OneNote's own tables cannot be queried or filtered.

Pricing, plan by plan

DeskTime

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Activity tracking
    • Basic reports
    • Weekly emails
  • Pro$9/month
    • Everything in Free
    • Advanced reports
    • Detailed analytics

Microsoft OneNote

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Microsoft OneNote review.

Which should you pick?

Choose DeskTime if

  • You need automatic activity tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows, Linux.
  • You also want application and website tracking.
DeskTime review

Choose Microsoft OneNote if

  • You need free-form page canvas.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows.
  • You also want notebook hierarchy.
Microsoft OneNote review

Questions people ask

Is DeskTime or Microsoft OneNote better?
Neither clearly leads. DeskTime starts at Free and Microsoft OneNote at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, DeskTime or Microsoft OneNote?
DeskTime starts at Free and Microsoft OneNote at Free.
Does DeskTime or Microsoft OneNote run on more platforms?
DeskTime runs on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows, Linux. Microsoft OneNote runs on Web, IOS, Android, MacOS, Windows.
Can I use DeskTime for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is DeskTime best used for?
DeskTime is most often used for automatic time tracking of desktop app and website usage, measuring team productivity and idle time, scheduling shifts and tracking absences. Of those, automatic time tracking of desktop app and website usage and measuring team productivity and idle time are not what Microsoft OneNote is typically brought in for.
What can DeskTime do that Microsoft OneNote cannot?
DeskTime covers Automatic activity tracking, Application and website tracking, Daily reports, Weekly summaries. Microsoft OneNote covers Free-form page canvas, Notebook hierarchy, Indexed handwriting, Audio recording.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

DeskTime: What are DeskTime's subscription tiers?

DeskTime offers Pro at $6.42/user/month (annual billing) for small teams and startups, Premium at $9.17/user/month (marked Most Popular) for hybrid and growing teams, and Enterprise with custom pricing for 200+ users.

Source
Microsoft OneNote: Is OneNote really free?

Yes. The application is free with a Microsoft account, with no time limit and no feature gate. What you may end up paying for is the OneDrive storage the notebooks consume.

DeskTime: What features differentiate the Premium tier from Pro?

Premium adds screenshots, integrations & API, and shift scheduling compared to Pro's document title tracking and calendar integrations.

Source
Microsoft OneNote: Can I keep notebooks off Microsoft's cloud?

The Windows desktop app can keep local notebooks, but they will not sync to other devices and any shared access requires OneDrive or SharePoint.

DeskTime: How long is the DeskTime free trial?

DeskTime offers a 14-day free trial. No credit card is required to start.

Source
Microsoft OneNote: How do I get my notes out?

Section by section as a OneNote file, a PDF or a Word document. A OneNote package preserves a whole notebook but only for another copy of OneNote. Third-party converters exist and the page layout usually does not survive them.

DeskTime: What billing options does DeskTime offer?

DeskTime offers monthly or annual billing. Annual subscriptions include one complimentary month compared to monthly plan pricing. You can pay by credit card or PayPal.

Source
Microsoft OneNote: Which version should I install?

Microsoft consolidated onto a single OneNote application on Windows after retiring the Store version, so install the one distributed with Microsoft 365 rather than looking for an alternative.

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