Goodnotes

Goodnotes is a note-taking app from Goodnotes, a company founded in 2011 and based in London. It runs on Android, iOS, macOS, web, and Windows, with offline access, note sharing, and real-time collaboration. Connections include Google Calendar, Google Drive, ChatGPT, Claude, Microsoft Outlook, and Apple Calendar. The free plan is free forever and includes three notebooks, three text documents, three whiteboards, three folders, 100 MB of storage, and a 5 MB import file limit. Essential costs $11.99 per year and includes 5 GB storage and unlimited files, with a 7-day free trial. Pro costs $35.99 per year and includes unlimited files, also with a 7-day trial. Teams costs $120.00 per year and adds real-time team collaboration, SAML SSO, domain control, consolidated billing, and user and admin management. AI Pass is a $9.99 per month add-on with approximately 6,300 additional AI credits per month; availability varies by region and eligible plan. Enterprise and Special Edition have no listed prices. Special Edition is a one-time purchase on Apple devices and includes unlimited Apple note-taking with limited Goodnotes AI.

Goodnotes offers a cross-platform note-taking option with offline access and collaboration. The free plan has explicit file and storage limits, while paid plans add more capacity and team controls.

Goodnotes may suit people who want to take and share notes across mobile, desktop, and web platforms, including offline. Teams may suit groups needing collaboration and administration features.

Goodnotes is a cross-platform notebook, document, and whiteboard app for people who need their work on phones, computers, and the web. It suits students, professionals, and small teams that value offline work and shared editing. The main decision is whether the tightly capped free tier is enough or whether your workflow justifies a paid plan.

Overview

Goodnotes brings notebooks, text documents, whiteboards, and folders into one workspace. It runs on Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, and the web, so it fits households and workplaces that mix operating systems. Offline access is a practical advantage for travel, unreliable connections, or focused work away from the internet. Note sharing and real-time collaboration make it more than a private scratchpad, although the strongest administrative controls are reserved for business plans.

The free tier is best treated as an evaluation space. Three notebooks, three text documents, three whiteboards, and three folders can cover a small personal project, but the item caps become restrictive for a long-running archive. The 100 MB storage ceiling and 5 MB import-file limit also make large or attachment-heavy workflows a poor fit without an upgrade.

Key features

• Flexible note formats: Notebooks, text documents, and whiteboards support different ways of organizing information. Free users can sample each format, while paid users avoid the three-item ceiling.
• Offline work: Notes remain usable without a connection, which helps commuters, travelers, and anyone working in places with inconsistent service.
• Sharing and live editing: Note sharing works for sending material to others, and real-time collaboration supports simultaneous work. Teams get a more complete collaboration framework through dedicated controls.
• Connected services: Integrations with Google Calendar, Google Drive, ChatGPT, Claude, Microsoft Outlook, and Apple Calendar are useful when those services already anchor your schedule, files, or AI workflow.

Pricing

Free costs nothing and is free forever. It includes three notebooks, three text documents, three whiteboards, three folders, 100 MB of storage, and a 5 MB maximum import size. It is suitable for trying the app or maintaining a very small set of notes, not for an expanding library.

Essential costs $11.99 a year, billed yearly, with a 7-day free trial. It raises storage to 5 GB and allows unlimited files. This is the sensible individual plan for regular use: it removes file-count friction, though the finite storage quota still matters if you keep many large imports.

Pro costs $35.99 a year, billed yearly, and includes a 7-day free trial. It provides unlimited files without the stated 5 GB storage allowance. Choose it when Essential's storage ceiling would interfere with your archive; otherwise Essential is the less expensive personal commitment.

AI Pass is a $9.99 monthly add-on, with availability varying by region and eligible plan. It supplies approximately 6,300 additional AI credits per month. Because it is an add-on rather than a standalone workspace, it makes sense only for users whose plan and region support it and who will actually use the extra AI allowance.

Teams costs $120 a year, billed yearly. It adds real-time team collaboration, SAML SSO, domain control, consolidated billing, and user and administrator management. Those controls justify the jump for organizations; they offer little value to a solo note-taker.

Enterprise uses custom pricing and adds custom security and privacy controls, AI permissions, dedicated account support, Microsoft Intune App SDK support, and customizable solutions. It is aimed at organizations with deployment and governance requirements beyond Teams. Special Edition is a one-time purchase on Apple devices, with unlimited Apple note-taking and limited Goodnotes AI; it is relevant mainly to users committed to Apple's hardware.

Platforms

Goodnotes supports Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, and web access. That breadth is a strong reason to choose it over an Apple-only notebook, especially for families or teams using mixed devices. Offline access helps preserve continuity when switching locations, while web availability provides a browser-based route when the native app is not at hand.

Who it's for

Choose Goodnotes if you want several note formats, offline access, and sharing across all major desktop and mobile platforms. Essential fits an individual who has outgrown the free caps; Pro is for a larger file library; Teams is for organizations needing identity, billing, and admin controls. Look elsewhere if you need a generous free archive or do not use collaboration and integrations enough to offset the plan limits.

Pros and cons

Pros

• Works on Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, and the web, reducing platform lock-in.
• Offline access supports work without dependable connectivity.
• Real-time collaboration and broad calendar, storage, and AI integrations cover shared workflows.
• Teams includes SAML SSO, domain control, consolidated billing, and user management.

Cons

• Free limits every major workspace type to three items, with only 100 MB of storage.
• The free 5 MB import limit can block larger files.
• Essential still has a 5 GB storage ceiling, while Pro costs substantially more.
• AI Pass is region- and plan-dependent and billed monthly as an add-on.

Alternatives

Browse our Note-taking apps list for broader choices, or the AI Note-Taking Apps list if AI features are your priority.

• Notion is a better fit for individuals who want pages, blocks, databases, and basic collaboration in a free plan.
• Notability suits users who want a free starter tier with five notes, editing tools, PDFs, documents, templates, and seven-day version history.
• Obsidian is the alternative for people who prefer a vault-based workflow and are willing to pay $5 a month for annual-billed Sync Standard.
• Notesnook is worth considering when encrypted-notebook features and a free tier with 50 MB monthly storage are the priority.
• Evernote fits users who prefer a mature note-and-attachment structure, with its free plan capped at 50 notes, one notebook, and 1 GB storage.
• Zoho Notebook offers a free Essential tier with 500 MB cloud storage and a 3 MB maximum notecard size.
• Craft is an option for document-style work with a free 1,500-block, 1 GB plan and 15 AI assistant credits.
• Google Keep is the simpler free choice for notes, lists, photos, drawings, and audio that sync across devices.

Verdict

Goodnotes is a strong choice for cross-platform individuals and teams that need offline notes, multiple workspace formats, and live sharing. Essential is the practical starting point for sustained personal use, while Teams earns its price when administration and identity controls matter. Look elsewhere if your priority is a high-capacity free plan, a simpler quick-note tool, or a workflow built around a different document model.