NotePlan
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NotePlan is a unique note-taking app with a focus on calendar and tasks in one.
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Our Rating
Last Updated:
This Is a Good One!
This tool performed well in our tests. Our ratings for tools factor in design, features, performance, practicality and value to help determine the tool's overall score.
Things we like
Connect notes up with links
Markdown notes & tasks
Comes with bullet-journal style planning
Easy to use layouts with templates
Comes with tasks, notes & calendar in one
Things we don't like
Not as visually appealing as some of the other apps on the market like Routine that feel more planner like in nature
More traditional in folder organization and connected notes with backlinks for the more modern users
What we think about the Design of NotePlan?
Not too bad to look at, NotePlan has a clean user interface with some lovely sidebars that pop out allowing you to see calendar and tasks. This looks better on iOS and on the go as it has a more compact style to use.
Design
Not too bad to look at, NotePlan...More
Features
With notes, calendars, and tasks...More
Performance
NotePlan works well. The speed and...More
Practicality
Limited to iOS and macOS, with a...More
Value
Overall, NotePlan isn't cheap, but...More
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Ashley Harris
5th Mar 2024
Procrastination Punisher
9.4 out of 10 stars
This app needs more attention and praise, one stop shop!
NotePlan is a constant evolving home for all of your needs. The developers are constantly tweaking and listening to the needs of the users. The ability to have iOS reminders, calendar events, tasks and notes all in one spot to view makes project management and daily life much more organized. I always am skeptical as to why this app isn’t up there......
David Wertheimer
6th Mar 2024
To-Do List Conqueror
9.2 out of 10 stars
Worth the price - elegance of a native Apple app
I've used NotePlan for 3 years now. I open it 20+ times a day. Have tried many alternatives in the past, but NotePlan's elegant combination of Tasks, Calendars & Notetaking is unparalleled. I dislike having separate tools which are cloud-based islands that don't talk to each other. NotePlan gives me the comfort of knowing my notes are always on my......
NotePlan Review (2024)
Pros, Cons, Features & Verdict
NotePlan is an interesting option as it combines tasks, calendars & notes in one space. A lot of people look at NotePlan for an Apple-focused way to handle everything one space, with a note-taking feel.
What is NotePlan?
NotePlan is a note-taking application with tasks and a calendar. Designed to be an all-in-one productivity hub it connects with Apple Calendar and Reminders to help organize tasks, notes, and calendar events in one space.
How does NotePlan Work?
NotePlan serves as a note-taking at the core.
This means you can start taking notes and adding them into folders from day one, much like you would with apps like Obsidian which are very markdown-focused note-taking apps. NotePlan then goes a step further by allowing you to add tasks and connect your calendar using Apple Calendar importing events and meetings.
NotePlan wants to be a productivity hub. That aims to organize your items in one place so you reduce switching applications all the time for notes, calendars & tasks alike.
NotePlan Features
Let's look at some of the features that make NotePlan special:
Features | Helpful for |
|---|---|
Note-Taking | Notes are the core of the NotePlan experience allowing you to create them in markdown, create templates, and connect them using backlinks between notes. |
Calendar Management | Connect your Apple Calendar and you can import events. This allows you to see the week ahead and most importantly connect NotePlan notes to those. |
Task Management | Create a task inside of NotePlan within notes and start tallying what you need to do. A lot of people like this as they are markdown tasks too. |
NotePlan Pros
Here are the best things inside of NotePlan:
Pros | Reasons |
|---|---|
Templates | Building templates is one of the most customizable ways to build notes. Perfect for not just notes, but markdown tasks and starting new events too in NotePlan. We liked how they did this. |
Filtering | If you began creating notes and wanted to break them down by dates or characteristics you could do so using the filters option that is pinned at the top of the page, a solid feature. |
Creating Events | Calendar management, despite being limited to Apple Calendar, worked very well and allows you to create a two-way sync between your notes and calendar events, perfect for linking notes for later. |
NotePlan Cons
Here are some of the things we didn't like so much about NotePlan:
Cons | Reasons |
|---|---|
Lacks Google Calendar | For many people, using tools for work, Google Calendar is their standard calendar integration and the fact that NotePlan lacks this is a shame. |
iOS and macOS only | Limited to iOS and macOS only bring it available to web users. For on-the-go use, this isn't ideal as having an app makes life so much easier, especially for capturing a task quickly. |
How much does NotePlan cost?
NotePlan is a subscription application costing $9.99 per month or $99.99 per annum.
Is NotePlan free?
NotePlan does not offer a free pricing tier.
Verdict: Is NotePlan worth it?
NotePlan reminds us a lot of Evernote, trying to combine everything into one.
Productivity hubs have become a lot more popular and NotePlan allows you to bring together all three core experiences to your productivity which we believe will be popular with those who like the concept of Getting Things Done, GTD for short.
If you're Apple-focused, with Apple Calendar and an iOS and macOS device, then this application is a really interesting option to give you a home for all your things. It has been growing in popularity as people look for more offline productivity tools.
You will also like NotePlan for the markdown and networked thought. Although it isn't as powerful as other tools like Obsidian and some second-brain apps, it will serve the job well.
NotePlan Learning Effort
Intermediate
Categories
Best For
Markdown Note-TakingFounded Date
2016
HQ Location
USA
Last Updated
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Understanding NotePlan
Questions on NotePlan
When is NotePlan 4 coming?
There's no outright plans for NotePlan 4 that we have heard of, they share on their Twitter updates and this will likely be the best place to find it.
NotePlan 3 or Agenda Notes?
Agenda Notes is very much focused on notes and calendar planning, whereas NotePlan 3 presents a trifecta approach of tasks, calendar and notes in a hub like experience. Agenda is better for those who use notes and calendar events in one more so.
Does NotePlan 3 have time-boxing for calendar?
NotePlan 3 have recently launched a feature in 2023 allowing users to time box your calendar which produces better results for managing your task and calendar for focused "deep work states" popularised by Cal Newport.