Best Personal Notes in 2025

Zero-knowledge encrypted notes, tasks, journals, files, and passwords in one app. Your keys never leave your device. One-time price, no subscription. Hosted in Switzerland.

Key PrivacyNotes features:

Privacy-focused Encryption Ephemeral notes Simple and lightweight

Try for free Open Source freemium $48.0 / One-off (Early adopter price)

A second brain, for you, forever. Obsidian is a powerful knowledge base that works on top of a local folder of plain text Markdown files.

Key Obsidian.md features:

Local-first Markdown Support Bidirectional Linking Customizability

Joplin is a free, open source note taking and to-do application, which can handle a large number of notes organised into notebooks. The notes are searchable, tagged and modified either from the applications directly or from your own text editor. .

Key Joplin features:

Open Source Cross-Platform End-to-End Encryption Rich Text Support

Open Source free

A safe place for your notes, thoughts, and life's work.

Key Standard Notes features:

End-to-End Encryption Cross-Platform Support Open Source Extended Features via Subscription

Open Source

Logseq is a local-first, non-linear, outliner notebook for organizing and sharing your personal knowledge base.

Key Logseq features:

Bidirectional Linking Graph View Markdown Support Local Storage

Open Source free

All-in-one workspace. One tool for your whole team. Write, plan, and get organized.

Key Notion features:

All-in-One Workspace Highly Customizable Collaboration Features Cross-Platform Availability

Trilium Notes is a hierarchical note taking application.

Key Trilium Notes features:

Hierarchical Note Organization Rich Text Editing Dynamic Note Linking Cross-Platform

Open Source

a non-linear personal web notebook.

Key TiddlyWiki features:

Flexible and customizable Self-contained No server needed Active community

Open Source

The simplest way to keep notes. Light, clean, and free. Simplenote is now available for iOS, Android, Mac, and the web.

Key Simplenote features:

Ease of Use Free of Cost Real-time Sync Multi-platform Support

Open Source

Notesnook is a simple and private note taking app that keeps your notes organized and synced on your phone, tablet and computer.

Key Notesnook features:

Notebooks & Tags Prioritise by Colors Rich Text Editor Tables & Lists

Open Source freemium $4.49 / Monthly (UI Themes & accents)

Anytype is a next generation software that breaks down barriers between applications, gives back privacy and data ownership to users.

Key Anytype.io features:

User-friendly Interface Privacy-focused Offline Capability Flexibility

Open Source

Bring your life's work together in one digital workspace. Evernote is the place to collect inspirational ideas, write meaningful words, and move your important projects forward.

Key Evernote features:

Cross-Platform Compatibility Organizational Tools Web Clipper Collaboration Features

Get the OneNote app for free on your tablet, phone, and computer, so you can capture your ideas and to-do lists in one place wherever you are. Or try OneNote with Office for free.

Key OneNote features:

Cross-Platform Accessibility Collaboration Features Integration with Microsoft Ecosystem Flexible Organization

A note-taking tool for networked thought.

Key Roam Research features:

Bidirectional Links Graph Visualization Block-Based Structure Daily Notes