Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Grammarly VS PrivacyNotes

Compare Grammarly VS PrivacyNotes and see what are their differences

Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Grammarly logo Grammarly

Clear, effective, mistake-free writing everywhere you type.

PrivacyNotes logo PrivacyNotes

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.
Visit Website
  • Grammarly Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-11
  • PrivacyNotes Journal
    Journal //
    2026-06-25
  • PrivacyNotes Settings
    Settings //
    2026-06-25
  • PrivacyNotes Website
    Website //
    2026-06-25

PrivacyNotes is a zero-knowledge encrypted workspace that brings your notes, tasks, journals, files, and passwords into one app, so you stop juggling four separate subscriptions.

Everything is encrypted on your device with XChaCha20-Poly1305 before it ever syncs. Your keys are derived from a recovery phrase that never touches our servers, so we cannot read your content, your filenames, or anything else. This is real zero-knowledge, not a marketing label.

Five pillars, one encrypted app:

  • Notes - a live markdown editor with note-to-note links, tags, and fast full-text search
  • Tasks - native checklists and task management next to your notes
  • Journals - daily entries with built-in mood, sleep, and medication tracking
  • Files - an encrypted vault for images, audio, and attachments
  • Vault - lock sensitive notes and logins behind a PIN or biometrics

Built for privacy, not surveillance:

  • No ads, no trackers, no analytics, ever
  • Sign in anonymously with a recovery phrase or with Google. No email or personal details required.
  • Open core: the encryption layer and database schema are published for independent review
  • Burn notes: self-destructing shares the server cannot read

Pricing that respects you:

  • Free covers every pillar with two-device sync and offline use
  • Pro is a one-time free, not a subscription, adding unlimited devices, note history, and more storage
  • Optional storage add-ons when you need them

Works on web, macOS, and soon iOS, Android, Windows and Linux with a responsive mobile layout. Import from Apple Notes, Standard Notes, Google Keep, Obsidian, and markdown in a few clicks.

Grammarly

$ Details
freemium $12.0 / Monthly (Premium)
Platforms
-
Release Date
2009 January
Startup details
Country
United States
State
California
Founder(s)
Alex Shevchenko
Employees
500 - 999

PrivacyNotes

$ Details
freemium $48.0 / One-off (Early adopter price)
Platforms
MacOS Web Firefox Google Chrome Edge Safari
Release Date
2026 June
Startup details
Country
Switzerland
Employees
1 - 9

Grammarly features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Grammarly is designed with a user-friendly interface that makes it easy for users to check their writing quickly. Its real-time suggestions and simple navigation facilitate hassle-free proofreading.
  • Comprehensive Grammar and Spelling Checks
    Grammarly provides extensive grammar and spelling checks, identifying even subtle errors that are often missed by standard word processors.
  • Writing Style Improvement
    The tool offers suggestions to improve readability, tone, and overall writing style, which is beneficial for both casual writers and professionals.
  • Plagiarism Detection
    Grammarly's premium version includes a plagiarism checker that scans text against billions of web pages, providing an extra layer of proofreading for academic and professional work.
  • Customization
    The tool allows users to set their writing preferences, such as choosing American or British English, and to customize the rules based on their needs.
  • Cross-Platform Availability
    Grammarly can be accessed via browser extensions, desktop apps, and mobile apps, making it versatile for different use cases and devices.

Possible disadvantages of Grammarly

  • Costly Premium Subscription
    While the basic version is free, the premium subscription can be expensive for some users, limiting access to advanced features.
  • Overreliance Risk
    Users may become overly reliant on Grammarly, which can hinder their development of personal proofreading and editing skills.
  • Potential Privacy Concerns
    Since Grammarly processes and stores user data, there may be potential privacy concerns regarding the handling of personal and sensitive information.
  • Inconsistent Accuracy
    Although advanced, Grammarly is not flawless and may occasionally provide incorrect suggestions or fail to catch certain errors.
  • Limited Context Understanding
    Grammarly sometimes struggles with understanding contextual nuances, leading to inappropriate grammar or style suggestions.
  • Requires Internet Connection
    The tool requires a continuous internet connection to function, which can be a limitation for users with unreliable or no internet access.

PrivacyNotes features and specs

  • Privacy-focused
    PrivacyNotes is designed with privacy as a core principle, aiming to keep your notes secure and away from third-party access, which appeals to users concerned about data confidentiality.
  • Encryption
    The service typically emphasizes encryption to protect note content, meaning your data is scrambled and less vulnerable to unauthorized reading if intercepted or stored.
  • Ephemeral notes
    Many privacy note services offer self-destructing or temporary notes that automatically delete after being read or after a set time, reducing the digital footprint left behind.
  • Simple and lightweight
    Such tools often provide a clean, minimal interface focused on quick note creation and sharing without unnecessary features, making it easy to use.
  • No account required
    Privacy-oriented note apps frequently allow you to create and share notes without registration, lowering the barrier to entry and reducing personal data collection.

Analysis of Grammarly

Overall verdict

  • Overall, Grammarly is considered a valuable tool for anyone looking to enhance their writing quality. Its comprehensive feedback and user-friendly interface make it a worthwhile investment for individuals who frequently engage in writing-related tasks. However, the premium version offers more advanced features beyond the free version, such as vocabulary enhancement suggestions and a plagiarism detector.

Why this product is good

  • Grammarly is a popular writing assistant tool that helps users improve their writing skills by offering real-time grammar, spelling, and style suggestions. It uses advanced algorithms to provide detailed feedback on sentence structure, tone, and clarity, making it useful for various types of writing, from academic papers to casual blog posts. Grammarly also integrates seamlessly with multiple platforms and browsers, enhancing its accessibility and utility for users across different devices.

Recommended for

  • Students looking to improve their academic writing and reduce errors.
  • Professionals who need to maintain clear and polished communication.
  • Content creators and bloggers aiming to produce high-quality, error-free content.
  • Non-native English speakers seeking assistance with language nuances.

Analysis of PrivacyNotes

Overall verdict

  • I don't have verified, specific information about PrivacyNotes (privacynotes.app) to make a reliable assessment of its quality, security practices, or features. I cannot confirm details about its encryption methods, privacy policy, company background, or user reviews.

Why this product is good

  • Unable to verify claims about encryption or zero-knowledge architecture without independent confirmation
  • No access to current user reviews, ratings, or reputation data for this specific service
  • Cannot confirm company legitimacy, ownership, or track record
  • Unable to verify uptime, reliability, or actual security audit results
  • No information available on pricing structure or terms of service specifics

Recommended for

  • Before using, research independently via security audit reports if available
  • Check for third-party security reviews or penetration testing results
  • Verify the company's privacy policy and data handling practices directly on their site
  • Look for user reviews on independent platforms rather than relying on marketing claims
  • Consider established, well-audited alternatives if handling highly sensitive information

Grammarly videos

Grammarly Review: Is it worth it, and what you NEED to know!

More videos:

  • Review - Grammarly Review 2019: Grammarly Pros and Cons and if You Should Use it
  • Review - Grammarly 2020 | Review, Features & Pricing

PrivacyNotes videos

No PrivacyNotes videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Grammarly and PrivacyNotes)
Writing Tools
100 100%
0% 0
Note Taking
0 0%
100% 100
Grammar Checker
100 100%
0% 0
Task Management
0 0%
100% 100

Questions & Answers

As answered by people managing Grammarly and PrivacyNotes.

Who are some of the biggest customers of your product?

PrivacyNotes's answer:

Honestly? We have no idea, and that is the entire point. Signup is anonymous (a recovery phrase or Google, no email or personal details), the app ships zero analytics and zero trackers, and zero-knowledge encryption means we cannot see who you are or what you store. We could not name a single customer if we tried. A privacy product that tracked its users closely enough to brag about them would be missing the plot.

What makes your product unique?

PrivacyNotes's answer:

PrivacyNotes is the only zero-knowledge encrypted workspace that keeps notes, tasks, journals, files, and a password vault behind one set of on-device keys. Most privacy apps do one of those well and rent it to you monthly. We do all five, encrypt everything with XChaCha20-Poly1305 before it leaves your device, and charge once instead of forever. The encryption core is open core, published so the claims can be verified rather than trusted.

Why should a person choose your product over its competitors?

PrivacyNotes's answer:

Three reasons:

  • One app, not four subscriptions. Standard Notes, Day One, and Lunatask each rent you a slice (notes, journaling, tasks). PrivacyNotes covers all of them plus files and a vault, for a fair one-time fee.
  • Real zero-knowledge. Your keys come from a recovery phrase that never touches our servers, so we cannot read your notes, your filenames, or your metadata. Some encrypted apps leave note or task metadata in the clear; we do not.
  • Verifiable, not just trusted. The crypto and schema are open core and published for review, and there is no ad, tracker, or analytics anywhere in the app.

How would you describe the primary audience of your product?

PrivacyNotes's answer:

Privacy-conscious individuals and independent professionals who handle information they would not want a vendor reading: lawyers, journalists, healthcare and mental-health practitioners, developers, security specialists, researchers, and founders. It also fits anyone who simply wants one private home for their notes, tasks, journaling, and wellness tracking instead of spreading them across surveillance-funded apps.

Which are the primary technologies used for building your product?

PrivacyNotes's answer:

React, TypeScript, Vite and Tailwind CSS.

What's the story behind your product?

PrivacyNotes's answer:

PrivacyNotes started from a simple frustration: staying organized meant scattering your life across half a dozen apps, most of which could read everything you typed and billed you monthly for the privilege. We wanted one place for notes, tasks, journals, files, and passwords, encrypted so thoroughly that the people running the servers could not read a word of it, and paid for once rather than forever. So we built the encryption first, made the keys live only on your device, and published the crypto as open core so the promise could be checked, not just believed. Everything else grew from one rule: your data is yours, and no one else's to mine.

User comments

Share your experience with using Grammarly and PrivacyNotes. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Grammarly and PrivacyNotes

Grammarly Reviews

  1. Highdalink
    ยท Founder at HighDALink ยท
    Best content editing app

    Grammarly is top especially with content editing and Google doc integration features.

    ๐Ÿ Competitors: Writesonic, Ryte, Jasper.ai
    ๐Ÿ‘ Pros:    High quality content|Google doc integration
    ๐Ÿ‘Ž Cons:    Expensive
  2. Michael Hasty
    ยท Writer at DRS ยท

    Grammarly is a fantastic tool that helps users step up their writing game by providing real-time grammar, spelling, and punctuation corrections. It is designed to help you create polished, professional content and ensure your message is clear and concise. Whether you're a student, professional, or just someone who wants to improve their writing skills, Grammarly has got your back.

    ๐Ÿ Competitors: ProWritingAid
    ๐Ÿ‘ Pros:    Easy to use|Thorough grammar check|Style and tone suggestions|Plagiarism detector
    ๐Ÿ‘Ž Cons:    Limited free version|Occasionally misses errors
  3. Eleanor Bennett
    ยท Digital Marketing Specialist at Logit.io ยท
    Love the Google Docs plugin

    Grammarly is the most useful to me for its Google Docs feature that supports me as I create new content. Unfortunately, they seem to provide more context and insights when I am sending an email rather than writing an entire document.


Best AI Paraphraser for Non-Native English Speakers: Grammarly, QuillBot, Paraphrasing Tool, Paraphraser.io, Wordtune, Engram (2023)
Grammarly is well known for its proofreader, but did you know that Grammarly also has a paraphraser? Although not as well known as its proofreader, Grammarly does have a paraphrasing feature, so let's check it out!
Source: blog.engram.us
Best AI Proofreader for Non-Native English Speakers: Grammarly, QuillBot, Engram, ProWritingAid, Ginger, Trinka [Updated 2023]
The free version is highly limited; advanced suggestions for sentence structure and vocabulary enhancement plus access to the full online editor with more detailed explanations and suggestions are only available with Grammarly Premium. The feedback can be overwhelming at times, and it may miss context-specific errors in complex writing.
Source: blog.engram.us
AI Proofreaders: What They Are & What The Top Tools Are
Grammarly is one of the most popular writing tools right now, and that is for a reason. It is an exceptional proofreading tool. Grammarly scans what you write in the editor in real time. Then, it quickly makes suggestions. With that, this AI proofreader improves grammar, spelling, and punctuation use.
6 Copyscape Alternatives for Checking Plagiarism
Grammarly is an online proofreading plugin that helps content creators and bloggers check the readability of what they have written. The free version has a grammar checker, while more tools are available with their premium version.
Source: www.quetext.com
6 Best AI Grammar Checkers to Correct Mistakes in 2021
Grammarly Business โ€“ Grammarly Business is an upgraded version of Grammarly. It is equipped with more features that allow you to create style guides and handily collaborate with your teammates. The pricing starts at $12.50 per user per month.
Source: victorytale.com

PrivacyNotes Reviews

  1. Feature rich

    The best thing about this: No subscription model, it's a one-time fee for a lifetime license. But you can start for free with the generous freemium model. I only needed to upgrade to pro because I wanted to use the app on my phone, laptop and desktop. Highly recommended! Btw, it's a perfect markdown editor as well, not sure why they don't emphasize this more.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Grammarly seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 85 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Grammarly mentions (85)

  • The Best 100 Free UI/UX Resources for Every Designer & Developer
    Grammarly Grammarly.com Free writing assistant to enhance clarity and grammar in UI text. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Are these changes really necessary?
    Use Grammarly, the app or the extension. Source: about 3 years ago
  • ๐Ÿงฐ AI Tools +150 Tools in 6 Categories
    Grammarly - An online writing tool that helps users improve their writing skills and beat writerโ€™s block. I use it everydayโ€ฆ. Source: about 3 years ago
  • What drives the registration price of domain extensions?
    I asked the question. Response text generated by ChatGPT and corrected by Grammarly.com. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Prestige-Blinded Questbridge Asian With Barebones Application Learns to Dispel His Myopia (but somehow lucks out)
    I did not have anyone read over my essays. I regret that now, knowing that my application would have cried out for joy if only there were a reader other than grammarly.com and my drowsy midnight self. I also wrote my essay a day before the Questbridge deadline (I think the deadline was Sept 27th?), which is a terrible, TERRIBLE idea. Please do not do things last minute :D. Source: about 3 years ago
View more

PrivacyNotes mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of PrivacyNotes yet. Tracking of PrivacyNotes recommendations started around Jun 2026.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Grammarly and PrivacyNotes, you can also consider the following products

QuillBot - Quillbot is a free paraphrasing tool that will rewrite any sentence or paraphraph you give it. The article rewriter can rewrite essays or articles and is excellent as a grammar and fluency corrector.

Standard Notes - A safe place for your notes, thoughts, and life's work

LanguageTool - Free proofreading tool for OpenOffice, LibreOffice, Firefox, and Chrome.

Apple Notes - Apple Notes functions as a service for making short text notes.

Wordtune - AI-powered writing companion

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