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GoodNotes vs showNote

Professional comparison and analysis to help you choose the right software solution for your needs.

GoodNotes icon
GoodNotes
showNote icon
showNote

GoodNotes vs showNote: The Verdict

⚡ Summary:

GoodNotes: GoodNotes is a digital handwriting and note-taking app for iPad and iPhone. It allows you to take notes, annotate PDFs, sketch ideas, and organize notes into notebooks using the Apple Pencil or your finger. GoodNotes is intuitive, flexible, and great for students and professionals.

showNote: showNote is a free and open-source note taking app for Windows. It allows users to create rich text notes with formatting, images, lists, tables, and more. Features include tabs, tagging, backup/restore, search, spellcheck, and exporting to PDF. It aims to provide an intuitive and distraction-free interface for taking notes.

Both tools serve their respective audiences. Compare the features, pricing, and user ratings above to determine which best fits your needs.

Last updated: May 2026 · Comparison by Sugggest Editorial Team

Feature GoodNotes showNote
Sugggest Score — —
Category Education & Reference Office & Productivity
Pricing — Freemium

Product Overview

GoodNotes
GoodNotes

Description: GoodNotes is a digital handwriting and note-taking app for iPad and iPhone. It allows you to take notes, annotate PDFs, sketch ideas, and organize notes into notebooks using the Apple Pencil or your finger. GoodNotes is intuitive, flexible, and great for students and professionals.

Type: software

showNote
showNote

Description: showNote is a free and open-source note taking app for Windows. It allows users to create rich text notes with formatting, images, lists, tables, and more. Features include tabs, tagging, backup/restore, search, spellcheck, and exporting to PDF. It aims to provide an intuitive and distraction-free interface for taking notes.

Type: software

Pricing: Freemium

Key Features Comparison

GoodNotes
GoodNotes Features
  • Handwriting and drawing with Apple Pencil
  • Annotate PDFs and documents
  • Create and organize notes into notebooks
  • Variety of pen styles and colors
  • Shape recognition
  • Zoom writing
  • Search handwritten notes
showNote
showNote Features
  • Rich text editing
  • Formatting options (bold, italic, underline, etc)
  • Insert images
  • Create lists and tables
  • Tabbed interface
  • Tagging
  • Search notes
  • Spellcheck
  • Backup/restore
  • Export to PDF

Pros & Cons Analysis

GoodNotes
GoodNotes

Pros

  • Natural writing and drawing experience
  • Powerful organization with notebooks
  • Ability to search handwritten notes
  • Integrates well with other Apple products and services

Cons

  • No web or Windows version
  • Less templates compared to competitors
  • Can be pricey compared to free alternatives
showNote
showNote

Pros

  • Free and open source
  • Intuitive and clean interface
  • Good feature set for basic note taking
  • Active development and community support

Cons

  • Limited formatting compared to Word
  • No collaboration features
  • No mobile app
  • Windows only

Pricing Comparison

GoodNotes
GoodNotes
  • Not listed
showNote
showNote
  • Freemium

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Learn More About Each Product

GoodNotes
GoodNotes
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showNote
showNote
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