Taking notes every day sounds simple, but finding the right tool can make all the difference in your productivity. You need an app that works the way your brain does---fast, organized, and reliable. Two giants stand out in the note-taking world: Evernote and Notion. Both have loyal users, but they approach daily notes in completely different ways.
This guide breaks down everything you need to know about these two productivity powerhouses. We'll explore their features, pricing, strengths, and weaknesses to help you make an informed decision.
Before diving into the comparison, let's talk about what you actually need from a daily notes application. Your ideal tool should capture thoughts quickly, organize information logically, and sync across all your devices without hiccups.
Speed matters when inspiration strikes. If you need to open three menus just to create a note, you'll lose your train of thought. The best apps get out of your way and let you write.
Organization becomes critical as your notes pile up. You might start with a few dozen entries, but after months or years, you'll have thousands. The right structure keeps everything accessible without overwhelming you.
Reliability tops everything else. An app can have fancy features, but if it crashes or loses your notes, none of that matters. Your daily journal, work tasks, and important ideas deserve a stable home.
Evernote launched back in 2008 and became the gold standard for digital note-taking. It built its reputation on straightforward functionality: write notes, organize them into notebooks, and find anything using powerful search.
The interface feels familiar to anyone who's used a traditional word processor. You open a note, start typing, and format your text with standard tools. Notes live in notebooks, notebooks live in stacks, and tags help you cross-reference everything.
Evernote excels at capturing different types of content. You can clip web pages, scan documents with your phone camera, record voice memos, and attach files. The app transforms emails into notes, saves PDFs with searchable text, and even recognizes handwriting in images.
The note editor gives you rich text formatting, checklists, tables, and the ability to embed images. You won't find advanced layout options, but you get everything needed for solid note-taking.
Web Clipper deserves special mention. This browser extension captures articles, recipes, and research with one click. You can save full pages, simplified articles, or just bookmarks. It works across all major browsers and saves directly to your account.
Search functionality ranks among the best in the industry. Evernote excels at traditional note-taking and its search can dig through typed text, PDFs, images, and even handwritten notes. The optical character recognition (OCR) technology reads text from photos and makes it searchable.
Document scanning turns your phone into a portable scanner. Point your camera at a business card, receipt, or whiteboard, and Evernote captures it as a searchable PDF. The app automatically crops, adjusts brightness, and enhances the image.
Templates provide starting points for common note types. You'll find templates for meeting notes, project plans, weekly agendas, and more. They speed up repetitive tasks and maintain consistency across similar notes.
Evernote offers Free, Personal ($129.99/year), Professional ($169.99/year), and custom Enterprise plans. Let's break down what each tier includes.
The Free plan lets you create unlimited notes but restricts you to 60MB of monthly uploads and limits device syncing to two devices. You can only create 50 notebooks, which might feel limiting as your collection grows.
Personal plan costs $14.99 monthly or $129.99 annually. This tier removes the device limit, increases uploads to 10GB monthly, and expands notebook limits. You get offline access, customizable home dashboard, and the ability to save emails to Evernote.
Professional plan runs $17.99 monthly or $169.99 yearly. It includes everything from Personal plus 20GB monthly uploads, advanced search within PDFs and Office documents, AI-powered search and writing features, and Google Calendar integration.
Enterprise pricing remains custom based on team size. This option provides centralized billing, advanced security controls, and dedicated support for organizations.
Reliability stands as Evernote's biggest asset. The platform has been around for over 15 years and has proven it can protect your data. Sync works consistently across platforms, and you rarely encounter bugs that prevent basic functionality.
The mobile app performs exceptionally well. Note creation feels smooth, camera scanning works reliably, and offline access keeps your notes available anywhere. Many users keep Evernote specifically because the mobile experience beats competitors.
Search capabilities remain unmatched. When you have years of accumulated notes, finding that one specific piece of information becomes crucial. Evernote's search delivers relevant results quickly, even from old notes buried deep in your archive.
Integration with other tools has expanded over time. Evernote connects with Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Calendar, and numerous other productivity apps. These connections let information flow between your tools automatically.
Collaboration features lag behind modern standards. While you can share notebooks, real-time editing feels clunky compared to newer apps. Multiple people can't edit the same note simultaneously without sync conflicts.
The interface looks dated compared to contemporary alternatives. Evernote hasn't received major visual updates in years, and some users find it less inspiring than sleeker competitors. The design gets the job done but won't win any beauty contests.
Pricing has increased significantly over recent years. The Personal Plan increased from $8.99 to $14.99 monthly, about 66%, and the Professional Plan rose from $10.99 to $17.99 monthly. These price jumps frustrated long-time users who feel they're paying more for similar features.
Project management tools remain minimal. Evernote focuses on notes rather than task management. You can create checklists, but you won't find Kanban boards, dependencies, or advanced project tracking.
Notion arrived in 2016 with a radical idea: combine notes, databases, wikis, and project management into one flexible platform. Instead of separate tools for different tasks, Notion lets you build custom solutions using modular building blocks.
The interface feels more like building with Lego blocks than writing in a traditional notebook. Every page can contain text, images, databases, calendars, boards, and galleries. You arrange these elements to create exactly what you need.
This flexibility attracts people who want complete control over their workspace. You're not locked into someone else's idea of how notes should work. Instead, you design your own systems from scratch or use community templates.
Pages form the foundation of Notion. Each page can contain unlimited content and nest other pages inside it. This creates a hierarchy that scales from simple notes to complex wikis. You can turn any page into a database, making information queryable and filterable.
Databases represent Notion's killer feature. You can create tables, boards, calendars, lists, galleries, and timelines---all from the same data. A task list can display as a calendar when you need schedule view or as a board for kanban-style management. This multi-view capability transforms how you organize information.
Blocks give you building pieces for pages. Text blocks, headings, images, videos, code snippets, equations, and more stack together to create custom layouts. You can drag blocks around, nest them, and link them together in ways that match your thinking.
Templates and databases from the community provide instant starting points. Notion users share their setups publicly, so you can copy proven systems for habit tracking, content calendars, reading lists, or project dashboards. This ecosystem accelerates your setup process dramatically.
AI assistance now comes built into higher-tier plans. Notion AI can summarize long notes, generate content, answer questions about your workspace, and help organize information. The AI understands context from your existing notes and provides relevant suggestions.
Notion offers a generous free tier alongside paid plans that scale for teams. The Notion Plus plan costs $10/user/month when paid annually, totaling $120/user/year. Here's the complete breakdown.
Free plan works surprisingly well for individuals. You get unlimited pages and blocks, the ability to invite up to 10 guests, and 7-day page history. File uploads cap at 5MB per file, but that covers most text documents and images.
Plus plan costs $10 monthly (or $12 without annual commitment) and expands capabilities significantly. You'll get unlimited storage and file uploads, synced databases with a higher row limit of 20,000, and access to your page history for 30 days. This tier also provides priority support and custom web domains.
Business plan runs $20 per user monthly with annual billing or $24 monthly. Notion AI is included in the Business plan, giving you all the AI features without extra charges. You also get advanced permissions, private teamspaces, and bulk exports.
Enterprise pricing remains custom based on organization needs. This includes advanced security controls, dedicated support, unlimited page history, and user provisioning tools for large teams.
Flexibility stands unmatched in the productivity space. You can build nearly any system you imagine---from simple daily journals to complex CRM solutions. Notion offers many project management features, such as task management and scheduling, in addition to note-taking.
The free plan offers remarkable value. Notion offers a more extensive free plan packed with many features compared to Evernote's restrictive free tier. Individuals can use Notion seriously without paying, making it accessible for students and budget-conscious users.
Templates and community resources accelerate your workflow. You don't need to reinvent wheels. Browse the template gallery, find something close to your needs, and customize it. The active community shares tips, tutorials, and advanced setups regularly.
Collaboration works smoothly for teams. Multiple people can edit simultaneously without conflicts. Comments, mentions, and permissions let teams coordinate effectively. The workspace feels designed for group work from the ground up.
Visual design appeals to modern sensibilities. Notion looks clean, feels responsive, and offers customization options like cover images, icons, and dark mode. The aesthetics might seem superficial, but they make daily use more enjoyable.
The learning curve intimidates newcomers. Notion has a steeper learning curve than straightforward note apps. You need time to understand databases, relations, and the block-based system. Quick note-taking while on a call might feel cumbersome until you master the interface.
Mobile apps fall short of desktop capabilities. While functional, the mobile experience doesn't match the power available on computers. Creating complex databases or rearranging layouts feels awkward on small screens. Many users keep Notion primarily as a desktop tool.
Performance can slow with large workspaces. As you accumulate hundreds of pages and complex databases, loading times increase. Users with massive setups report lag when navigating between pages or searching through content.
Offline access works but with limitations. You need to load pages while online for them to cache locally. If you frequently work without internet in places you haven't visited before, you might find yourself staring at loading screens.
Export options remain basic. Getting your data out of Notion happens through Markdown, HTML, or PDF exports. These formats work but don't preserve the rich database relationships and connections that make Notion special. Vendor lock-in concerns exist for users with years of accumulated data.
Let's examine how these tools perform for the specific task of daily note-taking. Your daily notes might include journal entries, work logs, meeting summaries, or quick captures throughout the day.
Evernote wins for instant note creation. Open the app, tap the new note button, and start typing immediately. The interface stays out of your way and lets you focus on capturing thoughts quickly.
The dedicated shortcut tools make capturing faster. Evernote's widget on mobile, keyboard shortcuts on desktop, and email-to-Evernote address provide multiple quick entry points. You can send thoughts to Evernote without even opening the app.
Notion requires more deliberate action. You need to navigate to your daily notes page or database, create a new entry, and potentially fill in properties or templates. This extra friction works against spontaneous capture.
For users who jot down dozens of quick thoughts daily, Evernote's speed advantage matters significantly. However, Notion users often create single continuous pages for daily notes, which reduces the friction once you've navigated to your journal page.
Notion provides superior organizational flexibility. You can create a database of daily notes with properties like mood, tags, projects, and energy levels. These become filterable and sortable, letting you find patterns or specific entries easily.
The ability to link pages creates powerful connections. Reference yesterday's note in today's entry with a simple link. Create a projects page that automatically pulls relevant daily note entries. Build a network of interconnected information.
Evernote relies on notebooks and tags for organization. This simpler system works well but doesn't offer the same depth. You can't create custom views or query your notes based on multiple criteria simultaneously.
However, Evernote's simplicity means less maintenance. You don't need to design systems or maintain complex structures. Just write, tag appropriately, and let search handle retrieval. For people who prefer minimal organizational overhead, this approach has appeal.
Evernote's search remains industry-leading. Type keywords, and relevant notes surface instantly. The search understands context, recognizes synonyms, and even finds text within images and PDFs. You rarely need to remember where you filed something.
Advanced search syntax lets power users create complex queries. Search for notes from specific dates, with certain tags, in particular notebooks, containing specific words---all in one query. Save these searches for instant access to filtered views.
Notion's search works well but with different strengths. Finding text within pages happens quickly, but searching across database properties requires more specific queries. The database filtering and sorting provide powerful alternatives to traditional search.
The trade-off comes down to retrieval style. If you remember approximate keywords, Evernote finds it. If you remember contextual details (what project, which week, related topics), Notion's database approach might serve you better.
Both apps sync across devices, but the experience differs. Evernote maintains consistent functionality whether you're on iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, or web. The mobile apps feel native and perform reliably even with spotty connections.
Notion's web-first architecture means similar interfaces everywhere, but mobile capabilities lag behind desktop. Creating complex pages or manipulating databases feels constrained on phones. Many users reserve detailed work for larger screens.
Evernote's offline mode works more predictably. Notes sync down automatically, and you can create, edit, and access them without internet. Changes sync up when you reconnect. Notion requires more active caching and sometimes catches users off-guard when offline.
For users who split time between devices or frequently work without reliable internet, Evernote delivers a more seamless experience. Notion works better when you're primarily desktop-based with consistent connectivity.
Both platforms connect with popular productivity tools, but their integration philosophies differ. Evernote integrates as a repository---other tools send information to Evernote for storage and organization.
Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Calendar, and email clients push data into Evernote. Web Clipper brings browser content. These integrations treat Evernote as the final destination for information.
Notion integrates more bidirectionally. Embedded databases can pull information from other sources, and Notion pages can embed content from external tools. The API lets developers build custom integrations and automations.
For daily notes specifically, consider which integrations matter to you. If you need to save emails, web articles, and calendar events as notes, Evernote handles this smoothly. If you want your notes to interact with project management tools, Notion offers more flexibility.
Evernote's mobile apps excel at traditional note-taking tasks. The text editor responds quickly, formatting tools stay accessible, and voice recording works reliably. The camera scanner produces high-quality scans of documents and whiteboards.
Widgets on both iOS and Android provide quick capture options. Create a note, search your content, or access recent entries directly from your home screen. These conveniences add up for heavy mobile users.
Notion's mobile apps serve light editing and reference checking better than primary creation. Reading your notes, checking databases, and making quick text edits work fine. Building complex pages or restructuring your workspace feels awkward.
If your daily notes primarily happen on mobile---commute journaling, meeting notes on the go, quick idea captures---Evernote provides a superior experience. Desktop-first users who reference notes on mobile but create them on computers won't notice Notion's mobile limitations as much.
Let's explore how different types of users approach daily notes with these tools.
Someone who maintains a daily journal needs quick access, privacy, and the ability to review past entries easily. They write every morning or evening, documenting thoughts, feelings, and experiences.
Evernote works naturally for this use case. Create a notebook called "Daily Journal," start each entry with the date, and write freely. Tags like "grateful," "challenges," or "ideas" add structure. The timeline view shows your journaling history at a glance.
Notion journal setups often use databases with properties for mood, weather, and highlights. Some users create template buttons that generate journal entries with consistent structure. The calendar view displays entries on their written dates, providing a visual month-at-a-glance.
Both tools protect your privacy through strong encryption and access controls. The choice comes down to preference: simple chronological notes versus structured database entries with queryable properties.
Someone who takes notes during meetings, documents project decisions, and captures ideas throughout the workday needs organization and connectivity. Their notes support professional work and need to integrate with other tools.
Evernote serves this user through notebook stacks for different projects, tags for topics and people, and quick capture for spontaneous ideas. Meeting notes link to project notebooks, and email integration pulls important messages into context.
Notion users often build elaborate workspaces with databases for meetings, projects, tasks, and contacts. Daily notes page contains blocks that link to relevant project pages, embed today's tasks, and reference meeting notes. Everything connects into a knowledge graph.
The knowledge worker's choice depends on their organizational style. Linear thinkers who categorize information into hierarchical folders prefer Evernote's straightforward approach. Systems thinkers who see connections and relationships thrive in Notion's networked environment.
Writers, designers, and other creative professionals use daily notes to capture inspiration, develop ideas, and track creative projects. They need flexibility to mix text, images, and links in freeform ways.
Evernote's rich note format accommodates mixed media easily. Drag in images, attach files, embed audio recordings, and format text expressively. The Web Clipper captures visual inspiration from across the internet.
Notion pages offer more layout control. Side-by-side columns display reference images next to written notes. Toggle blocks hide detailed research until needed. Database views organize creative ideas by project, status, or medium.
Creative professionals often appreciate Notion's aesthetic customization---cover images, icons, and clean typography make their workspace feel inspiring. However, Evernote's reliability matters when you can't afford to lose ideas.
Students need to capture lecture notes quickly, organize materials by class and topic, and review information efficiently before exams. They often work across devices and need offline access.
Evernote handles traditional note-taking well. Create notebooks for each class, tag notes by topic, and scan handwritten notes or whiteboard content. The student discount makes paid plans more affordable.
Notion appeals to students who want to build comprehensive knowledge bases. Database of notes with properties for class, chapter, and importance. Linked pages create a wiki of connected concepts. Template galleries include student-specific setups.
The student's budget often influences the decision. Notion's generous free tier offers more functionality for free, making it attractive to cost-conscious learners. Evernote's free plan feels more restrictive with its device limits.
Your choice between Evernote and Notion ultimately depends on your specific needs and working style. Let's clarify when each tool makes the most sense.
Simple, reliable note-taking without complexity. If you need to capture thoughts quickly, store them safely, and find them later through search, Evernote delivers without requiring system design or maintenance.
Powerful mobile capabilities for notes on the go. Users who primarily work from phones or tablets get better functionality from Evernote's mobile apps.
Industry-leading search across all content types. When you have years of notes and need to find specific information instantly, Evernote's search rarely disappoints.
Traditional document management features. Scanning receipts, clipping articles, and organizing PDFs work more smoothly in Evernote's document-centric environment.
Complete flexibility to design your own systems. If you enjoy building custom workflows, connecting information relationally, and maintaining elaborate organizational structures, Notion provides the tools.
Project management integrated with notes. Notion is an all-in-one workspace with multiple tools for data, task, and project management beyond simple note-taking.
Better value on the free tier. Students and budget-conscious users get significantly more functionality from Notion's free plan compared to Evernote's restrictions.
Modern, customizable interface. If the look and feel of your workspace matters to you, Notion's design aesthetic and customization options provide more satisfaction.
Collaborative features for team use. Groups working together benefit from Notion's superior real-time collaboration and permission systems.
Whichever tool you choose, these strategies help you build an effective daily notes practice.
Don't try to build the perfect system on day one. Start with basic daily entries and add organizational structure as you understand your needs. Both apps support evolution from simple to complex.
In Evernote, begin with one notebook called "Daily Notes" and create dated entries. Add tags gradually as patterns emerge. Create additional notebooks only when you clearly need separate categories.
In Notion, start with a simple page containing dated entries. Once you understand what properties would help (mood, energy, projects), convert it to a database. Add views and connections as your workspace develops.
Set a specific time for daily note-taking. Morning journaling, end-of-day reflection, or beginning-of-work-day planning all work. Consistency matters more than the specific time you choose.
Use templates to reduce friction. Both apps support templates that provide structure for recurring note types. Daily note templates can include prompts, sections, or checklists that guide your writing.
Keep notes brief initially. Don't pressure yourself to write novels. A few bullet points about your day provides more value than skipping entries because you "don't have time to write properly."
Create connections between related notes over time. In Evernote, use tags and note links to connect related content. In Notion, use page mentions and database relations.
These connections transform isolated notes into a knowledge network. Over months and years, you'll build a personal wiki that captures how your thinking evolves and how ideas connect.
Review old notes periodically. Weekly or monthly reviews help you identify patterns, extract insights, and maintain your organizational system. This practice also reinforces the value of your note-taking habit.
Before committing fully to one tool, consider that many users successfully combine both apps or use them for different purposes.
Some people use Evernote for quick capture and Notion for organized knowledge bases. Mobile captures and web clipping go to Evernote, then relevant information migrates to Notion during weekly reviews.
This hybrid approach leverages each tool's strengths. Evernote handles the messy, spontaneous capture. Notion maintains the clean, organized system. The trade-off involves managing two apps and transferring information between them.
While this comparison focused on Evernote and Notion, other tools deserve consideration depending on your needs.
Obsidian appeals to users who want local file storage, powerful linking capabilities, and markdown-based notes. It works entirely offline and stores notes as plain text files on your computer.
OneNote integrates deeply with Microsoft ecosystem and offers freeform canvas-style note-taking. It works well for users already invested in Microsoft 365.
Apple Notes serves iOS and Mac users with simple, reliable note-taking that syncs through iCloud. The scanning features work excellently, and the recent updates added features like tags and smart folders.
Roam Research and Logseq target users who want bi-directional linking and graph-based knowledge management. These tools excel at connecting ideas but have steeper learning curves.
After examining features, pricing, and real-world usage, Evernote is a safer option to get your feet wet. But once you get a good feel for how these kinds of apps work, Notion offers more interesting possibilities.
For newcomers to digital note-taking, Evernote provides a gentle introduction. You can start taking notes immediately without learning complex systems. The mobile apps work reliably anywhere, and the search helps you find information without organizational mastery.
Notion is a more budget-friendly productivity tool than Evernote, making it appealing for cost-conscious users. If you're willing to invest time learning the system, Notion's flexibility rewards you with custom solutions that match your exact needs.
Neither app is objectively "better"---they serve different philosophies. Evernote follows the traditional note-taking paradigm: write, organize, search, retrieve. Notion reimagines note-taking as building blocks for custom information systems.
Your personality and working style should guide your decision more than feature checklists. Do you prefer tools that work immediately without configuration, or do you enjoy building and customizing your workspace? Do you need mobile-first capture, or do you primarily work from a desk? Does simplicity or flexibility matter more to you?
Both Evernote and Notion offer ways to test their platforms before spending money. Take advantage of these options to experience each tool firsthand.
The free tier lets you create notes, test mobile apps, and evaluate core features. Use it for at least two weeks to develop real habits and see how it fits your workflow.
The generous free plan provides access to nearly all features except advanced team collaboration and AI. You can build elaborate systems and test the platform thoroughly before deciding on a paid upgrade.
The perfect note-taking app doesn't exist---only the right tool for your specific needs. Evernote excels at traditional, reliable note-taking with outstanding search and mobile capabilities. Notion provides unmatched flexibility for users who want to design custom workflows and integrate notes with project management.
Your daily notes practice matters more than the tool you use. Consistent capture, thoughtful organization, and regular review create value regardless of the app. Both Evernote and Notion support these practices; they just take different paths to get there.
Start with the tool that feels more intuitive to you, commit to using it for at least a month, and evaluate honestly. You can always switch later---both platforms export data if you change your mind. The most important step is starting, not choosing the perfect tool.
Your notes become more valuable over time as they accumulate insights, document your growth, and preserve ideas that would otherwise disappear. That long-term value comes from the practice of daily note-taking, supported by reliable tools like Evernote and Notion.
Take the first step today. Open one of these apps, write a simple note about your day, and begin building your external memory system. Your future self will thank you for starting.
Ready to start your daily notes journey?
Both platforms offer free tiers to begin exploring their capabilities. Test them both, find what works for your brain, and commit to the practice of daily note-taking.
Students today face an overwhelming number of choices when it comes to digital note-taking apps. Two platforms consistently rise to the top of discussions: Notion and Obsidian. Both apps promise to r
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