An iPad paired with an Apple Pencil is a powerful duo for digital note-taking. The App Store is filled with great software for handwritten notes, but they come at a price.
There are also plenty of apps out there that will give you a taste of their potential for free but keep major features locked until you pay a premium price.
However, we’ve rounded up a couple of apps for handwritten notes that are completely free to use. No timed trials, distracting ads, or in-app purchases are needed.
1. Microsoft OneNote
Microsoft OneNote is the classic notebook app available from Microsoft. It’s free to use and packed with useful productivity features. This is a choice you can’t go wrong with, especially if you are already using other Microsoft applications.
In this app, your notes are organized on the sidebar by Notebooks, Sections, and Pages. You can also create sub-notebooks and sub-pages, making it very easy to stay organized. It’s also straightforward to switch from one page to another with the convenient sidebar.
You to add text, insert files, draw, change paper styles, record audio, and much more. It comes with a pressure-sensitive pen tool and a highlighter, both of which you can completely customize the colors for. There are even some glitter options for the pens.
One of our favorite underrated pros to note-taking with OneNote is the ability to save an unlimited amount of favorite pens and highlighters to the toolbar. It also lets you choose from six stylus orientations to better suit your writing style.
OneNote integrates all types of content—text, drawings, PDFs, and more—together on one page. And it does it well. Your notes also sync across devices, making it easy to switch from writing out notes on your iPad to typing them on your computer.
With all the features this app has, it will meet the productivity needs of most people. It’s also a great app for students who want to annotate PDFs and want to take a good combination of typed and handwritten notes. Explore more about the app and read up on some little-known OneNote features you're sure to love.
Download: Microsoft OneNote (Free)
2. Apple Notes
Apple's default app for note-taking is packed with hidden features, so don't underestimate its functionality. With this note-taking app, you can take notes and handwrite them, sync them across multiple devices, and even use the Apple Pencil to handwrite with.
The Notes app has all the basic tools such as the pen, highlighter, pencil, and eraser available through Markup. It also comes with a lasso tool and an adjustable ruler, and the ability to customize your own colors.
It also has an Auto-Minimize option, which moves the toolbar out of sight when you start writing. You can even change the paper style from a few different options.
Another useful feature that Notes have is the ability to scan documents. You can even use your phone camera to do it and have it immediately added to the note on your iPad. The scanned documents on a note are kept as attachments, so you won't be able to mark them up with the pen, but it's still handy to have your information in one place.
Download: Apple Notes (Free)
3. Loose Leaf
Loose Leaf is a hidden gem of an app, and it operates exactly as the name suggests. There are no notebooks, only stacks of loose-leaf sketches and notes. The app is designed to really feel like you’re working on loose pieces of paper.
The iPad has a lot of features that require two-finger gestures, such as closing loose-leaf stacks, flipping pages, and deleting notes, especially when the device already has so many gestures. Once you get the hang of it, the movements will feel like second nature.
The pen and marker tools are completely pressure-sensitive with no manual way to adjust the thickness. Unfortunately, you only get five choices of primary colors, but that could be more than enough depending on your needs.
Some unique features about this app are the Scissor tool in place of the Lasso tool and an asymmetry tool to have your drawings mirrored. It also comes with useful page styles, including a blank music score and a blank to-do list.
This is the perfect choice if you’re looking for a simple app to sketch out ideas on.
Download: Loose Leaf (Free)
4. Post-it Notes
Post-it Notes brings the old-school technology together with your iPad.
It’s easy to create new, short notes directly on the app. Or you can even import information from up to 200 real-world Post-it Notes with your camera. For analog notes, handwriting recognition will help you search and export information.
On the iPad, you can use a wide variety of editing tools to draw, erase, and more with your notes. There are multiple ways to organize notes like by thought or just on a simple grid. You can export your notes to cloud services like Dropbox or to PowerPoint, Excel, or a PDF.
A home screen widget can also show the most important notes at a glance without seeing to open up the app.
As a nice plus, the app is also available on the iPhone or Mac. With iCloud sync, work on one device will automatically appear elsewhere.
Download: Post-it Notes (Free)
5. Freeform
If you’re looking to capture notes, and much more, give Apple’s Freeform app a try.
Along with notes, you can use the digital whiteboard to add almost anything you can imagine. You can easily add photos, videos, audio, documents, PDFs, and more along with written notes. With your Apple Pencil, or even with a finger, you can draw on the canvas with a number of bush styles and colors.
You can even scan existing paper documents with the iPad camera and annotate them directly on the board.
And thanks to iCloud sync, you can also bring up your work on the iPhone and Mac as well. The app also features real-time collaboration with others via an email, link, or Messages. Up to 100 people can collaborate on the same board.
If you're interested in using the app for more than note-taking, look at some of the creative ways to use Apple's Freeform.
Download: Freeform (Free)
6. Pen & Paper
Pen & Paper is a simple and easy way to capture notes on your iPad with an Apple Pencil.
Only available in portrait orientation, getting started takes just a few clicks. You’ll create a new journal with one of four page styles—background colored, ruled paper, grid paper, or plain. Once you’ve selected that, you can get down to business. When taking notes, you can choose from a wide variety of pen types and colors.
When done, you can also save the note into a PDF. The app also sports other great features like biometric authentication from Face ID or Touch ID to open and iCloud backup so you will never lose your notes.
Download: Pen & Paper (Free)
Choose the Note-Taking App That's Right for You
Now you know that there are a few completely free options available to take good digital notes without any surprises. Download one, or all five, of them and give it a try to see how they meet your productivity needs.
Whether you’re taking notes for class, sketching out ideas, or digital bullet-journalling, a good app for handwritten notes is just what you need.