Taking notes is useful in all kinds of situations. You can use it to clear your mind of unnecessary thoughts, and also to remember information you've consumed. And if you’re currently working on long-term goals, keeping them somewhere allows you to look at them easier.

While you can take notes with a pen and paper, you will also find plenty of apps. Two of the most popular are Notion and OneNote, and both have several valuable tools you can benefit from. Some people prefer Notion, whereas OneNote is the go-to for others. If you’re curious about which one to choose, this article will help you.

What Is Notion?

Notion is a productivity app that has several features to help you optimize your day better. The software platform’s headquarters are in San Francisco, California, and the service has been around since 2013.

Notion has a $10 billion company valuation, and its user base has increased significantly. The app had one million users in 2019, but that number has since surpassed 20 million. You can use the app in English and Korean.

What Is OneNote?

OneNote is a note-taking app developed by Microsoft. The tech giant first launched the service in 2002, and you can get it as part of the Microsoft 365 package. However, you can still use the app—even if you don’t have a paid Microsoft subscription.

While OneNote isn’t as well-known as Word, PowerPoint, and Excel, it still offers several helpful tools for keeping notes together. You can use the app in several languages, including English, Dutch, Finnish, and German.

Notion vs. OneNote: How Do They Compare?

Now that you know a little more about Notion and OneNote, you’re ready to find out how they compare. You’ll learn more about features, pricing, and more in the sections below.

1. Pricing

Screenshot showing Notion's pricing page

Notion has a free plan that allows you to create as many pages and blocks as you want. You can also share with up to five guests and enjoy a collection of other benefits. However, if you want something more advanced, you can pick one of the app’s three paid subscriptions.

Personal Pro costs $4 monthly and gives you unlimited files and guests. Meanwhile, Team lets you create a workspace where everyone in your organization can work together. Enterprise gives you access to a success manager, plus more; you’ll need to negotiate a price with Notion’s sales team. You can use OneNote for free, but you’ll need a premium subscription to access all of its features. You can find the best plan for you on the Microsoft website.

2. Note-Taking Features

Notion App Interface

Of course, you’ll want your note-taking app to actually be good at taking notes. Notion lets you use several templates to optimize your notes, including checklists, boards, calendars, and galleries.

With Notion, you can also create pages within pages—allowing you to keep everything neat as you build out your notes. If you’ve invited other people to your workspace, you can also mention them. Other useful features include:

  • Adding callouts
  • Inserting comments
  • Adding quotes

Notion also has a web clipper that you can download and use in Chrome, Edge, and Safari.

When using OneNote, you can change your fonts to customize how your notes look. You can use Arial, Calibri, and several other styles of writing. The app also lets you alter the size of your text, and you can highlight parts of the text that you’d like to.

Screenshot of the OneNote App Interface

OneNote also lets you insert multiple elements, such as audio and PDFs.

3. App Integrations

You probably already use various other apps to help enhance your productivity. Ideally, you’ll want them to integrate seamlessly with any new ones you choose to introduce. Notion has several app integration opportunities, including Slack, Asana, and Google Drive.

Like Notion, OneNote has several app integration opportunities. You can use the tool with Zapier, WordPress, and numerous other services.

4. Cross-Device Capabilities

iPad and iPhone on a white desk

When looking for an ideal note-taking app, you’ll want to ensure that you can use it across more than one device. Additionally, you'll want to ensure all your notes are synced accordingly, so you can jot your thoughts down wherever you are—and review them later.

You can use Notion across several devices. On your computer, you can sign into the website and use it within your browser. And if you’re on the go, Notion has apps for your smartphone and tablet.

Download: Notion for iOS | Android (Free, in-app purchases available)

When you use Notion, your notes will automatically sync. You can continue working on pages at a later date without needing to worry about lost data.

Unlike Notion, OneNote has an app that you can download for your computer. And like Notion, you can use the service on your smartphone or tablet. On top of that, your notes will sync everywhere that you sign in. You can also use OneNote on your Apple Watch.

Download: Microsoft OneNote for Windows | Mac | iOS | Android (Free, in-app purchases available)

5. User-Friendliness

Notion App Interface and Features

Notion and OneNote are both user-friendly, but one could argue that Notion has a slicker interface. Everything is easy to navigate, with your pages featuring in the left-hand toolbar. Moreover, you can clearly see everything you might want to add when opening each page. In the Notion left-hand toolbar, you will also see any settings you might want to use—along with the trash folder.

OneNote can take a little longer to get used to. The interface has more tabs to navigate through, and you will have to use these to insert things into your note. If you only want to type your notes, however, doing so is as simple as doing the same as you would in a Word document.

Screenshot showing the OneNote app

6. Exporting Notes

Many people choose not to export their notes, but knowing your options, in case you want to, is a good idea. With OneNote, you save your documents as a PDF and move them over to your device.

Notion also lets you export your notes, and you can do so via PDF, HTML, or Markdown & CSV.

Notion and OneNote: Two Very Useful Note-Taking Apps

Regardless of whether you choose Notion or OneNote, you’ll have a very useful note-taking app at your disposal. Nonetheless, the two of them serve different purposes and target audiences. If you want something that balances aesthetics with ease of use and advanced features, Notion is probably your best choice.

If you already have a Microsoft subscription, using OneNote won’t do you harm. Similarly, you will find good use from the app if you only want to export to PDF—and you don’t mind too much how your notes look.