These text notes may also contain images and formatting, but they can’t contain all the types of content a note could in OneNote. OneNote’s editing interface is similar to Word’s.Įvernote’s editing interface is simpler and more focused on editing text notes.

If you plan on writing notes by hand - such as with a stylus on a Windows tablet or iPad - OneNote is definitely the leader in dealing with handwritten input. It incorporates features not found in Evernote and allows you to embed many types of multimedia files inline in a note, while such files would have to be attached as file attachments to a note in Evernote. OneNote is a more robust, full-featured application than Evernote. If you’re interested in a note-taking application like OneNote, there’s a good chance you already use Evernote or another note-taking application. RELATED: Not All Tablet Styluses Are Equal: Capacitive, Wacom, and Bluetooth Explained While you can’t create notes stored offline, OneNote will sync notes stored in your OneDrive account so you can keep using it offline. Most of the features here are most important for business users. It can also integrate with Outlook, SharePoint, and OneDrive for Business. The paid version of OneNote includes support for local notebooks saved to your hard drive (the free version works with notes stored on your OneDrive account), the ability record video and audio along with your notes, and version history. Microsoft holds back some features to sell their $9.99 per month Office 365 Home Premium service. Like Evernote and other services, OneNote isn’t completely free. RELATED: What's the Difference Between Office 365 and Office 2016? There’s no Chrome app or Linux desktop client, but it will work on Chromebooks and Linux desktops thanks to the web version.

Microsoft has built up a whole ecosystem of apps for OneNote, including apps for the Windows desktop, Windows 8, Windows Phone, Mac OS X, Android, iPad, iPhone, and the web.

You’d probably expect that a Microsoft Office product would be limited to Windows and maybe Mac as well, but that’s not true. Type your note into that window that appears and it will be saved to your Quick Notes. Just press Windows Key + N on Windows and click New Quick Note or press N again. Its interface may seem a bit busy for taking down a note as quickly as possible, which is why there’s a Quick Note shortcut you can use.

Desktop note taking software