The Evernote software suite, as its name suggests, is designed to let the users write and store their notes easily and effectively. It is immensely popular right now, with 100 million user base as of July 2016 (the business version of the app is currently used by more than 20,000 companies). Its popularity might be explained by a huge number of productive features that help to manage the tasks, assignments and many other things by means of creating efficient notes. The users can sync the notes with a wide variety of platforms and devices, which makes it really useful. Another explanation of the popularity of the app is the functionality; for example, the suite allows using different media in the notes, such as photos, handwritten notes, and web articles to make the content more efficient.
Clearly, Evernote can boost your productivity by allowing you to perform these functions. For example, students can benefit from the app through a better research by taking notes and saving important parts of a lecture if needed. It is also great for everyday use: for example, you can turn to the app for creating a shopping list or a weekly budget. For business, the app can serve as a suitable assistant as well; for example, the managers of the Australian company Aussiessay use it to keep team projects and work together. As the result, the suite helps to save time and be more efficient in various tasks. What people also like about the app is that its usage does not cost anything, which is important. However, there is one small stipulation here: the developer provides a monthly usage limit on the data that could be stored in the suite. Naturally, more storage is available for an additional cost.
Evernote Competitors
While Evernote is undoubtedly a great option for notes and everything that relates to them, what are the other options you can take? The segment of note apps includes many other great alternatives and some of them may become fierce rivals to the suite. But you can ask: “why you should use something else besides Evernote if the app is considered as perfect for the task?” Well, there are a number of reasons why having a look at competitors might be good. Let’s review some of them.
a. Imagine you have a Linux-powered computer and want to work with notes there. Evernote is not designed to run on Linux, at least at this moment.
b. You don’t like downloading large setup files that take a lot of time for installation? Selecting an alternative may be a good option for you.
c. You prefer simple solution but Evernote is clearly a complex suite because of the range of features. There is nothing wrong with choosing a simpler solution.
If any of these reasons sound legitimate to you, then the following list of competitors would be a great start.
1. Simplenote
Although Simplenote supports only text files, it has a much easier user interface that allows you to get used to it in a matter of seconds. Moreover, this simple app has all that you need for your noting needs, including sharing and synchronization with other platforms. It is available to download for Mac, Android, iOS, and Kindle, and is completely free to use. The obvious reason to choose Simplenote, therefore, is a simpler interface and many identical features.
2. Microsoft OneNote
A part of the official Microsoft Office suite, OneNote is one the latest developments from the company that comes very close to being the most important competitor. It is available for Android, iOS, and Windows and allows performing a lot of similar tasks, including taking notes, creating lists, and storing various media files. Although OneNote does not have all the functionality of the Evernote at the moment, it is a great alternative because it is much less complicated and performs more than a half of its functions.
3. Google Keep
The Google’s approach to making apps for taking notes can be characterized by two words: simplicity and functionality. The design of the app is very simple and contains minimum elements to keep the user focused on the tasks while the functionality also deserves praise. There are different features that can be used in Google Keep, such as creating notes, reminders with notes, sharing them with others, integrating across other platforms and including color codes for different entries. Google offers a complete integration with Android and Chrome, which makes it really easy and fun to use. Evernote, on the other hand, does not provide such integration with Google services.
4. The NoteSync
This application is designed for people that take the notes quickly and access them later. The name of the app comes from one of its main features: synchronization with Google Docs, which allows connection to the server every minute. Manual synchronization is also available for users. The main advantage of this app over Evernote is that the information contained in the entries is protected through the secure HTTPS protocol, which prevents it from being viewed by third parties. Windows and Mac versions of the app are free but for compatibility with Android the user will have to pay $.99.
5. Together
According to the official site of the app, it is a place to store text, images, movies, sounds, web pages, and bookmarks in a conveniently accessible way. It is available only for Apple devices and the synchronization is delivered through the iCloud. Together is very simple to use: you just have to drag the content and drop it in the window of the app. Although it costs $49.99, this option has impressive features and user interface.
6. Nevernote
This is a good alternative because it was developed to provide Evernote-like functionality for Linux devices. It allows signing in with the data used for the official app and has a very similar set of features, which makes it a really good candidate for trying on Linux (Mac and Windows versions also available). The main shortcoming of Evernote, absence of Linux client, is solved here. And it is free to use, which make it even more attractive.
Summary
There are plenty of note-taking apps out there. Today, Evernote is widely considered to be the best choice for now, but the competitors gradually gain more and more users, increasing the competition further. Having reviewed the main competitors, it is sufficient to suggest that every one of them has at least one advantage over Evernote that can make a difference for the users. Moreover, they have the basic functionality of the leader in the segment and continue to improve the services with regular updates. At the moment, Microsoft OneNote is perhaps the closest competitor to Evernote because the company updates the product regularly and already provided it with a great set of features.
The lesson here is that while Evernote is viewed by many as the most obvious choice, there are many other similar applications that should be considered before making the final decision. Not everyone enjoys the complexity of the app and its limited storage capabilities, which may increase the share of competing products in the segment.
