If you can organize your life with an analog tool — like a printed notebook or daily calendar — then more power to you. But if you use smartphones and computers all day, you probably find you need digital tools to stay organized and get stuff done. The note-taking apps on our smartphones serve two basic, yet hugely important functions: they are a place to organize our lives, and a place to curate lists — be it media, wants, needs, or tasks.
Finding the right app for you takes a little trial and error. But when you find it, you become a more productive person — guaranteed.
Evernote
Best for Constant Notetakers: Evernote is one of the better-known note-taking apps, having first launched in 2011. The platform offers three different plans: basic, plus and premium. All versions include notetaking, passcode-protected notebook sharing and image annotation. You’ll also be able to use the Evernote Web Clipper feature, allowing you to save any web page in Chrome to Evernote for offline use. The plus package ($35/year) gives users access to up to 1GB of notes offline; for a steep $70 a year, the premium plan provides 10GB of storage, along with searchable PDFs and photos of handwritten notes. You can also look back and revisit older versions of certain notes, in case you deleted something you didn’t mean to. Frankly, Evernote’s plans are pricier than others, but the robust platform is dependable for those who take a lot of notes.
