Top 10 Joplin Alternatives for Efficient Note-Taking in 2025

Joplin has recently gained much popularity among users for being a free note-taking app. It offers a clean interface and features for organizing and managing notes. I’ve personally used Joplin for quite some time and found it to be a great tool for basic note-taking.

But, as my requirements grew more complex, I began to encounter certain issues.

Joplin’s lack of advanced features made it less suitable for my specific workflow. In fact, several Joplin users are seeking better options because of the tool’s many limitations.

To accommodate my needs, I tinkered with other note-taking software available in the market. Based on these personal experiences and insights from my team here at ClickUp, I’ve compiled some of the best note-taking alternatives to Joplin for you to choose from.

Let’s have a look!

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What Should You Look for in Joplin Alternatives?

After trying several Joplin alternatives, I found that features like real-time collaboration, advanced search functionalities, and built-in task management significantly improved my productivity and note organization.

Here are some key factors you must take into consideration before selecting a suitable Joplin alternative:

• Robust note organization: Consider a tool that offers flexible hierarchical structures, tagging, and search capabilities to manage your notes efficiently
• Advanced formatting options: Look for a tool that supports rich text formatting, code blocks, and customizable templates to enhance your note presentation
• Cross-platform compatibility: Ensure the tool is accessible across your preferred devices (e.g., desktop, mobile, tablet) to maintain seamless note synchronization
• Collaboration features: Prioritize a tool that offers real-time collaboration, shared notebooks, and version control
• Integration capabilities: Assess how well the tool integrates with other productivity apps to streamline your workflow
• Customizability: Look for note-taking software that offers customization options, such as themes, keyboard shortcuts, and plugins, to tailor the experience to your preferences
• Markdown support: Ensure the tool offers native Markdown support or a Markdown editor plugin if you prefer Markdown notes for their simplicity and efficiency
• AI-powered features: Consider a note-taking app that leverages AI to offer features like intelligent search suggestions, natural language processing, brainstorming, content generation capabilities

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The 10 Best Joplin Alternatives

Now you know what to prioritize in notes software. Let’s explore the top 10 notes alternatives to Joplin:

1. ClickUp (Best for project management, collaboration, and documentation)

ClickUp is one of the best note-taking apps and has helped me enhance my note-taking processes significantly.  

While the tool is best known for project management, it is a great alternative to Joplin, increasing efficiency and optimizing productivity.

ClickUp Docs allows me to create and organize documents based on my workflow needs. I’ve used Docs to draft reports, create wikis, write blogs and articles, develop project plans, or store important notes—all in one place.

ClickUp Docs also offers real-time collaboration features, which allow teams to edit and comment on documents simultaneously.

Work Better in ClickUp Docs

I find the tool’s rich text formatting options super helpful. I can easily use headers, bullets, tables, and even add banners to highlight critical information. This means I can create professional-looking documents effortlessly without needing an external editor.

ClickUp Brain is integrated directly into ClickUp Docs. This allows me to use ClickUp Brain right within the document to brainstorm ideas and research subjects without leaving the text editor—and even generate content in ClickUp Docs within seconds by feeding specific instructions to the AI writer.

Another feature I find very helpful is the built-in spelling and grammar check. As someone who spends a lot of time writing, I find this feature helpful in catching small errors that could easily be missed as I type.

With ClickUp Brain, I can also quickly translate sections of text directly within the Doc. It’s useful when I need to draft content for a global audience, like an international team I’m working with.

Whether I’m jotting down ideas, creating to-dos, or organizing my ideas, ClickUp Notepad is incredibly handy in such moments.

The rich text editing options let me format my notes with colors, headers, and bullets, which helps keep everything visually organized.

ClickUp best features

• Access pre-built templates for creating various document types via ClickUp Templates
• Track changes to documents and revert to previous versions using version control features in ClickUp Docs
• Visualize ideas and brainstorm collaboratively using ClickUp Mind Maps and ClickUp Whiteboards
• Add reminders via ClickUp Reminders and create and manage checklists within notes or tasks via ClickUp Task Checklists
• Write emails and blogs, generate ideas for marketing campaigns using generative AI writing tools
• Integrate with popular tools like Google Workspace, Slack, and Zoom with ClickUp Integrations
• Organize notes effectively using tags for easy search and filtering
• Monitor team productivity and project progress with ClickUp Time Tracking
• Link notes and documents to tasks, projects, or other documents and access them easily through ClickUp Universal Search

ClickUp limitations

• ClickUp’s mobile app doesn’t offer all the capabilities available in the desktop version yet

ClickUp pricing

ClickUp ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.7/5 (9,000+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.6/5 (4,000+ reviews)

2. Notion (Best for document collaboration and task tracking)

I’ve used Notion to track projects, plan my day, and even collaborate with my team. The best part of Notion is that it is very customizable, and you can tailor it to your needs for creating wikis or building entire websites.

Notion even lets users create custom databases to track anything from tasks to habits. I also appreciate how it allows me to customize pre-built templates for recurring tasks to streamline my workflow. 

Notion best features

• Create quick notes and customize databases easily to store and organize notes, tasks, and projects
• Share and edit documents in real time with collaboration tools
• Access all the notes and documents from anywhere using Notion’s mobile app and web-based platform

Notion limitations

• The paid plans can be expensive for individuals or small teams
• Lacks advanced formatting options for text and images compared to its competitors

Notion pricing

• Free Forever
• Plus: $12/month per user
• Business: $18/month per user
• Enterprise: Custom pricing
• Notion AI is available as an add-on for $10 per member per month

Notion ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.7/5 (5000+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.7/5 (2000+ reviews)

3. Bear (Best for writing in Markdown for clean formatting)

A favorite among Apple users, Bear is perfect for jotting down ideas, taking notes, and even writing blog posts. I love the simple interface as it’s not overwhelming like some other note-taking apps. It automatically tags my notes based on keywords, categorizes my notes, and helps me stay organized and find what I need quickly.

One thing I truly appreciate is the ability to export my notes in different formats, like PDF or Markdown files. Moreover, Bear’s dark mode is a lifesaver for late-night writing sessions.

Bear best features

• Export your notes to various formats, including PDF, DOCX, JPG, Markdown files, and HTML
• Organize notes with tags and folders for easy retrieval
• Sync your notes across multiple devices with iCloud

Bear limitations

• No version note history or undo/redo functionality for accidentally deleted or modified notes
• No built-in task management or project tracking features

Bear pricing

• Free Forever
• Bear Pro: $2.99/year

Bear ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.6/5 (40+ reviews)
• Capterra: N/A

4. Google Docs (Best for collaborating with others in real time)

With Google Docs, I can access notes from anywhere, on any device. It’s great for writing essays, resumes, blogs, creating documents, and even collaborating with others on projects. Docs has also made it super easy to share documents with teams and track changes.

A feature that is quite helpful is its built-in spell checker and grammar checker when I’m trying to write something professional or for a larger audience. The tool’s integration with other Google tools like Sheets and Slides makes it simple to create presentations and spreadsheets.

Google Docs best features

• Create and edit documents online with a familiar word processor interface
• Collaborate with others in real time on shared documents
• Integrate seamlessly with other Google Workspace tools like Sheets and Slides

Google Docs limitations

• Requires a stable internet connection to access and edit documents
• Lacks advanced features for complex document formatting and layout

Google Docs pricing

• Free Forever
• Business Starter: $7.20/month per user
• Business Standard: $14.40/month per user
• Business Plus: $21.60/month per user

Google Docs ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.6/5 (42,000+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.7/5 (28,000+ reviews)

5. Obsidian (Best for linking related notes for better understanding)

Obsidian helps me connect my ideas, build my own personal knowledge base, and help make note-taking a productive activity. I like how I can link multiple notes together, making a web of information that’s easy to explore. It’s like having a mind map of notes organized just the way you want.

Obsidian is also great for people like researchers or authors who want to organize their thoughts and write notes more effectively. I’ve found that users can tailor the app to suit their needs, with options to add plugins, change themes, and create custom templates.

Obsidian best features

• Link related notes to create an interconnected web of notes
• Embed images, code blocks, and other media directly into your notes
• Export your notes to various formats, including PDF and Markdown files

Obsidian limitations

• Limited online collaboration features compared to other note-taking apps
• Presents a steep learning curve for beginner users

Obsidian pricing

• Free Forever
• Commercial use: $50/year

Obsidian ratings and reviews

• G2: N/A
• Capterra: 4.9/5 (28+ reviews)

6. Document360 (Best for collaborating on and organizing content)

Document360 is a platform to store, organize, and share all your important information efficiently. I could easily create internal knowlege bases, articles, manuals, and even FAQs with it. 

It has helped streamline my knowledge management process and improve overall productivity.

Document360 includes a search feature that makes it easy to find what we need when we need it. I also like the collaboration features Document360 offers. Users can work on documents together in real time and even assign tasks to different team members.

Document360 best features

• Organize your content with categories, tags, and search functionality
• Integrate with popular tools like Slack, Jira, and Intercom
• Use AI-powered features like content suggestions and search optimization

Document360 limitations

• Lacks advanced formatting options compared to other word processor tools
• Offers higher pricing compared to other note-taking software

Document360 pricing

• Standard: $199/month per user
• Professional: $299/month per user
• Business: $399/month per user
• Enterprise: Custom pricing
• Enterprise+: Custom pricing

Document360 ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.7/5 (400+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.7/5 (200+ reviews)

7. OneNote (Best for organizing notes in a notebook format)

OneNote is flexible and perfect for organizing your notes digitally in a structured manner. I could create separate notebooks, sections, and pages for my writing, which made sorting my content effortless.

OneNote also allows users to add multimedia content—text, images, audio, and even video. This functionality helped me turn my boring content into visually engaging nuggets of information. Moreover, its integration ability with other Microsoft tools like Word and Excel is a big plus as it helps me easily collaborate and share my notes with my team in real time.

OneNote best features

• Create various types of notes, including text, audio, video, and drawings
• Organize your notes in a notebook format with sections and pages
• Use handwriting recognition to convert handwritten notes into text

OneNote limitations

• Offers basic collaboration tools, which is inefficient for complex project management
• Higher pricing rates compared to other note-taking apps

OneNote pricing

• Free Forever
• Microsoft 365 Personal: $6.99/month 
• Microsoft 365 Family: $9.99/month

OneNote ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.5/5 (1800+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.6/5 (1700+ reviews)

8. Evernote (Best for note-taking and brainstorming)

Evernote offers several flexibility options, which means I can create notes, notebooks, and even tags to keep my information organized.

The tool also allows me to add different types of content to my notes, like text, images, audio, and even video. Its search feature is useful as well! You can search for specific keywords or tags if you wish to find something quickly. 

Evernote best features

• Save web pages or articles directly to Evernote with a single click using the web clipper tool
• Organize notes into hierarchies for better management
• Find notes quickly using keywords, tags, or even handwritten text

Evernote limitations

• Collaboration features are basic compared to other tools.
• The free plan limits storage and features, with only one notebook and 50 notes, hindering power users

Evernote pricing

• Free Forever
• Personal: $14.99/month
• Professional: $17.99/month
• Teams: $24.99/month

Evernote ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.4/5 (2000+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.4/5 (8000+ reviews)

9. Coda (Best for managing projects and workflows collaboratively)

Coda helps organize your entire team’s projects. I could create documents, set up databases, and even build websites all within one platform. The best part of Coda is its collaborative features, which make it easy to track changes and stay on the same page as a team.

I’ve used Coda for everything from planning product launches to tracking sales data, and the built-in formulas and automation features have been super helpful. They automate repetitive tasks and save teams a lot of time and effort.

Coda best features

• Work together on documents with multiple team members
• Access a wide range of templates for various projects
• Combine text, spreadsheets, and databases in one document

Coda limitations

• The note-taking app may cause performance issues while working with large documents or complex formulas
• No built-in version history feature to track changes in previous versions over time

Coda pricing

• Free Forever
• Pro: $12/month
• Team: $36/month
• Enterprise: Custom pricing

Coda ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.7/5 (400+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.6/5 (90+ reviews)

10. Google Keep (Best for setting reminders and saving files)

Google Keep is great for recording notes in plain text, whether for jotting down ideas quickly, making shopping lists, or setting reminders. I find it quite easy to use and versatile for different types of content, adding images, voice memos, and even drawings to my notes.

The search feature is handy, as it lets you find anything by typing in a keyword or using labels. The integration with other Google tools, like Gmail and Calendar, is another big advantage as it helps users stay organized and productive.

Google Keep best features

• Record audio notes and transcribe them to text
• Set reminders based on time, location, or notes
• Integrate with other Google apps such as Gmail, Calendar, and more

Google Keep limitations

• Cannot revert to previous versions of notes
• The note-taking app doesn’t have both a markdown and a rich text editor

Google Keep pricing

• Free Forever

Google Keep ratings and reviews

• G2: 4.6/5 (42,000+ reviews)
• Capterra: 4.7/5 (180+ reviews)

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Take Better and Smarter Notes With ClickUp

After thoroughly reviewing the top 10 note-taking tools, it’s clear that each has its own set of strengths and limitations. However, if you want to turn your notes into actionable items, ClickUp is a brilliant choice!

It can help you create and edit docs and even polish your content with AI. But that’s not all! ClickUp can also turn your notes into valuable intel for all your project management needs. Its advanced feature-rich tools, such as automation and task management, make this possible.

So, whether you’re a student, professional, project manager, or team leader, ClickUp can help you increase productivity, improve team collaboration, and achieve your goals more efficiently.

Sign up for ClickUp for free today and experience the power of a truly all-in-one productivity platform!

Everything you need to stay organized and get work done.

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