Notein, the colorful free notepad with sticky widgets and a calendar view, has held a 4.9 rating across millions of downloads, but the trade-offs are the same that hit every free notepad on Android: full-screen ads between actions, a cloud backup tier that caps quickly, and no real way to lock the app down with end-to-end encryption. Anyone tracking sensitive lists, work notes, or anything resembling a journal eventually wants more.
If you are looking for Notein Notepad alternatives that drop the ads, ship real cross-device sync, or protect your notes with serious encryption, the field is good. We tested seven Android notepads and ranked them on speed, privacy, and what the free plan actually covers.
Quick comparison
| App | Best for | Free plan | Starting price/mo | Standout feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Keep | Quick capture | Unlimited notes, 15 GB | Workspace from $6/user | Voice notes with transcript |
| Samsung Notes | Samsung devices | Unlimited, S Pen support | Free | Handwriting recognition |
| Microsoft OneNote | Long-form notes | Full editor, 5 GB | M365 $9.99 | Section and page hierarchy |
| Standard Notes | Encrypted journaling | Plain notes only | Productivity $7 | Locked-down E2EE |
| Notesnook | Cross-platform privacy | Unlimited E2EE notes | Pro $4.99 | Open-source clients |
| ColorNote | Simple checklists | All features, ads | Free | Sticky note widget |
| Joplin | Self-hosted notes | Unlimited, your own sync | $2.99 cloud | Markdown and plug-in support |
Why people leave Notein Notepad
The ads cover the screen between actions. Notein’s free tier is genuinely usable, but the ads between opening and saving notes are full-screen interstitials. The premium tier removes them, but at that point the calculus shifts to “does this notepad deserve a subscription.”
Cloud backup is shallow. The built-in cloud backup is fine for restoring after a wipe, but the cross-device experience is not really sync. Editing a note on a tablet and continuing on a phone is awkward.
No real encryption. The password-lock feature obscures notes from a casual snoop, but the storage itself is not encrypted at rest. Anyone with file-system access on a rooted phone or a recovered backup can read everything.
Widgets are good but limited to Notein. The sticky widget is the marquee feature, and it works well, but it only surfaces Notein notes. Anyone consolidating around a different system loses the widget value.
Search is slow once you cross a few hundred notes. The local-only design that keeps Notein fast at small scale becomes laggy when the note count grows.
The alternatives
Google Keep, best for quick capture
Google Keep is the fastest “open the app, dictate a thought, close the app” experience on Android. Voice notes transcribe automatically, lists collaborate in real time, and labels keep things sortable.
Where it falls short: long-form notes are weak. Anything past a few paragraphs feels cramped. There is no section or notebook hierarchy, just labels.
Pricing:
- Free: unlimited notes, 15 GB shared with Gmail and Drive.
- Paid: Google Workspace Business Starter $6 a user a month for the business plan.
- vs Notein Notepad: free, no ads, with seamless sync across devices.
Migrating from Notein: there is no direct importer. Export Notein notes as text and paste them into Keep, one note at a time. For under 50 notes, it is manageable in an afternoon.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if your notes are short, your team uses Google, and dictation is the main capture method.
Samsung Notes, best for Samsung devices
Samsung Notes is the default on Galaxy phones and tablets, and on those devices it is the strongest pre-installed note-taking option. S Pen support is genuine, handwriting search works, and PDF annotation is built in.
Where it falls short: cross-device value drops outside Samsung’s ecosystem. There is no public app for non-Samsung Android phones, and the desktop experience is web-only.
Pricing:
- Free: unlimited notes, sync across Samsung devices via Samsung Cloud.
- Paid: Samsung Cloud storage upgrades from $0.99 a month for 50 GB.
- vs Notein Notepad: free, no ads, and the S Pen integration is unique.
Migrating from Notein: export Notein notes as text, then import or paste into Samsung Notes. Bulk import via the Samsung Notes web client is faster than note-by-note.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if your phone is a Samsung Galaxy and you use the S Pen.
Microsoft OneNote, best for long-form notes
Microsoft OneNote structures notes in notebooks, sections, and pages, which is the right shape for project notes, meeting minutes, and research. The Android app supports drawing, audio recording, and full-text search across notebooks.
Where it falls short: the UI is heavier than Keep or Notein. Sync via OneDrive is reliable but the storage tier is tied to a Microsoft 365 plan.
Pricing:
- Free: full editor, 5 GB OneDrive.
- Paid: Microsoft 365 Personal $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year increases OneDrive to 1 TB.
- vs Notein Notepad: free at the entry level, then bundled with the broader Office suite.
Migrating from Notein: export Notein notes as text, then paste into OneNote pages organized by notebook. There is no automated importer, but OneNote’s import-text feature accepts bulk paste.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this for long-form notes, project documentation, or research.
Standard Notes, best for encrypted journaling
Standard Notes ships end-to-end encryption by default. Notes are encrypted on device, sent encrypted, and decrypted only on the user’s other devices. Backups are encrypted blobs. The minimal editor is intentional.
Where it falls short: plain notes only on the free tier. Rich text, code editors, and tags need the paid Productivity plan.
Pricing:
- Free: unlimited plain-text notes, full sync.
- Paid: Productivity at $7 a month, Professional at $11 add editors and longer revision history.
- vs Notein Notepad: free at the basic tier with serious encryption; the paid plan replaces what Notein Premium offers and goes further.
Migrating from Notein: export Notein notes as text and paste into Standard Notes. The minimalist UI means no formatting cleanup is needed.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if privacy is the priority and a plain-text writing surface is fine.
Notesnook, best for cross-platform privacy
Notesnook is the encrypted option that does not feel stripped down. Notes are end-to-end encrypted by default, the editor supports rich text and markdown, and the clients are open-source. Tags, notebooks, and reminders all work without a paid plan.
Where it falls short: the free tier limits attachment uploads. Real archive-grade storage of images and PDFs needs the Pro plan.
Pricing:
- Free: unlimited E2EE notes, basic features.
- Paid: Pro at $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year unlocks attachments, custom themes, and PDF export.
- vs Notein Notepad: cheaper than premium notepads with encryption that Notein simply does not offer.
Migrating from Notein: export Notein notes as text. Notesnook supports importing from Evernote, OneNote, and plain text files via its importer tool on the desktop.
Download: Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if you want encryption, open-source clients, and a real editor.
ColorNote, best for simple checklists
ColorNote is the closest spiritual sibling to Notein: a colorful, sticky-note-style notepad with calendar reminders and quick checklists. Hundreds of millions of downloads make it the comfort food of Android notepads.
Where it falls short: cloud backup is limited and the UI has aged. There is no end-to-end encryption.
Pricing:
- Free: all features, with ads.
- Paid: optional in-app purchase removes ads.
- vs Notein Notepad: free with ads, but the widget and calendar combination is more mature.
Migrating from Notein: export Notein notes as text and import to ColorNote via copy-paste. Both tools are local-first, so the workflows match.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if Notein’s vibe is what you want but you’d rather use a longer-standing app.
Joplin, best for self-hosted notes
Joplin is the markdown notepad for people who want full ownership. Notes sync to whichever cloud the user chooses (Dropbox, OneDrive, WebDAV, S3, or Joplin Cloud) and the format is plain markdown files end-to-end.
Where it falls short: the Android UI is functional, not delightful. New users face a small learning curve to set up sync.
Pricing:
- Free: unlimited notes, bring your own sync (Dropbox, OneDrive, WebDAV).
- Paid: Joplin Cloud Basic at $2.99 a month, Pro at $5.99 for end-to-end encryption on the official cloud.
- vs Notein Notepad: free for self-hosted use, or a cheap subscription for managed sync without ads.
Migrating from Notein: export Notein notes as text and import into Joplin via the file importer. Joplin also supports importing from Evernote and OneNote.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: pick this if you want plain-text markdown notes and full control over where they sync.
How to choose
Pick Google Keep if your notes are short, your phone is locked into Google, and dictation is your main capture method.
Pick Samsung Notes if your phone is a Galaxy and you use the S Pen daily.
Pick Microsoft OneNote for long-form research, meeting notes, and project hubs that need structure.
Pick Standard Notes or Notesnook if encryption is a hard requirement. Standard Notes is more minimalist; Notesnook has a richer editor.
Pick ColorNote for the closest “feels like Notein” experience without the same ad load.
Pick Joplin for full self-hosted control with markdown as the source format.
Stay on Notein Notepad if the widget is the feature you actually use, the ads do not bother you, and your notes never need to leave the phone.
FAQ
Is there a free Notein alternative with no ads?
Yes. Google Keep, Samsung Notes (on Galaxy devices), Standard Notes, Notesnook free tier, and Joplin (self-hosted) are all ad-free at the free tier. ColorNote shows ads on the free tier too.
What is the best encrypted notepad for Android?
Standard Notes and Notesnook are the two strongest end-to-end encrypted options. Standard Notes is more minimalist by design; Notesnook ships a richer editor and supports markdown without a paid plan.
Can I import my Notein notes to another notepad?
Notein has no native export-to-importer pipeline for other apps. The practical path is: export Notein notes as text or copy them out, then paste into the new app. For a few dozen notes, an evening is enough.
Which note-taking app has the best widget on Android?
Google Keep and ColorNote both ship strong widgets. ColorNote’s sticky-style widget is the closest to Notein’s. Samsung Notes also has good widgets on Galaxy devices.
Is Microsoft OneNote really free?
The OneNote Android app is free with 5 GB of OneDrive. A Microsoft 365 Personal subscription at $9.99 a month bumps OneDrive to 1 TB and unlocks the broader Office suite. The free tier covers most personal use.
What replaces ColorNote on Android?
If ColorNote is the reference but you want fewer ads and modern sync, Google Keep is the simplest swap. For more structure, OneNote. For encryption, Notesnook.
