I’m Bill, and I have a problem with notes apps

This past week I had the pleasure of being a guest yet again on the BasicAF podcast with Tom Anderson graciously hosting me. We talked about some of Apple’s latest tech, including the new iPhone and iPad updated with the M5 chip.

The meat of the show was spent talking about notes apps. In fact I’m using a new notes app to write this post. This week it is Craft.

You can check out the show on whatever platform you get your podcasts via their website.

Yes, I’ve strayed from my normal path of Apple Notes and more recently Notion.

The biggest problem with notes apps these days?

They are all so good.

So how the heck can you choose one and avoid having 4 or more text based notes apps in your dock?

Clearly, I am the person to answer this question. The hours and hours of experience have taught me something. Each tool can do what you need it to do. It will cover 80% of your needs, yes, even Apple Notes.

ESPECIALLY APPLE NOTES!

When you go searching for the last 20%, it is probably a fruitless labor, unless you are like me and happen to love this stuff as well.

Being self-aware enough to know that I’m not actually being productive by switching apps and having a fragmented system. But that is part of the fun.

I’ve run a monetized YouTube channel and nearly every post I’ve written out of Apple Notes. I’ve also done it in Bear. I’ve more recently exported that whole system over to Notion and have explored Craft as well.

You can’t go wrong.

What is the best?

If you are all Apple, and speed and flexibility are your main concern, Apple Notes wins hands down. It has a ton of power user features that are commonly overlooked.

If you love markdown and are also all Apple, and love a simple, beautiful interface, then Bear Notes could be it for you.

If you are multi-platform this is where Notion and Craft come into play.

Notion has a ton of power and features at the expense of setup time and never-ending customization.

Craft has a great interface, and the team has made some key updates to the software in 2025 to make it as competitive as the rest with tasks and collections.

My advice to you:

Pick an app and use it for at least 30 days. Work in that single app and only that app.

Do not waver; give it the full 30 days, no cheating.

I say this because if you are new to notes apps or are just playing around with switching like I do, I ultimately come back to Apple Notes...using the app can help you to know what you actually need your app to do.

I get distracted by the shiny new thing just like anyone else, but do I need a database like Notion has, with linked properties and a dashboard?

Do I need to be able to create beautiful documents and publish to a webpage like Craft can?

Or do I just need something that is fast and native that works on all of my devices, both online and offline, like Apple Notes?

I love this job, and testing new apps will be part of it, but ultimately, the app is there to help you get work done and not become the work itself.

Lucky for us all, there are some great free options, and the paid services are reasonable in cost and might be worth it if you need power user features. Ultimately, this will depend on your workflow and what systems you decide to use.

Let me know what your go-to notes app is with a comment!