Notion
Standard Notes
| Feature | Notion | Standard Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $10/mo | Free / from $7.5/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.6 / 5 | 4.3 / 5 |
| Best For | startups, students, freelancers, small-teams | privacy-focused-users, journalists, professionals, researchers |
| Founded | 2016 | 2016 |
| Databases | ✓ | ✗ |
| Kanban | ✓ | ✗ |
| Docs | ✓ | ✗ |
| Wikis | ✓ | ✗ |
| Api | ✓ | ✗ |
| Templates | ✓ | ✗ |
| Ai Assistant | ✓ | ✗ |
| Encryption | ✗ | ✓ |
| Themes | ✗ | ✓ |
| Editors | ✗ | ✓ |
| Tags | ✗ | ✓ |
| File Attachments | ✗ | ✓ |
| Two Factor Auth | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Notion Pros
- Extremely flexible
- Great free tier
- Powerful databases
- Template marketplace
✗ Notion Cons
- Slow with large pages
- Steep learning curve
- Offline support limited
✓ Standard Notes Pros
- End-to-end encrypted
- 100-year company promise
- Cross-platform
- Open-source
✗ Standard Notes Cons
- Basic free version
- Fewer features than Notion
- Limited formatting
The Verdict
Notion is built for startups and students, with a focus on databases and kanban. Standard Notes targets privacy focused users and journalists and leads with encryption and themes.
Pricing is close: Standard Notes starts at $7.5/mo versus $10/mo for Notion — not a deciding factor on its own.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Feature-wise, Notion offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Standard Notes takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Bottom line: Notion has a slight overall edge — but if end-to-end encrypted matters most to you, Standard Notes may still be the right call.
