Evernote vs Google Keep: Unbiased Comparison for Better Note-taking

In the world of digital note-taking apps, Evernote and Google Keep are two of the most popular choices. Each of these platforms provides users with unique features and tools that enhance productivity and organization. The ease of use and accessibility of both apps makes them highly functional for a variety of tasks, whether you need to jot down quick ideas or save important information from the web.

Evernote is a versatile app that focuses on creating and organizing notes, to-do lists, and documents. It offers a plethora of features, such as the ability to insert images, audio, and video, as well as tag and search capabilities. On the other hand, Google Keep is a more straightforward note-taking app recognized for its simplicity and integration with other Google services. This app provides users with basic but essential functions like uploading notes and images, as found in this source.

As you navigate the world of digital note-taking, understanding the pros and cons of each platform will be essential in determining which app will best suit your specific needs. In the following paragraphs, we will take a closer look at the features, integrations, and overall user experience of Evernote and Google Keep, offering valuable insights to help you make an informed decision.

Overview of Evernote and Google Keep

Evernote and Google Keep are two popular note-taking apps, each offering unique features and capabilities that cater to various user needs. In this section, we’ll explore the main aspects of these platforms to help you understand their differences and strengths.

Evernote is a powerful and feature-rich note-taking app, designed for individuals and teams who need a versatile solution for organizing and managing their notes, ideas, and projects. The app supports various content formats, such as text, images, audio, and PDF files, making it easy for users to create and organize multimedia notes. Users can also make use of the app’s built-in web clipper to save web articles and pages directly into their notes. Evernote offers a variety of templates, advanced search functions, and the ability to tag, share, and collaborate on notes with other users, making it a powerful choice for heavy or business users. However, it should be noted that many advanced features are locked behind a premium subscription, limiting its accessibility for some users.

On the other hand, Google Keep is a more simplistic, yet effective note-taking app focused on providing a user-friendly experience. It emphasizes on quick note-taking with tools for creating text notes, checklists, and image-based notes. Google Keep also supports voice notes and integrates seamlessly with other Google apps, such as Google Drive and Google Docs, making it a suitable option for users who are already invested in the Google ecosystem. Unlike Evernote, Google Keep is free to use without any premium subscription fees, making it more accessible for casual users.

Here is a comparison table illustrating the key features of Evernote and Google Keep:

Feature	Evernote	Google Keep
Content Formats	Text, Images, Audio, PDFs	Text, Images, Voice Notes
Web Clipper	Yes	No
Templates	Yes	No
Advanced Search	Yes	No
Collaboration	Yes (with premium)	Yes
Integration with Apps	Limited	Google Apps Ecosystem
Pricing	Free & Premium Subscriptions	Free

In summary, while Evernote provides a robust set of features and capabilities for organizing and managing complex notes and ideas, Google Keep offers a simple, yet effective solution for users looking for a straightforward note-taking app that is easy to use and integrate with existing Google services.

Features Comparison

Taking Notes

Evernote and Google Keep both allow users to create text notes, checklists, and include images and audio recordings. Evernote, however, includes a more comprehensive note-taking interface with rich text formatting options (such as bold, italic, and creating tables), and web clipper capabilities to save online content directly to notes. In contrast, Google Keep limits users to basic text formatting options and emphasizes simplicity and quick note-taking¹.

Organizational Tools

Organizing notes in both apps is achieved through different methods. Evernote utilizes notebooks and tags to categorize and organize notes², allowing for hierarchical organization and easy searching. Users can create multiple notebooks for various projects or topics, and add tags to notes for better filtering. Google Keep, on the other hand, uses labels and colors³. Labels work similarly to tags, helping to categorize notes, while colors help visually differentiate and quickly locate notes.

Reminders and To-Do Lists

Both Evernote and Google Keep provide options to create to-do lists and set reminders. Evernote offers checkboxes within notes, which can be combined with text and multimedia content⁴. Google Keep comes with checklists and allows users to set time-based or location-based reminders⁵. Google Keep’s reminders are more robust due to integration with Google Calendar, providing users with a better visualization of their reminders and deadlines.

Collaboration and Sharing

Collaboration is possible on both platforms, but with some major differences. Evernote enables note sharing and multiple users working on a single note, making it ideal for team collaboration⁶. Google Keep’s sharing and collaboration features are more limited, allowing users to share individual notes with others but without real-time collaboration⁷. Google Keep is better suited for sharing casual notes and checklists rather than collaborative work.

Multimedia Support

Through Evernote, users can add photos, audio, and even files, like PDFs⁸, to their notes, making it a powerful multimedia note-taking tool. Google Keep also supports adding photos and voice recordings but does not offer the same range of file support as Evernote⁹.

Integrations and Compatibility

Evernote is compatible with a wide range of devices and apps, offering integrations with Dropbox, Slack, Microsoft Outlook, and many others¹⁰. Google Keep’s integrations are more focused on Google’s ecosystem, including Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Calendar¹¹. In terms of compatibility, Evernote provides mobile apps, desktop apps, and browser extensions, while Google Keep is mainly supported through mobile apps and web browsers¹².

	Evernote	Google Keep
Note-taking	Rich text formatting, web clipper	Basic text formatting options
Organization	Notebooks, tags	Labels, colors
Reminders	Checkboxes within notes	Time-based and location-based reminders
Collaboration	Multiple users working on a single note	Share individual notes with others
Multimedia	Photos, audio, PDFs, and more	Photos, voice recordings
Integrations	Dropbox, Slack, Microsoft Outlook, etc.	Google Drive, Gmail, Google Calendar

User Interface and Experience

Evernote and Google Keep are two popular note-taking apps, each with its unique approach to user interface and overall experience. Both cater to users that require seamless note creation, organization, and access on various devices.

Evernote is known for its extensive features and organizational capabilities. The app offers a hierarchical structure, allowing users to create notebooks and stack them for better organization. Notes can be tagged, and Evernote also supports rich-text formatting, media attachments, and web clipping, making it versatile for both personal and professional use. The user interface is clean and intuitive, but the learning curve may be slightly steeper for users unfamiliar with Evernote’s many features. One notable addition to the Evernote interface is the option to use Peek to preview notes, further enhancing the browsing experience.

Google Keep, on the other hand, focuses on simplicity and speed. Its user interface is significantly more minimalistic, with an emphasis on color-coded notes and visual organization through a grid layout. Users can create text, list, and media-based notes, as well as set reminders and collaborate on notes in real-time. The simplicity of Google Keep’s interface and its integration with other Google products make it an attractive option for those who prefer a streamlined note-taking experience.

Both Evernote and Google Keep have their dedicated mobile apps, each closely resembling their web interfaces in design and functionality. The apps cater to different users’ needs, as seen in this comparison table:

Feature	Evernote	Google Keep
Organizational Tools	Notebooks, Stacks, and Tags	Color-coded Notes, Grid Layout
Note Types	Text, List, Media, Web Clippings	Text, List, Media
Collaboration	Yes	Yes
Reminders	Yes	Yes
Rich-text Formatting	Yes	Limited
Search Functionality	Advanced	Basic

In conclusion, the decision between Evernote and Google Keep largely depends on individual preferences and the desired level of complexity. Users looking for a feature-rich interface with advanced organization might prefer Evernote, while those who value simplicity and speed may find Google Keep a better fit.

Pricing and Plans

Evernote and Google Keep both offer free and premium options to their users. Let’s dive into the details of their pricing models.

Evernote: Evernote offers a free plan called Evernote Basic, which comes with a limited set of features and 60 MB of storage per month. For users who need more advanced features and storage, Evernote Premium costs $7.99 per month and includes 10 GB of storage per month. Businesses can opt for Evernote Business, priced at $14.99 per user per month, which comes with additional collaboration features and shared spaces¹.

Google Keep: Google Keep is available for free to all users². It does not offer a separate premium plan but is integrated with Google Drive for storage. Users are provided with 15 GB of free storage across all Google services, including Google Keep, Gmail, and Google Photos³. If additional storage is needed, users can upgrade their Google Drive storage by subscribing to Google One, which offers storage options starting at $1.99 per month for 100 GB⁴.

Service	Free Plan Storage	Premium Plan Pricing	Premium Plan Storage	Business Plan Pricing	Business Plan Storage
Evernote	60 MB	$7.99	10 GB	$14.99	10 GB per user
Google Keep	15 GB	Integrated with Google One	Google One storage	N/A	N/A

In summary, Evernote offers free and premium plans suited for individuals and businesses, while Google Keep is primarily a free service with shared free storage across all Google services, which can be upgraded through Google One. It is up to the individual user or business to assess their specific needs and preferences when selecting a note-taking app.

Security and Privacy

Evernote and Google Keep are popular note-taking applications used by millions of users worldwide. As such, their security and privacy features play a crucial role in protecting sensitive user information. These two applications have differences in their approach to security and privacy, which we will discuss in this section.

Evernote offers a range of security features to safeguard user data. These include AES-256 bit encryption for data at rest, secure SSL/TLS connections for data in transit source: Evernote, and the option to enable two-factor authentication (2FA) for an additional layer of protection while accessing the account source: 2FA. Moreover, its privacy policy states that Evernote does not sell user’s personal information or contents.

Google Keep, being part of the Google ecosystem, adopts Google’s security infrastructure. Data is encrypted both at rest and in transit source: Keep encryption, and Google offers several security features such as 2FA and recovery options to ensure account protection source: Google security. Google’s privacy policy explains that they collect, store, and use user data to improve their services, but never sell personal information.

When comparing the security features of Evernote and Google Keep, both applications provide encryption for data at rest as well as in transit. They also offer the option to enable 2FA, ensuring an added layer of account protection.

Although Evernote and Google Keep share some similarities in terms of security and privacy, users should carefully review their respective policies and weigh the pros and cons to make an informed decision about which application aligns best with their personal requirements and preferences.

Conclusion

Evernote and Google Keep are both popular note-taking apps, offering different features and capabilities to cater to various user needs. In this section, we will briefly summarize their key differences, while also mentioning a suitable alternative for users seeking more options.

Evernote excels in providing a powerful and feature-rich platform for organizing and storing notes, images, and documents. Its ability to integrate with various other apps and services, as well as offering advanced search and tagging features, makes it a preferred choice for users seeking a comprehensive note-taking solution. However, Evernote’s pricing can be a limiting factor for some, as certain features are only available in the premium plans.

On the other hand, Google Keep is a simple, user-friendly, and free option for taking quick notes and creating lists. It is ideal for users who prioritize ease of use and seamless integration with other Google services. However, it lacks some of the advanced features that Evernote provides, making it less suitable for users with complex note-taking needs.

For those seeking an alternative, Microsoft OneNote is a strong contender in the note-taking app market. It offers a wide range of features, including integration with other Microsoft applications and a robust set of formatting tools, making it a suitable choice for users with diverse note-taking requirements.

In conclusion, the choice between Evernote and Google Keep largely depends on individual user needs and preferences. Those seeking a feature-rich, powerful tool for managing various types of notes and documents may find Evernote more fitting, while users who prefer a simple, free, and easy-to-use app for basic note-taking may lean toward Google Keep. Meanwhile, Microsoft OneNote serves as a viable alternative for those seeking a balance between comprehensive note-taking capabilities and integration with a broader suite of applications.