I didn’t expect a note-taking app to change how I work. Apple Notes had always been “good enough”—free, simple, and built right into my iPhone. But one of my biggest frustrations was the lack of a proper Windows version. Sure, you can access Apple Notes through a web browser, but it’s far from the seamless experience I wanted.
That’s not the only limitation, but it was the one that finally pushed me to look for an alternative notes app. Once I discovered Craft, I realized what I was missing. It gave me everything I liked about Apple Notes and then some. So much so that it’s now impossible for me to go back.
Why Craft feels different
And beautiful
When you open Craft for the first time, its clean interface may remind you of Apple Notes, but it’s in a different league. Beyond simply storing your thoughts, the app encourages you to shape, connect, and present them in ways that feel deliberate and polished.
The first thing that draws you into Craft isn’t a feature but the overall experience. From the moment you start typing, the clean design, elegant typography, and subtle animations make organizing ideas feel satisfying instead of tedious.
One of my favorite features is the ability to drag and drop elements anywhere on the page. Whether it’s a paragraph, table, or image, there’s no need to cut and paste. You simply grab it and drop it where it fits best. It feels natural, almost like the app anticipates what you want to do.
And then there’s the styling. Craft gives you all the options you’d expect and more. You can add colorful highlights, gradients, and different backgrounds, while the Decorations feature lets you format text in Blocks or Focus mode to make key ideas stand out.
The little features that make a big difference
Craft isn’t just a pretty face
Craft is packed with features that make your workflow smoother. One of the useful ones is notes within notes. Instead of juggling separate files or endless scrolling, you can nest ideas inside each other. For example, you might keep a main note for a project and then nest meeting notes, research snippets, or brainstorm ideas right inside it.
Another handy feature is AI-powered note assistant. With it, you can brainstorm ideas, summarize long notes in seconds, or even tweak your text for tone and style. It’s perfect for turning rough thoughts into polished sections without rewriting everything from scratch.
Craft plays nicely with the tools you already use. You can import all your reminders from Apple Reminders at once, pulling tasks, deadlines, and to-dos directly into Craft. This way, you don’t have to jump between apps or copy information manually.
Craft also lets you undo and redo changes even after you’ve saved and come back days later. I use this constantly when tweaking a project outline or experimenting with layouts, and being able to roll back to an earlier version takes the stress out of creative work.
Collaboration, cross-device availability, and export options
Perfect for teams and sharing
Collaboration is another area where Craft excels. Its Spaces feature lets you work with others in real time. You can share entire projects, brainstorm together, or build structured notes as a team. Changes appear instantly, which keeps everyone on the same page.
One thing you can’t compromise on when choosing a note-taking app is cross-platform availability. Craft works on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows, and even in a web browser. I use a Windows PC for work, and the PC version of the app is just as capable and smooth as its mobile counterparts.
While I usually don’t need to export notes, Craft has that covered too. When the occasion arises, you can export notes as Word (DOCX), PDF, or Markdown, which is perfect for sending polished documents to colleagues, publishing content, or backing up important projects.
The free version may not be enough
The only downside
Craft’s free plan is generous enough to give you a taste of what the app can do. You can create up to ten documents, enjoy 1GB of cloud storage, and even collaborate in real time. It’s perfect for testing the waters, seeing how notes feel in the app.
However, once you start using Craft regularly, the free plan may not be enough. Ten documents fill up faster than you’d think, especially as you begin nesting notes, adding images, or experimenting with layouts. And if you want to go beyond the basics and use advanced features like custom branding or an option to publish notes with a custom domain, you’ll need to upgrade to a paid plan, which starts at $8 a month.
If Apple Notes is a dependable notepad, Craft feels like a full creative studio for your thoughts. By the time you finish your first note, you realize Craft has done something Apple Notes never did: it makes you want to write, structure, and revisit your ideas. Of course, paying for a note-taking app isn’t worth it for everyone, but if you rely on your notes daily for work, Craft is worth every penny.
