Notesnook vs Google Keep

Private by construction, not by policy — and it runs on your desktop, not just in a tab.

Notesnook encrypts your notes on your device, so nobody can read them, including us. Keep is encrypted too — with Google holding the keys, and reading your content to power handwriting recognition and search. That's privacy by policy: it works right up until the policy changes. Ours doesn't depend on a promise.

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OUR CASE

Where Notesnook is better

Private because of how it's built, not because of a policy.

Google holds the keys and reads your content.
Ours is encrypted before it leaves your device.
A policy can change; this can't.

A real app, not a browser tab.

Desktop apps for Windows, macOS and Linux.
Keep has no desktop app at all.

Room to write more than a sticky note.

Rich text, notebooks and attachments, free.
100 versions of every note, free.
Keep: coloured labels, no version history.

No AI reading your notes.

Not on any plan — we mathematically can't.
If you want AI, Keep has Gemini.

Who can read your notes

	Notesnook	Google Keep
End-to-end encrypted — the vendor cannot read your notes
Notes used for advertising
Content processed by the vendor to power features
AI features that read your notes
Open source clients
Self-hostable sync server
App lock (passcode / biometrics)

Platforms

	Notesnook	Google Keep
Desktop app
Linux desktop app
Android, iOS and web
Works fully offline

Writing and organising

	Notesnook	Google Keep
Rich text — headings, tables, formatting
Notebooks / folders	50 free, unlimited on Pro
Note version history	100 free, unlimited on Pro
Checklists and reminders
Extract text from a photo (OCR)
Real-time collaboration
Full export to open formats

Price

	Notesnook	Google Keep
Free plan	$0 — unlimited notes, all devices	$0
Paid plan	$19.99/yr — Essential	Google One
Free trial	14 days

Google Keep, Google One, Gemini and Google Takeout are trademarks of Google LLC. This comparison was written from Google’s published support pages on 2026-07-30 and is not endorsed by them. Found something out of date? Tell us and we will correct it.

MOVING OVER

Moving your Keep notes across

Notesnook imports from Google Keep. Create your account first, then bring the notes over.

Step 1
Export your Keep notes
Use Google Takeout to export Keep. You will get your notes and their attachments in a downloadable archive.
Step 2
Create your free Notesnook account
Unlimited notes on every device, no card. Your password encrypts your notes and cannot be reset, so choose one you will keep.
Step 3
Import into Notesnook
Import the archive from the app. Everything is encrypted on your device as it lands.

THE OTHER SIDE

In fairness to Google Keep

Where Google Keep is stronger, in our own words. If one of these decides it for you, we would rather you read it here than find out later.

Keep is free, instant, and you're already signed in.

No account to create, no app to install on Android, and it opens faster than any note app has a right to. For a quick list or a photo of a receipt, that convenience is real and we're not going to pretend otherwise.

Google doesn't use your Keep notes for advertising.

Their help page puts it plainly: “We don't use information in apps where you primarily store personal content—including Keep—for advertising purposes, period.” If you've read that Keep mines your notes for ads, that's a myth, and we'd rather correct it than benefit from it.

It does things a zero-knowledge app can't.

Handwriting recognition, pulling text out of a photo, searching notes by category, voice notes that transcribe themselves, Gemini generating lists, Calendar and Assistant integration. All of it needs a server that can read your content. Ours can't, so we do none of it.

Questions & answers

Can Google read my Keep notes?

Technically yes. Keep is encrypted in transit and at rest, but Google holds the keys, and their help page says they access private content when they have your permission or are required to by law. They also process note content for features like handwriting recognition and category search. That's not a scandal — it's how those features work. It does mean the privacy rests on a policy rather than on maths.

Does Google use my notes for ads?

No. Google states they don't use information in apps where you primarily store personal content, Keep included, for advertising. It's a common claim online and it isn't accurate.

Why switch from something free that already works?

Only for a specific reason: you want notes nobody but you can read, a real desktop app including Linux, notebooks and rich text instead of coloured labels, or a version history of every note. If none of those apply, Keep is fine — keep using it.

What do I lose?

Text extraction from photos, handwriting recognition, Gemini, real-time collaboration, Assistant and Calendar integration, and the convenience of already being signed in.

Can I import my Keep notes?

Yes. Export from Google Takeout and import here. Create your free account first so the import has somewhere to go.