A GoodNotes Alternative: Handwriting & Note Apps
A faster, simpler alternative for capturing and organizing your thoughts
Download Brain Dump
Available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Vision Pro
Brain Dump vs GoodNotes: Feature Comparison
BrainDump
Strengths
- ✓No 3-notebook cap, unlimited notes on the free plan
- ✓Typed capture is faster than handwriting for quick thoughts and meeting notes
- ✓AI-powered summaries and transforms that GoodNotes doesn't offer
- ✓Opens straight to a blank note instead of a notebook picker
Trade-offs
- −No handwriting or Apple Pencil input
- −No PDF annotation or markup
Free, with Focus from $3.99/week or $99.99/year
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GoodNotes
Strengths
- ✓Best-in-class Apple Pencil handwriting input
- ✓PDF annotation and markup
- ✓Organized notebooks
Drawbacks
- ×Built around handwriting, not fast typed capture
- ×Free plan caps you at 3 notebooks
- ×No AI features
Free tier capped at 3 notebooks. From $9.99/year, or $29.99 one-time lifetime purchase.
Who Should Pick Which
Pick BrainDump if...
You want to capture a thought the moment it happens, with no setup, no configuration, and no decisions to make before you start writing.
Pick GoodNotes if...
GoodNotes is the better choice if you take handwritten notes with an Apple Pencil or need to annotate PDFs, that's a different input mode BrainDump doesn't try to replace.
What Makes Brain Dump Different
No 3-notebook cap, unlimited notes on the free plan
Typed capture is faster than handwriting for quick thoughts and meeting notes
AI-powered summaries and transforms that GoodNotes doesn't offer
Opens straight to a blank note instead of a notebook picker
Frequently Asked Questions
Make the switch today
Join thousands who've simplified their workflow with BrainDump. Import your GoodNotes workspace in minutes.
Download App
Available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Vision Pro