Compass vs Apple Notes
Apple Notes keeps what you put in it. Compass keeps what you think out loud, and connects it.
Compass is an iPhone app for founders who think out loud, in early access now.
Updated . We make Compass. Here is where each tool fits.
The short answer
Apple Notes is free, fast and already on your iPhone, and on iPhone 12 and later it can record audio with a live transcript. If you mostly keep lists and reference notes, keep using it. Compass is for founders who think out loud: every voice note is sorted by topic, linked to the people and decisions in it, and connected to what you said before.
Choose Compass if
- You talk through your company most days and want it filed for you
- You want patterns, open questions and commitments pulled from weeks of notes
- You want X and LinkedIn drafts from what you already said
Choose Apple Notes if
- You want a free notes app for lists, checklists, scans and snippets
- You need your notes on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch
- You want end-to-end encrypted notes through Advanced Data Protection
You can keep Apple Notes for lists and use Compass for the thinking you do out loud.
Keep Apple Notes for lists. Give your spoken thinking a home.
Join the early access list in seconds
14-day free trial, then $9.99/mo or $99.99/yr.
Price will increase to $19.99/mo after the first 100 founding members.
Compass vs Apple Notes at a glance
| Feature | Compass | Apple Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Price | 14-day free trial, then $9.99/mo or $99.99/yr, early access price. Price will increase to $19.99/mo after the first 100 founding members. | Free and built in |
| Platforms | iPhone only (iOS 17 or later) | iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch, synced with iCloud |
| Voice capture | Tap the mic and talk. Transcribed, cleaned up and saved as a note. | Record audio inside a note with a live transcript (iPhone 12 or later, 10 languages) |
| After you record | An Enhanced read: takeaways, risks, action items and open questions | Apple Intelligence summary of a recording (iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, or iPhone 16 model or later) |
| Organizing | Every note filed into founder categories like fundraising, hiring and product | Folders, tags, Smart Folders, pins and links between notes, all set up by you |
| People and commitments | Memory pulls the people, lessons and promises out of your notes | You track them yourself with checklists, folders and search |
| Across weeks | Insights flag patterns and contradictions, plus a weekly review | Search across notes, including text in scans and images |
| Posting about your work | Drafts X and LinkedIn posts from your notes. Nothing posts until you tap. | Write the post in a note, then copy or share it yourself |
| Privacy | Encrypted at rest on our servers. Lock single notes with Face ID. | Locked notes, and end-to-end encryption with Advanced Data Protection |
Why use Compass if you already have Apple Notes?
It files itself
Talk for ten seconds after a call and the note lands in the right founder category. No folder to pick, no tag to remember.
It remembers people and promises
Memory keeps the people, lessons and commitments from your own words, so you can find who introduced you to whom and what you promised the board.
It reads across weeks
Insights point out the question you keep circling and the plan that contradicts something you said last month. A weekly review pulls it together.
Your notes can become posts
Compass drafts X and LinkedIn posts from your notes, in your voice. You edit, then publish to your own account with one tap.
Where Apple Notes is better
Free, and already on every Apple device you own
Apple Notes costs nothing and syncs through iCloud to your iPad, Mac and Apple Watch. Compass is an iPhone app with a paid subscription after the trial.
Recording and transcripts are built in
On iPhone 12 and later you can record audio in a note, read a live transcript, search it and add it to the note. On iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, or iPhone 16 model or later, Apple Intelligence can summarize the recording. In some countries and regions, recorded Phone and FaceTime calls also land in Notes with a transcript.
Stronger privacy options
Turn on Advanced Data Protection and your notes are end-to-end encrypted in iCloud. Compass encrypts notes at rest, but its AI features have to read a note on our servers to work.
Apple Notes is a very good notes app, and for a lot of founders it is the right one.
The question is what happens after you capture a thought. Apple Notes stores it where you put it. Compass sorts it, links it to what you already said and brings it back when it matters.
One setup that works: Apple Notes for grocery lists, door codes and reference snippets, Compass for the founder thinking you do out loud between calls. Compass exports your notes and summaries as Markdown, JSON or PDF, so your notes are not stuck inside it.
Common questions
Can Apple Notes transcribe voice notes?
Yes. On iPhone 12 and later, Notes can record audio inside a note and show a live transcript in 10 languages, and you can search the transcript or add it to the note. On iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, or iPhone 16 model or later, Apple Intelligence can also summarize a recording. Organizing is still up to you: folders, tags, pins and links between notes.
Is Compass a replacement for Apple Notes?
It works best next to Apple Notes rather than in place of it. Keep Apple Notes for lists, scans and snippets. Use Compass for the thinking you do out loud about your company: calls, decisions, worries and ideas that you want filed and connected.
Does Compass work on iPad or Mac?
Compass is built for iPhone, on iOS 17 or later. There is no iPad, Mac or Apple Watch version, so if you need your notes on those devices today, Apple Notes is the better fit.
How much does Compass cost compared with Apple Notes?
Apple Notes is free. 14-day free trial, then $9.99/mo or $99.99/yr. Everyone on the early access list keeps $9.99/mo for as long as their subscription stays active. Price will increase to $19.99/mo after the first 100 founding members. Join the early access list now and subscribe when Compass is live.
Sources
We checked each claim about Apple Notes against these pages. Features and prices change, so check the latest before you decide.
- Apple Support: Record and transcribe audio in Notes on iPhone, accessed
- Apple Support: Record and transcribe a call on iPhone, accessed
- Apple Support: Use Notes on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, accessed
- Apple Support: iCloud data security overview (Advanced Data Protection), accessed
- Notes User Guide for Mac, accessed
- App Store: Notes by Apple (free), accessed