AudioNote vs Cleft
AudioNote
luminantsoftware.com
Cleft
cleftnotes.comSide by side
| Figure | AudioNote | Cleft |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $3.33/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 6 | 3 |
| Spec score · Voice Note Apps | 9.4 (#1) | 8.3 (#10) |
| Intended users | The maker's page highlights class and presentation notes, including note-taking directly on PDF slides. | The founders describe Cleft as built by neurodivergent founders for people whose thoughts move faster than they can type, with a focus on capture before organization. |
| Support | The maker provides an AudioNote help section with instructions for playback speed, trimming audio, transferring files, and other tasks. | Plus includes priority support, and the About page says every email is read personally by co-founders Jonathan or Justin. |
| What it does | AudioNote combines note taking and voice recording, linking notes to the exact point in the recording. | Cleft captures spoken thoughts and turns them into structured notes with main points, actions, summaries, and transcripts. |
Plans
AudioNote
- AudioNote for Windows demoFree
- AudioNote for Windows viewerFree
- AudioNote Pro trialFree
- AudioNote for iOS$12.99, paid once
- AudioNote 2 for Mac$14.99, paid once
- AudioNote 2 - Voice Recorder (Mac)$14.99, paid once
In their own words
AudioNote
AudioNote links notes to voice recordings so users can select a note and seek to its related audio. It supports typed, handwritten, and photo notes, with customizable fonts, colors, and shapes. During playback, notes highlight and scroll automatically; playback speed is adjustable with automatic pitch correction. Users can also annotate PDF slides and organize notes into subject folders. AudioNote is available on Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows, and the maker lists iCloud Drive, Dropbox, and other sharing options for syncing between devices. The maker advertises a one-month free trial of Pro. On Windows, the demo allows unlimited viewing of existing notes, but new recordings are limited to five minutes per note until a valid Product Key is entered. The Mac version costs 14.99 USD once and requires macOS 13.0 or later. The app can be used free to view notes recorded elsewhere; purchases are handled separately by app stores. Transcription is not a product feature. The Mac App Store listing says transcription runs on-device and audio and transcripts are never transmitted.
Cleft
Cleft is an iOS and macOS app that turns spoken thoughts into notes with main points, actions, summaries, and transcripts. Its built-in output styles are Structured, Structured Prose, and Clean Transcript; Plus users can also save custom styles. Cleft says it works offline and supports 99 languages, including switching languages mid-sentence. Transcription runs locally using Whisper, and temporary audio is deleted afterward unless Keep Audio is enabled. Optional cloud formatting sends transcript text, not audio, to OpenAI, with Groq as a backup. Cleft lists support for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and CarPlay. Its Basic plan includes recordings up to five minutes, on-device transcription, tags, search, and export. Plus raises the recording limit to 30 minutes and adds attachments, Notion and Zapier integrations, and Family Sharing for up to five. Plus costs $6.99 per month or $39.99 per year through the App Store, with automatic renewal unless canceled. Cleft says notes are encrypted at rest and in transit.