Noteastic
Austrian Windows app for handwritten notes and PDF annotation, pen-first and affordable
Quick Overview
| Company | Noteastic OG |
|---|---|
| Category | Note Taking Alternatives |
| Headquarters | Vienna, Austria |
| EU Presence | EU (Austria) |
| Open Source | No |
| Pricing | Base free / Pro €20 per year |
| Replaces | GoodNotes, OneNote, Noteshelf |
Detailed Review
Noteastic is a Windows-only answer to the handwriting question this category otherwise leaves to MyScript Notes and to Apple-only apps outside it. It captures ink directly with pen-first tools, keeps documents organised in unlimited notebooks, and layers PDF annotation and pre-designed paper templates on top, aimed squarely at Surface and other Windows-tablet users who take handwritten meeting or lecture notes and want to keep them next to their PDFs rather than in a separate app.
The publisher is Noteastic OG, an Austrian Offene Gesellschaft registered at the Handelsgericht Wien under FN 644438d, VAT number ATU81638239, based at Anton-Baumgartnerstrasse 44 in Vienna. Pricing is a small annual subscription rather than the per-app-store pricing MyScript Notes uses: the Base tier is free and covers plain handwritten notes without distraction, and Pro adds text boxes, a wider colour palette, geometry tools and handwriting-to-text conversion for €20 a year.
The trade-off is scope. Noteastic ships only through the Microsoft Store for Windows 11, so it is not a candidate for anyone on an iPad, an Android tablet or a Mac, which rules it out for most of the households and teams this category otherwise serves.
Neither its pricing page nor its imprint states where notes are stored or synced, so this entry answers the jurisdiction question the same way MyScript Notes does — a small, named European company — without yet answering the residency one.
What Noteastic does well
- Handwriting and PDF annotation in one small Windows app
- Austrian OG verifiable at the Handelsgericht Wien with a VAT number
- €20 a year is the cheapest paid tier of any handwriting tool here
- Free Base tier is not time-limited
- Geometry tools and handwriting-to-text conversion on the Pro tier
Where Noteastic falls short
- Windows only, through the Microsoft Store — no iPad, Android or Mac app
- No published data location or hosting/sync details
- Much smaller company and product than MyScript, its closest comparison here
- No end-to-end encryption, no self-hosting, not open source
Standout feature. The only tool in this category built specifically for Windows tablets rather than iPad or Apple Pencil users.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Handwriting and PDF annotation in one small Windows app
- Austrian OG verifiable at the Handelsgericht Wien with a VAT number
- €20 a year is the cheapest paid tier of any handwriting tool here
- Free Base tier is not time-limited
- Geometry tools and handwriting-to-text conversion on the Pro tier
Cons
- Windows only, through the Microsoft Store — no iPad, Android or Mac app
- No published data location or hosting/sync details
- Much smaller company and product than MyScript, its closest comparison here
- No end-to-end encryption, no self-hosting, not open source
Alternatives to Noteastic
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Noteastic?
Noteastic is a Windows-only answer to the handwriting question this category otherwise leaves to MyScript Notes and to Apple-only apps outside it. It captures ink directly with pen-first tools, keeps documents organised in unlimited notebooks, and layers PDF annotation and pre-designed paper templates on top, aimed squarely at Surface and other Windows-tablet users who take handwritten meeting or lecture notes and want to keep them next to their PDFs rather than in a separate app.
Where is Noteastic based?
Noteastic operates from Vienna, Austria, which places it under EU (Austria).
What does Noteastic cost?
Base free / Pro €20 per year.
Who is Noteastic best for?
Windows tablet users who want handwriting and PDF annotation. The only tool in this category built specifically for Windows tablets rather than iPad or Apple Pencil users.
What are the drawbacks of Noteastic?
Windows only, through the Microsoft Store — no iPad, Android or Mac app. No published data location or hosting/sync details. Much smaller company and product than MyScript, its closest comparison here. No end-to-end encryption, no self-hosting, not open source.
Is Noteastic a good alternative to GoodNotes?
Noteastic is built as a European alternative to GoodNotes: Austrian Windows app for handwritten notes and PDF annotation, pen-first and affordable. It will not be a like-for-like feature match in every respect, so check the review above for where the two genuinely differ before switching.
How does Noteastic compare to other Note Taking Alternatives tools?
Noteastic is one of several European Note Taking Alternatives tools we cover. It is most often compared with GoodNotes, OneNote, Noteshelf.