After Evernote's recent price hike, many paying subscribers are opting out in favor of Microsoft OneNote. Heck, even free subscribers are leaving the service now that the free package only allows syncing on up to two devices.
If you're one of these experienced Evernote users looking to migrate your Evernote library to OneNote, you should read this article first. We'll not only discuss what makes OneNote different, but also how to actually migrate (on Windows and Mac). Common concerns will be addressed towards the end of the article.
Although Evernote cannot currently being in trouble, from the outside it looks like he's in panic mode. Last year, Evernote's CEO resigned and 13% of his staff was fired. We even had to say goodbye to Evernote Food. No wonder long time users are getting worried.
Don't get me wrong, Evernote continues to improve its heavyweight note-taking app. In the last year alone, the Windows app has been completely redesigned, great camera features have been released on Android, and the Mac version has also received many updates.
However, despite these improvements, the app still feels clunky. It's more buggy than it should be. And notes yet It seems like it takes an age to sync up. To the extent these issues affect Evernote, OneNote will keep users away.
Although we are considering two different note-taking apps, they are not one and the same. For a detailed breakdown of both apps, read our side-by-side comparison of Evernote and OneNote Evernote vs. OneNote:Which Note-Taking App Is Right For You? Evernote vs. OneNote:Which Note-Taking App Is Right For You? Evernote and OneNote are amazing note-taking apps. It is difficult to choose between the two. We compare everything from the interface to the organization of notes to help you choose. What works best for you? Read more . In essence, many of the main features are available in both applications. They are both cross-platform. Both allow third-party integrations, etc. But it's in the nuances of those features where the differences lie.
Assuming you're already familiar with Evernote, here's how OneNote differs.
In terms of UX , OneNote offers a much sleeker user interface than Evernote's current look and feel. If you're used to Microsoft Office, you'll adjust to this new interface in no time.
The notes are also organized differently . Evernote pretty much gives us a basic approach to files and folders. OneNote, however, aims to mimic the use of physical Notebooks as much as possible. Each notebook is separated by tabs. It then stores your individual notes (pages) within those tabs.
But it's the individual OneNote notes. 12 Tips for Taking Better Notes with Microsoft OneNote 12 Tips for Taking Better Notes with Microsoft OneNote These 12 tips show you how to take better notes in MIcrosoft OneNote. Today, digital note taking is as much about the skill as it is about the tool. Read More Instead of just giving us the space to write some notes and insert some pictures, OneNote gives us a lot more control . As you insert different elements into your note (text blocks, images, tables, videos, etc.), you can drag and drop them wherever you want. This means that the layout of each of your notes is fully customizable. Take a look at how Darwin would have used OneNote How to use OneNote like a famous scientist. How to use OneNote like a famous scientist. Charles Darwin would have loved OneNote. He was an avid note taker who recorded everything he observed. Here's how he could have used OneNote to organize his work and further his research. Read More
OneNote also offers several less-used features 7 Little-Known OneNote Features You'll Love 7 Little-Known OneNote Features You'll Love OneNote is 100% free and packed with advanced features. Let's take a look at some of the ones you may have missed. If you're not already using OneNote, these may beat you to it. Read More
I've worded these differences positively, but if you like the way Evernote works, you might find it hard to adjust to OneNote (I did). But you'll get used to it after a week or so.
Considering the problems Evernote faces and the key differences in the apps, I took a detailed look at the best Evernote alternatives. Has the device restriction for the free plan disrupted your note-taking workflow? So, it's time to take another look at some of the best Evernote alternatives. Read more . You can read that full article if you want. But to sum it up, OneNote is definitely the best Evernote alternative. The best Evernote alternative is OneNote and it is free. The best Evernote alternative is OneNote and it is free. The market is full of note-taking apps that compete with Evernote. But there is only one serious alternative to Evernote. Let's explain why that's OneNote. Read more (for Windows users, at least).
Other alternatives just don't seem to be up to par. Simplenote The best Evernote alternative is OneNote and it's free The best Evernote alternative is OneNote and it's free The market is full of note-taking apps that compete with Evernote. But there is only one serious alternative to Evernote. Let's explain why that's OneNote. Read More Google Keep will probably be closed one day. DEVONthink is more of a file organizer. Quip is more geared towards team collaboration. That's why if you're a Windows user and want something feature rich, with the added benefit of currently Being free, OneNote is almost your best bet.
While the Windows version of OneNote is packed with impressive features, several of them are not available to Mac users. If you rely heavily on any of these missing features, you may want to stick with Evernote or find another alternative. .
The most important of these missing OneNote features The Essential Guide to OneNote for Mac The Essential Guide to OneNote for Mac OneNote is a free, cross-platform note-taking app for Mac, iPad, and iPhone. Our short guide summarizes everything you need to know. Forget your hate for Microsoft and try OneNote with us today. Read more are:
If you think you can live without these features, OneNote should definitely be a viable alternative for Mac users. Is OneNote for Mac a viable alternative to Evernote? Is OneNote for Mac a viable alternative to Evernote? Even if you're a die-hard Mac or iOS user, you might find the sleek Microsoft OneNote for Mac, iPad, and iPhone a worthy option for capturing notes and creating page layouts. Read more.
If you think you can live with the differences between Evernote and OneNote, it's time to migrate your library.
Until recently, you had to use third-party apps to migrate from Evernote to OneNote. How to migrate from Evernote to OneNote and why you should migrate from Evernote to OneNote and why you should. You think Microsoft OneNote is better. what Evernote? Or maybe it just suits your project management style. Either way, here's how you can easily migrate all your notes from Evernote to OneNote. Read more . Now you can simply use the official Microsoft tool:OneNote Importer.
Microsoft makes the whole process pretty easy, but we've written a full tutorial. Export Your Notes From Evernote To OneNote For Free Premium Features Export Your Notes From Evernote To OneNote For Free Premium Features Evernote is a great note-taking app, but OneNote is free and offers many premium features. If you're sick of paying for Evernote, here's how to easily transfer your notes to OneNote. Read more if necessary.
In short, when your notes are moved to OneNote, any notebooks you have in Evernote will be copied over to OneNote as new. Your individual notes in Evernote will become individual pages in OneNote (stored in their respective notebooks). You'll also have the option to keep your Evernote tags so you don't have to re-tag (potentially) thousands of notes.
However, there is a drawback. OneNote preserves formatting like the links in your notes, but you can override other formatting, such as paragraph spacing. This can make your notes look quite messy. Either you have to be happy living with this or spend some time sorting each of your notes individually.
Update: Meanwhile, Microsoft has released a OneNote importer for Mac. We have covered it in the article How to Migrate Evernote to OneNote on Mac How to Migrate Evernote to OneNote on Mac Easily How to Migrate Evernote to OneNote on Mac Easily The OneNote Importer for Evernote is now available for Mac users. If you've been waiting for a full-featured note-taking app that's free and cross-platform, give OneNote a try. Read more.
Once again, Microsoft doesn't make things nice for Mac users. The official Microsoft Evernote to OneNote tool only works on Windows. Various MakeUseOf authors have searched the web and simply cannot find a workable solution for Mac users. This leaves you with two options.
Your easiest choice is to make friends with someone who uses Windows. Install Evernote and OneNote on your computer, then migrate your files as described in the previous section. When you sync your OneNote account to your Mac, you'll have access to your notes.
Second, install Windows on your Mac. This is not for the faint of heart. There are several different ways to do it. 4 Ways to Get Windows on Your Mac 4 Ways to Get Windows on Your Mac Want to get Windows 8 running on your Mac, but don't know where to start? Let us show you how. Read More Mac OS X works fine for most tasks, there are times when it just can't do what you want. Most of the time, this means running Windows on your Mac. Read More .
If you've been using Evernote for a long time, there will be certain features you'll use, or certain workflows you've selected that you need OneNote to recreate. Some of these are addressed below.
Once you've migrated your Evernote library, don't delete your account yet ! It may turn out that you hate using OneNote.
Be sure to follow these instructions to back up your Evernote library. Save this backup in the cloud or on an external hard drive. If you ever want to go back to Evernote, you can use this backup to restore your library to that point.
If you regularly use the Evernote web clipper, you'll know how powerful it is. From annotating screenshots to saving entire web pages, it was the best option on the market. OneNote has its own web clipper, although it's a bit more lightweight.
You can crop entire pages, sections of pages, or just an article on a page. You can write a note for each clip, but you can't visually annotate clips like you can with Evernote's web clipper.
Many of the IFTTT recipes you set up for Evernote will be replicable in OneNote. Maybe not exactly, but close to it.
You can see the available OneNote recipes here.
If you were sending RSS feeds to your Evernote account, don't worry, you can do the same in OneNote.
You can do this using this IFTTT recipe. Or if you have a Feedly Pro membership, you can submit articles directly to your account.
Like Evernote, the OneNote mobile app allows you to take photos and photos of documents and business cards from within the app.
For even more functionality, download Office Lens from Microsoft (iOS, Android, Windows), which "enhances and makes images on whiteboards and documents readable, and saves them to OneNote."
Hopefully this article has covered everything you need to consider before migrating to OneNote. If anything is missing, please leave a comment below and I'll try to answer as best I can.
As mentioned, Evernote and OneNote have many similarities, but also many differences. If you've been using Evernote for a while, the OneNote workflow may seem strange, but it's pretty easy to learn. In fact, most people like it better. Good luck!
Let us know what you think of OneNote after you try it out for a while. Do you prefer it to Evernote??
