Comparison of our favorite digital notebooks
Our favorite smart pens
Neo Smartpen M1+ for $129: Skip the tablet and write directly on paper with a smart pen instead. The Neo SmartPen M1+ is the thinnest and lightest of all the pens I’ve tried, making it feel a little more like your standard pen. The important thing is that it is comfortable to hold and use. You should be able to find notebooks and planners of any size and style. The Neo Studio app (iOS, Android) is good, with an easy-to-navigate notebook system and the ability to search pages by page number or date. You can change the ink color and thickness of the lines as you go on the page, or you can change them later and edit the colors of what you’ve written. -Medea Giodiano
Moleskine Smart Writing Set for $279: Moleskine has garnered a devoted following for its classic notebooks and journals, but it has also moved into the smart realm. The Smart Writing Set gets you a notebook and pen bundle, so it’s the best option for most people starting out. Write in the notebook, and it will appear in the companion app! But you can buy the pen alone, as well as smart notebooks and planners in different sizes. It was easy to use once it was included in the Moleskine Notes 2.0 app (iOS, Android). The older version of the app is available for download, but the 2.0 version is more streamlined. A pop-up told me that 2.0 is still a work in progress and I may need to switch back to an older version if my device is having issues, but my iPhone 11 has no issues. I tested the $149 2018 version of the Smart Writing Set, which is no longer available, but we plan to test the latest version soon. -Madea Giordano
honorable mentions
%2520comparison%2520hero%2520Reviewer%2520Photo%2520SOURCE%2520Nena%2520Farrell.jpg "7 Best Digital Notebooks (2026): reMarkable, Kobo, Kindle 2")
Boox Note Air3c for $450: This model was a solid all-around performer. It has a more complex ecosystem than our top picks, but it also has more capabilities than a standard tablet. This version has been discontinued, but there is a new version Note Air4c ($530)Which we now recommend above.
Kindle Scribe ColorSoft ($630) and Kindle Scribe (3rd generation) ($500): The newer versions of the Kindle Scribe are still solid all-around devices with a good mix of e-reader and digital notebook features, but I still prefer the older model. Although the new Scribe ColorSoft is a good option if you want color, I think both are too expensive for their price. The price comes from all the AI features packed into the device, but I don’t think any reader or digital notetaker was demanding more than that. Our pick above is better priced for similar features, though the Scribe has the most impressive battery life of any digital notebook device I’ve tried (and that’s still true for the older models I recommend above, so you don’t need the latest model for the best battery life).
Montblanc Digital Paper for $905: Yes, Montblanc, the famous pen maker, now has its own digital notebook. It’s no surprise that I’d call its digital pen one of the best. It has a very lightweight feel to it, with three different buttons, two of which you can customize. (There’s no eraser, but I’d leave it to make that the end of the pen the home button instead). I really like this device overall, but it’s expensive for what you get – other than the customizable pen button, there’s not much to separate it from my top picks.
Neo Smartpen Demo for $59: This is the cheapest smart pen option and uses replaceable batteries. It’s not compatible with Google Calendar, iCal, or Outlook like our other picks.
Rocketbook Fusion Plus for $38: If you really like the paper experience and don’t want something you have to charge for, then the Rocketbook is for you. Rocketbooks makes several reusable notebooks, planners, and accessories like index cards and sticky notes. I like RocketBook Fusion Plus because it comes with so many different template styles, from your classic monthly and weekly pages to project management layouts and meeting notes, making it feel closer to the variety that a digital notebook can offer you. Take notes with the erasable Pilot Frixion pen (it comes with any item you purchase), scan photos of pages into the Rocketbook app, and wipe the whole thing down with a damp microfiber cloth (also included). The app is designed to keep everything organized and easily send things to Google Drive, Slack, Trello, OneNote, and a few other options.
Supernote A6 X2 Nomad (with standard pen) for $394: It is a smaller version of the Supernote A5 X2 Manta, measuring about 6 inches on one side and 7.5 inches on the other. Supernote designed it with travel in mind, but I think it’s a great size for a daily digital to-do list or writing quick notes from a meeting. It’s too small for anything major, but if you’re looking for something compact, it’s a good option with Supernote’s software (and the same great pen!). Like the Manta above, this model’s price increased due to tariffs, although it only increased by $30.
questions to ask
Do you need a digital note taking device?
The short answer is no. These devices are expensive, typically costing several hundred dollars while a simple notebook and pen costs a few bucks. But if you like the physical act of writing but need to keep digital copies, they are worth considering.
professional:
- Digital notebooks are thin and light but can hold hundreds of notes.
- You can transcribe your notes into text files, making them easier to read and manipulate.
- Depending on the device, you can export files as PDFs, Google Docs, Evernote files, and more.
- Also makes your art digital instantly.
Shortcoming:
- expensive.
- Needs to charge.
- Keep a learning curve.
- Most smart pens need to be paired with an accompanying notebook. Upcoming Nuva Pen promises smart notes Any paper.
E Ink notebooks are easier on the eyes and feel closer to paper than glass-screen tablets. But in some cases, you may have to spend less than buying an iPad and an Apple Pencil (and a keyboard if you want to type occasionally). Thanks to the thousands of apps in the App Store, you can do a lot more with them. An iPad is fairly intuitive if you’re familiar with the Apple ecosystem (although both the Remarkable and Supernote’s ecosystems are also pretty intuitive). Former WIRED reviewer Jana Gray recommended using her 11-inch iPad Pro with the GoodNotes and Notability apps for her writing, but there are other models that should work just as well, including our top pick, the 2025 iPad. For more advice on which iPad to buy, check out our guide to the best iPads.
I also have an iPad, and I would say the advantage of a digital notebook is that the battery lasts longer, especially if you’re the type of person to use it for a day or two and then forget about it for a few days. My trusty Kindle Scribe usually has plenty of battery available whenever I feel the itch to take notes, even if it’s been a week or two since I last touched it.
Why are digital notebooks so expensive?
Just because these devices look like paper doesn’t mean they’re as cheap to make as a sheet of paper. Like any tablet or smart phone, these devices are packed with features, an exclusive ecosystem, and E Ink technology along with a sensation similar to writing on paper—no small feat to perfect. This is an impressive example of technology.
Prices for this category have not become affordable as technology prices have increased due to tariffs. Remarkable recently raised the price of our top pick, the Remarkable Paper Pro. Another favorite of ours from Supernote has increased by a little less than $50, and Kobo has also increased its prices a bit, though the $10 increase is fairly modest compared to other hikes we’ve seen. We will continue to monitor prices and note if there are further price changes.
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