Comparison
A great notes app. A different kind of private.
Standard Notes has earned its reputation: open source, end-to-end encrypted, on every platform. Sealby does a different job: notes, files and photos in one sealed place, with no account and no stored list or count of vaults.
What’s the difference between Sealby and Standard Notes?
Standard Notes is an account-based encrypted notes service that syncs to every platform. Sealby is a vault on your device for notes, photos, videos and any file, with no account and deniable hidden vaults. Pick by job: notes synced everywhere, or a sealed private archive.
Where Standard Notes shines
- Open-source, audited clients with a long privacy track record
- Syncs notes to every platform, including the web
- Generous free tier for plain-text notes
Where it falls short
- Account-based: your identity and (encrypted) notes live with the provider
- Notes-centric — media and files are secondary and largely paid features
- No deniability: the account and its data visibly exist
- Rich text and file storage sit behind a subscription
The honest verdict
If you need the same notes on a work laptop, an Android phone and the web, Standard Notes is a fine choice. If your notes sit next to photos, scans and documents that should be sealed, with nothing that records them, Sealby is built for exactly that, with no account to tie it to you.
Common questions
Is open-source a security advantage?
It helps, because anyone can audit the code, and Standard Notes deserves credit for it. What matters most is what surrounds the code: who holds the keys, what a server learns, and what exists to be demanded. Sealby’s answer is built in: no account, no server, nothing to list.
Can Sealby sync my notes to other platforms?
Sealby is iPhone-first (iOS 17+). Premium syncs vaults between your devices through Encrypted Backup. If notes on every platform are the priority, a synced notes service fits better. Many people keep both, for different levels of privacy.
Related: Private journaling · Notes & documents · Best encrypted vault apps
Your vault is waiting.
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iPhone & iPad · iOS 17+ · Free